Surrey woman launches kinder social media platform for animal lovers

Social media is ubiquitous in our society. It has changed the way that we communicate, offering additional channels of information and support. But it can sometimes have detrimental impacts when people connect with certain algorithms in excessive quantities.

The growth of social media shows no signs of stopping. Mollie Kerr, CEO and Founder of Kelp Social, a new social media platform for animal lovers said: “If you can’t beat them, join them. Use that, but harness it for good, because it's not going anywhere.”

Kelp Social, Mollie says, is an open space, an inclusive community, encouraging people to build a platform based around the thing that unites all of its users: a compassionate love for animals.

With no graphic content, instead a focus on polite discourse and making a change, this sounds like a utopia at odds with the likes of Elon Musk's Twitter or Mark Zuckerberg's Facebook.

Mollie, 29, who lives in Surrey, UK, said: “It’s a misconception, especially in the vegan community, that everyone has to be perfect, as long as you're there and you care, and you’re willing to learn then that's a good place to start.”

"There are no images with graphic content on Kelp, obviously animal rights has a lot of graphic content and it was a big decision, and it took me a while.

"We did have a social media before that I had been working on for years that was cancelled by Facebook, we used more images with shock value on there., I realised the difference in feedback between a post that was shock value and a post that was, perhaps a more suggestive image was quite significant”

“With the suggestive content, it's not too alienating. People can read it and do with it what they want. I'm not going to tell you what to think, it’s appealing to the better nature of humans, that they’ll make the right decision”

“Kelp is me building the space that I know a lot of people need and that I definitely did when I first started finding out about the grim reality of animal welfare. The more you dig, the worse it gets.”

The beginning of Kelp Social started from Mollie wanting support and having a craving for community. Seeing the brands and charities people loved scattered over the internet, not compiled under one roof, gave her the motivation to build the platform. She said: “Together, that’s how we are going to make a difference”.

Mollie has built Kelp Social to its prototype stage and is currently conducting test marketing. Investors will then be brought on board to finalise the membership packages. Mollie will then carefully curate a selection of animal-friendly sponsors to advertise on the site. Providing users with a unique and tailored experience, they will be able to follow these brands and charities, receiving perks for great participation.

It all started for Mollie when she was very young. Fascinated by her pet rats, she dreamed of starting her own pet shop. She studied pet shop management before The Prince's Trust helped to refine her ideas and realise that social media is “the vehicle for changein today’s society”.

Speaking about her early life Mollie said: "For as long as I can remember I have been obsessed with animals. When I was four or five, I had pet rats called Milky Way, Sandy and Spotty and they form some of my earliest childhood memories.

"I loved them so much but I was so interested in them too. They had little tumours on their feet which we now know is because of the pet shop industry and inbreeding, but I was so curious about why they had these, why they were dying so young and what I could do to help."

"I grew up in Surrey and my parents were just so good at nourishing that part of me. I was forever asking for pets, for about two years I really wanted a tortoise but they didn't get a tortoise because they said 'it will probably outlive you, so you need to be committed' but they let me have the rats. That was a good starting point.

"Everything I do, everything I care about, all comes back to animals. I've always been completely devoted, and it's never changed. That is why I wanted to do something like this. Something with my life that directly helps animals."

The Kelp Social model is a multimedia experience, and includes a documentary film series which Mollie is curating with upcoming filmmaker Hugo André.

The films highlight good work that is being done around the world to promote and support animal welfare, and focuses on charities and organisations that are making a difference. Such as efforts to aid working animals in Morocco and rescuing strays from the streets of Partanna, Sicily.

"Building Kelp has not been easy but nourishing relationships with like-minded people and organisations that could benefit from the platform has been beneficial.

"That's what I love about animal lovers, in the animal welfare community everyone is united by compassion, so you share that, whoever you are, wherever you come from.

"That's why I started the Kelp animal welfare documentary series, because I was seeing the amazing things these animal charities were doing, and it wasn't enough for me just to email them. I wanted to go and see them with a camera and document what they were doing, joined by my brilliant director who is also passionate about animal welfare. We are currently looking into sponsorship for our next trip, filming in Mongolia with Animal Experience International.”

"The key with all of this is to put your heart and your soul into it. People will see that. That's what makes the difference."

Mollie is hopeful about the future of Kelp Social, a community platform focused on animal welfare, revolution and inclusivity. She added: "With regards to social media, I think it is a big part of our world now, so why not use it to encourage meaningful conversations that make a difference?”

Go to www.kelpsocial.co.uk to find out more and create a profile.