Preppers, Attention: Your ICO Has Arrived!

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by Matthew Loughran · 7 min read
Preppers, Attention: Your ICO Has Arrived!
Photo: Fortitude Ranch

Recreational and survival community Fortitude Ranch will launch an Initial MemberCoin Offering (IMO), a market shift for ICOs funding existing companies applying blockchain technology.

The prepper or survivalist movement is a multibillion dollar industry providing services ranging from DIY guides to surviving in the wild, food with 20 year shelf life, water filtration systems, specialized clothing, underground bunkers, bugout bags and remote communication systems, to name a few items.

In the US alone there are almost 4 million people who self-classify as preppers. There are several TV shows dedicated to the movement, now there is an ICO coming to market on December 7th, 2017.

Fortitude Ranch was created as a safe haven to survive the unthinkable, the company’s compounds were developed as an affordable means for people to join their survival and recreational communities to enjoy the good times in the rural forest locations, and survive a collapse.

Fortitude Ranch CEO is Dr. Drew Miller, a retired USAF Reserve Colonel and intelligence officer, with a Masters Degree and PhD from Harvard University.  Dr. Miller served in the Institute for Defense Analysis, the top DoD think tank, and in the Senior Executive Service in the Pentagon.

A former Vice President at Securities America, Drew is currently Managing Director of Blockchain Business Consultants and CEO of FR. He has published articles and spoken at national conferences on a major threats we face today including bioengineered viral pandemics.

Historically ICOs have funded development of new blockchain technology. The Fortitude Ranch Initial MemberCoin Offering (IMO) is a market shift for ICOs funding existing companies applying blockchain technology.

Fortitude Ranch looks to leverage the power of blockchain technology to keep member identities and their security passwords for crisis entry into a Fortitude Ranch facility. Blockchain technology will also provide voting and polling capabilities as well as for the issue and trading of “Fortitudes”— the company’s cryptocurrency token for discount, priority membership purchase.

FR prides itself on providing the best means of keeping members alive during a collapse, at a much more affordable price than alternatives. Other survival and preparedness companies offer underground bunkers with blast doors that are expensive, unnecessary for the remote locations used by FR, If people crowded together in small bunkers this proves to be unsafe in the event of a virus or being raided by bandits.

Matthew Loughran: “Can you tell us a bit about your background and why did you develop Fortitude Ranch?”

Dr. Drew Miller: “I was a reserve intelligence officer and also served as a defense consultant in the top Department of Defense Think Tank, and the Senior Executive Service in the Pentagon, so I’m well aware of the growing security threats we face, from bioengineered viral pandemics, to our very vulnerable electrical system.  In any major disaster, our just in time delivery economy will be disabled and panic, widespread loss of law and order are likely.  In a pandemic, food delivery drivers won’t come into big cities–they will be rightly afraid of catching a deadly virus, or being attacked and killed by marauders after food.  So you need a “head for the hills” place to survive a collapse–and thus I founded Fortitude Ranch.  We are both a large survival facility, and a recreational club where our members can come to vacation and recreate in good times.”

Matthew Loughran: “Blockchain and prepping is not something you hear every day how did this marriage of ideas come about?”

Dr. Drew Miller: There is already Prepper acceptance of bitcoin as a more trustworthy currency and investment than fiat dollars after a collapse.  What we are adding at Fortitude Ranch is several blockchain applications:  first, ensuring that our membership database which we need to transmit regularly to our different locations is absolutely secure–so blockchain is ideal for that.  We also plan to use Aragon, a blockchain governance and voting application, so both our “Fortitude” token holders and our current members can vote on new locations for our expansion, which we are funding with revenues from this Initial MemberCoin Offering.  And we are using the Ethereum blockchain and an ERC20 token that offers you not just a 25% discounted price on membership, but protection from price increases and priority to join Fortitude Ranch when we have a wait list. During a major crisis or media reports on developing threats, demand for membership in FR will surge beyond our capacity, and the price of Fortitudes will likely spike since those who want to get in will need Fortitudes to have first place in the wait list.”

Matthew Loughran: “What is the advantage of getting a membership now?”

Dr. Drew Miller: The 25% discount pricing on Fortitudes and, especially, the priority in joining when there is a crisis and demand for our survival service spikes and only those with Fortitudes are likely to be able to join.  Our Fortitude token in effect offers “Contingent membership” in FR.  You are not yet a member, but you’re allowed to vote on new locations, and participate in some activities we invite token holders to attend.  But most important, when tensions are rising or a threat looms and we have more demand to join than we do spaces in our locations, Fortitude token holders have priority to join over those paying just cash.”

Matthew Loughran: “How does your revenue model work?”

Dr. Drew Miller: “We are an established business, doing this advance sale of membership to fund expansion from our two current locations in West Virginia and Colorado, to up to 12 U.S. sites and an international location.  We use a “country club membership” model:  you pay an upfront fee to join FR, and then lower quarterly and annual fees for membership.  Compared to alternatives, this is a far cheaper way to get much better survival protection.  Buying a backyard bunker costs well over $100,000, compared to about $1,000/year per person to be a FR member.”

Matthew Loughran: “How are you different than other token sales?”

Dr. Drew Miller: “We are an established business, not a blockchain development startup.  We are applying blockchain technology, not developing it.  We have a token with a base of value, our current membership price.  Fortitudes have huge upside potential since there are likely to be periodic disasters, crises that lead to a surge in demand for our service, a wait list to join, and thus a run up in Fortitude prices since many will see this as the only way they can get into Fortitude Ranch and protect their family.”

Matthew Loughran: “Why are you launching on December 7th?”

Dr. Drew Miller: “In our White Paper, we explain why there are threats like pandemics that the government is not preparing us for.  Many experts have testified before Congress, published articles (like I did in The American Interest last year) and urged preparations to survive not just a pandemic, but other big disasters that will overwhelm police and lead to widespread lawlessness.  But there is no political pork in these preparations to win Congressional votes, and admitting that a part of our population is going to loot, maraud, and even kill in a disaster is not politically correct.  So Government is not preparing us for obvious threats like pandemics and long lasting loss of our electric system, just as they did not prepare for the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941. That “Day of Infamy” is seen as the worst national disaster–but compared to the coming pandemic, which could kill millions of Americans (and a billion people globally), much worse lies ahead.  Our goal is to raise awareness of the pandemic and other threats that could lead to a collapse; so we chose the Pearl Harbor anniversary to remind people that they need to be prepared.”

The Fortitude Ranch IMO project looks to be a unique adoption of blockchain in a high demand niche market, so if you’re interested in prepping, need a fail-safe if North Korea gets there hands on some nukes or like the odds of success for a Harvard PhD and former member in Senior Executive Service at the Pentagon then head over to their token site.

Blockchain News, Guest Posts, News, Token Sales
Andy Watson
Author: Matthew Loughran

Matthew Loughran is an executive growth and strategy advisor, blockchain and ICO marketing consultant. Matthew writes about innovation, marketing, and human capital management; he shares his passions for helping companies drive revenue through customer acquisition optimization and better internal people practices.

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