Crowd Cow Opens New Unique “Cow Crowdfunding” Marketplace to Pre-Sell Premium Cuts of Grass Fed Beef to Consumers Nationwide

U.S. consumers can now pre-order the healthiest and best-tasting, sustainably-raised beef from independent ranchers via the world’s only online dry-aged beef crowdfunding platform

By Robert Hoskins

Seattle, Washington – Just in time for Father’s Day and the summer barbeque season, food tech startup Crowd Cow announced that it is now shipping to beef lovers throughout the U.S. The sharing economy’s latest big idea allows consumers to buy portions of an actual cow online with strangers by claiming their favorite cuts, tipping the cow and becoming a “steak holder.” Backed by the likes of NFL great Joe Montana, the founders of Zulily and venture firms such as Fuel Capital and Maveron, Crowd Cow now makes it fun and convenient for consumers nationwide to order from independent farms, and enjoy the great taste and transparency of sustainably-raised beef.

U.S. consumers now have convenient access to the healthiest and best tasting sustainably raised beef from independent ranchers

Whole Cow, Whole Country
Crowd Cow cuts out the middleman to bring sustainably-raised beef direct to consumers, including access to beef that’s hard (if not impossible) to find in stores like grass-finished Black Angus and sought-after varieties like Wagyu — all of it dry-aged and hormone and antibiotic free.

Crowd Cow’s unique whole-cow, independent ranch approach means more transparency for consumers and greater reach for farms. “We hand-select the best producers and bring their beef to consumers everywhere, pairing every shipment with recipes and support. As a result, marrow bones and tongues sell out as quickly as tenderloins and nothing goes to waste,” says co-founder Joe Heitzeberg.

How Crowd Cow Works
Crowd Cow features a particular ranch, detailing their story and practices in a short video and web page. Users select from the cuts of a single animal, choosing as much or as little of the exact cuts they want. When everything is sold, the company ships direct to their door with recipes and a welcome note from the founders.

Food Study Trends and Consumer Reports
The company’s success to-date aligns with growing consumer demand for visibility into where food comes from. According to the Food Revolution Study, 94 percent of consumers say it’s important for brands to be transparent about what is in their food and how it is made. At the same time, a Consumer Reports survey found that 80% of consumers think better living conditions for farm animals is important. By featuring specialty beef producers with each event, and detailing how they feed and treat their animals, Crowd Cow is at the forefront of shifting the beef industry towards a more sustainable model in demand by health-conscious consumers.

Crowd Cow Was Founded by Tech Start Up Veterans
Crowd Cow was founded in 2015 by startup veterans Ethan Lowry (Urbanspoon) and Joe Heitzeberg (Madrona Venture Labs). After hearing a friend brag about how much better beef from independent ranches was, but discovering that it is typically only sold to specialty restaurants, high end butcher shops or in quantities of 300 to 600 pounds at a time, they sought out a better solution.

“Our friend told us we’d need a meat freezer, a pickup truck and a few thousand dollars in cash,” explains Heitzeberg. “Ethan suggested that we utilize crowdfunding to pre-sell cows so 50 people could each purchase 5 to 10 pounds of quality, dry-aged beef.” After emailing 100 friends, the first cow was sold in 24 hours and was delivered in time for July 4th BBQs.

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Robert Hoskins
(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

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Mr. Robert Hoskins is a seasoned marketing veteran with a proven track record of helping entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses as well as Fortune 500 corporations launch successful marketing communications campaigns to gain market traction for a wide variety of products and services.

On a regular basis, Mr. Hoskins consults with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

Google search “Robert Hoskins Crowdfunding” to see why Mr. Hoskins runs one of the industry’s foremost crowdfunding PR, social media and marketing agencies that has amassed a huge social media following and is dedicated to supporting a wide variety of donation, rewards and equity crowdfunding campaigns.

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New Restaurant and Food Truck Crowdfunding Platform Allows Anyone to Launch a Food Service Business

By Robert Hoskins

Foodstart.com opened its virtual fundraising doors for restaurants nationwide in the United States to provide a new finance to help restaurant and food truck owners can raise capital online in small increments from their extended community of friends, family, and future customers. Only instead of a cash return, backers receive perks and rewards like free dessert, discounts, and cooking workshops.

Restaurant and food truck owners now can raise capital online in small increments from their extended community of friends, family, and future customers.

Among its unique offerings: a$1,000 seed-match for businesses, physical cards for backers, and a free, social-media marketing program.  In other words, Foodstart.com enables debt-free financing while also creating a loyal customer base.

“We did a lot of research before starting,” Founder Alex Sheshunoff said.  “Turns out, when it comes to restaurants, many people want to feel like they are on the inside as much as they want a specific financial return. Which makes sense. If you give a friend $200 for his restaurant, you don’t want an 8% return on your money – that’s $16.  Instead, you want your name on a menu item and a behind-the-scene tour.”

Sheshunoff explained that he came up with the idea after being unable to invest in a friend’s new restaurant.  “My friend had a good concept and a great location. I wanted to give him $500, mostly so I could say I was an early backer.  He wanted to take it, but there was no mechanism for him to handle such a small amount. I figured we weren’t the only one with this problem – there are 22,000 independent restaurants started every year.”

Foodstart.com has been up in beta for just a few months, but already more than 30 restaurants and food trucks have signed on, perhaps enticed by its low 4% fee and lack of setup costs.  One was Wilson’s BBQ in Fairfield, Connecticut.  Proprietor Ed Wilson wanted to expand to a second location so turned to Foodstart. “After I posted my campaign,” Wilson explained, “Foodstart sent me some custom fliers.  Turns out, one of my customers is an investment banker, and it looks like we’re going to get all of our funding!”

Sheshunoff chose to focus restaurants and food trucks because of the emotional appeal they have for people.  “No one is really excited to invest $100 in a friend’s dental practice to get a free teeth cleaning.”  He admits that raising money from a broad group isn’t a new idea. “The Green Bay Packers first sold shares to the public in 1923.  Even though shareholders get only a certificate and a behind-the-scenes tour, they now have 360,000 shareholders  – and the most passionate fans in football.  We’re just applying the samBe concept to restaurants.”

Foodstart.com advisory board member, Steve Rockwell a restaurant industry consultant and former equity research analyst, said this kind of community-funding model will be a key part of restaurant finance in the future. And Rockwell should know.  He’s helped companies such as Ruby Tuesday, Outback Steakhouse, Papa John’s, and Jamba Juice raise over $1 billion in public and private equity. “Most independent restaurant owners have limited financing options.  A platform like Foodstart’s not only helps them raise capital, but almost as importantly, it creates a network of loyal customers.  And that’s something traditional sources of capital have a hard time doing.”

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