The Great Elephant Migration | Why Elephants? The ‘Love’ in Love Brand

Back in 2010, the spark for a ‘loving’ beachwear brand with a mission to help endangered elephants was ignited. It all started with the Elephant Parade in London. Oliver Tomalin, moved by the realisation that wild elephants might disappear within his lifetime, found himself captivated by the charity exhibition of life-size baby elephant sculptures, organised by the charity Elephant Family. 

The artistic allure and the urgent message struck a chord with him, inspiring Oliver to merge his passions for design, travel, and the natural world. Thus, Love Brand was conceived, with an ethos rooted in wildlife conservation. He shared his idea with the late Mark Shand, co-founder of Elephant Family, and his dream soon turned into an exciting reality.

Pictured left: Oliver Tomalin revisiting India with Elephant Family in 2024

Eager to get underway, Oliver’s idea flourished quickly. Whilst on his first date with his now wife Rose, Oliver sketched the logo of two elephants forming a heart on a restaurant napkin and coined the term ‘trunks for trunks.’ Less than a month after meeting, the love-struck pair embarked on a life-changing journey to India. There, they witnessed Elephant Family’s on-the-ground efforts and met Tara, the elephant heroine of Mark Shand’s epic tale, Travels on My Elephant. This journey cemented their mission, and Love Brand was born. Married in 2014, now parents to two small children (with a third on the way!), Oliver and Rose run the family-owned brand, blending their love for wildlife, travel, family and adventure.

Pictured right: Oliver and Rose Tomalin with Tara the Elephant 2010

And not forgetting African elephants, Love Brand is also a long-standing supporter of Tusk Trust and the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust and their incredible conservation efforts across Kenya and East Africa. The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust's Orphans’ Project, is the world’s first and most successful elephant rescue and rehabilitation program. It operates alongside daily aerial units monitoring wildlife, deterring illegal activities, and providing swift responses to anti-poaching efforts, human-wildlife conflicts, and veterinary needs in the Tsavo Conservation Area and Lamu District. Their mission is to keep these gentle giants and other wildlife safe and thriving.

Our prints tell a story, raising awareness of conservation efforts around the world. Oliver hand-designs the prints, with his favourite being ‘Elephant Palace,’ an intricate print of elephants creating the illusion of majestic Indian palaces with their trunks.

“It encapsulates the style of my prints. From afar, they are geometric patterns, but on closer inspection, there is a story to be discovered. The animals are lost in my prints, as they are almost lost in the wild. Our mission is to do our bit to help ensure these wild animals and wild places still exist in the future.”