VANCOUVER -- Struggling to stay afloat financially, the Vancouver Aquarium is teaming up with a local sports team to sell made-in-B.C. face masks.
The Stanley Park-based facility announced Friday it's partnering with the Vancouver Whitecaps – a partnership the aquarium hopes will save it from having to close for good.
The aquarium had to shut its doors to visitors on March 17 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and says the weeks-long closure is having a major financial impact.
The majority of its revenue is generated through ticket, concession and gift shop sales, the facility says, which typically bring in more than $3 million each month.
"We're fighting for the survival of the aquarium. It's hard to imagine Vancouver without the aquarium, but there is a risk the aquarium could be closed forever," said Lasse Gustavsson, president and CEO of Ocean Wise, the non-profit that runs the attraction.
Sixty per cent of the facility's staff has been laid off so far.
Cuts have also been made to staff hours, building maintenance and travel related to field research and conservation in the Arctic.
Still, the aquarium warned earlier this month it may face bankruptcy.
Since making that announcement, thousands of individuals have come forward, raising $624,427 a little over a week.
And on Friday, another plan for funding was announced. The non-profit is partnering with Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
"Is there any civic asset more loved than the Vancouver Aquarium?" said Whitecaps CEO Mark Pannes in an interview with CTV Morning Live.
"When the news broke, Lasse and his team were so good about putting the call out for help and that's what we do in this city, right? We help. We help each other."
In this case, they're helping each other with the sale of a popular product during the pandemic: face masks.
Both organizations are selling masks on their websites, with all proceeds going to toward keeping the aquarium running.
They come in adult and kids sizes, and are priced at about $20 each.
The designs feature the 'Caps crest and the Vancouver Aquarium logos, as well as mascots and sea creatures.
They're breathable, washable, reusable, and made in the Lower Mainland.
Pannes says the most important thing, though, is that they can be used by the general public as a way to ensure medical-grade masks are reserved for our health care workers.
"What sports and soccer do is the same thing that we're trying to with the aquarium: mobilize a large number of everyday Canadians for something that they care about. Whether that is soccer or the ocean, it doesn't really matter," said Gustavsson.
The aquarium is home to more than 70,000 animals.
Even with significant cuts to operations it costs roughly $1 million a month to run.
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Jason Pires
