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GroPod Launch

Turn on. Tune in. Grow out! Grow Pure Produce™ with the GroPod© hydroponic appliance.

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GroPod Launch

GroPod Launch

GroPod Launch

GroPod Launch

GroPod Launch

Turn on. Tune in. Grow out! Grow Pure Produce™ with the GroPod© hydroponic appliance.

Turn on. Tune in. Grow out! Grow Pure Produce™ with the GroPod© hydroponic appliance.

Turn on. Tune in. Grow out! Grow Pure Produce™ with the GroPod© hydroponic appliance.

Turn on. Tune in. Grow out! Grow Pure Produce™ with the GroPod© hydroponic appliance.

Scott Massey
Scott Massey
Scott Massey
Scott Massey
2 Campaigns |
Evansville, United States
$1,514 USD 3 backers
37% of $4,000 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal
Highlights
Mountain Filled 2 Projects Mountain Filled 2 Projects
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Short Summary

Our goal is to enable anyone to grow pure produce through our automated, hydroponic appliances called GroPods. Hydroponics which is a method of growing plants in a controlled environment without dirt. It’s as simple as turning it on, tuning it in to your wifi, and growing out your favorite produce.

Our business model could be described as Keurig for food with recurring seed pod subscriptions that are mailed directly to consumers with certified organic, nonGMO seeds. In 2016, we were very fortunate to receive our first investments from the Purdue Research Foundation AgCelerator fund which focuses on proprietary innovations within the agricultural and biological engineering space. Today we employ a few full-time engineers, and several contractors as we continue to expand our presence of GroPods in the marketplace. Currently, we are in two schools and several residential homes, but we are launching our production model shown below that will be in the marketplace in first quarter of 2020.

Scott Massey (CEO, Mechanical Engineer) met Ivan Ball (CTO, Electrical and Computer Engineer) while working as student research engineers at Purdue University Horticulture College designing a NASA funded, hydroponic plant growth chamber to grow food in future space colonies under Dr. Cary Mitchell. Bryan Lemon (Software Development Lead, Computer Science PhD) manages WiFi firmware development, scaling backend data collection and pipeline systems, and the development work integrating with third party systems (Alexa, Google Home, IFTTT, etc). David Bowes is a part-time CFO, Director of Operations & Strategy, Nutritional Health at Elanco. Joe Ellsworth (CMO, founder of Fire and Rain Marketing) has thirty plus years of marketing strategies for appliance, medical, pharmaceutical, and technology companies.

 

 

Co-Founder and CEO - Scott Massey
While pursuing his B.S. at Purdue University in Mechanical Engineering Technology and Certificate of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Scott exited a career as an engineer in the oil and natural gas industry and part time patent drafting for a local patent attorney to become a research engineer at the Purdue University Horticulture College under Dr. Cary Mitchell. This inspired him to found HELIPONIX© (formerly Hydro Grow) his senior year. He is responsible for overseeing next generation products, manufacturing operations, and overseeing the strategic plan of the entire business.
Co-Founder and CTO - Ivan Ball
Ivan obtained his B.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology with a minor in Organizational Leadership and Supervision at Purdue University. Throughout the completion of a 5 session Co-op during his undergraduate, Ivan advanced his knowledge with focus towards automation controls in a large scale food processing facility. The NASA research project sparked his fascination with the idea that anyone could continually grow their own produce without having to manually labor an outdoor garden. Ivan is responsible for the electrical hardware design, software/web development, and cloud network architecture.
 
 
Software Development Lead - Bryan Lemon
Bryan Lemon has an extensive background in developing Smart Home and IoT systems. He has experience with backend development, website development, and android/iOS app development. Bryan Lemon also has experience with data mining, allowing us to better monitor and improve your growing experience. He is responsible for the cloud system design, firmware development, and mobile application development.​
 
CMO - Joe Ellsworth
Founder and retired Principal/President of Fire & Rain, a company involved in corporate marketing and communications. Specializes in corporate communication strategy, creative direction for tools of corporate communication, and the production of corporate meetings, product launch events, etc.
 
CFO - David Bowes
Director of Operations & Strategy, Nutritional Health at Elanco after directing Corporate Finance & Investment Banking at Eli Lilly for over a decade. Purdue University Mechanical Engineering undergraduate degree with an Indiana University Master of Business Administration. David is an entrepreneurial professional with fourteen years of experience in business development, finance, and manufacturing, including supervision of an eleven-person team. Strong analytical skills and a born problem-solver. Experience in various sectors, including animal nutritional health, pharmaceuticals, defense, energy, manufacturing, and telecom.

 

What We Need & What You Get

We have now completed our Beta sales to early adopters, and are now again collecting pre-orders at this time for our full-production GroPod. We have collected 25% deposit on each unit at a retail price of $2,000.00.

Revenue generated from these GroPods sold will also be used to automate our seed pod packaging process with a k-cup manufacturing facility in order to more efficiently meet the demand of our growing user base. To date, we have packed these seed pods by hand with our beta customers from 2018. 

Indiiviudals who pre-order their GroPod now will recieve a ciomplimentary meal prep guide showing a plethora of culinary creations you will be able to make with the Pure Produce™ grown in your GroPod. 

The Impact

Global food outputs need to increase by 70% as we exceed 9 billion people in 2050 according to the UN. Agriculture accounts for 50% of land use, and 80% of freshwater consumption in the USA. Vertical, indoor agriculture is the most viable solution, however energy, labor, and facility infrastructure are the most expensive costs resulting in low margins.

Nearly 40% of the produce we buy at the store is thrown away. Investing in healthier food options is expensive and wasteful. The GroPod allows customers to grow their own produce sustainably in the convenience of their home with zero waste, using 95% less water than traditional farming, and half the energy usage (~$7 per month in electricity). Using our patented rotary aeroponic growing methods, we are able to yield a full serving of leafy greens on a daily basis consistently throughout the year without using any pesticides or preservatives. The GroPod is a smart appliance that automates the entire growing process by adjusting the growing environment inside, sending notifications, and refilling the water to grow the specific variety of plants you put into the system. These notifications that exclusive to the GroPod control algorithms in a simple to use platform rectify the labor complaints traditionally associated with gardening. 

Our team of engineers with experience designing NASA funded hydroponic chambers firmly believes the technology of hydroponics is not only the most viable solution to counter climate change caused by industrial agriculture that is not on track to meet the global food demand, but this this solution could be a consumer level democratization of this revolutionary technology. Watch Co-Founder, Scott Massey's TEDx Talk about this disruption in food being comparable to the advent of the refrigerator appliance disrupting the ice industry. 

 

 

 

Other Ways You Can Help

Please follow our food revolution as we grow to become the world's largest farming company without owning a single acre of land on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn: @GroPodOfficial

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Choose your Perk

GroPod© desposit

GroPod© desposit

$500 USD
Reserve your GroPod with a deposit to receive an exclusive meal prep guide, and your first month of seed pods for free! Enjoy savoring recipes with all the ingredients that GroPod is able to grow for daily harvests of Pure Produce! Seed pod™ subscriptions can be customized to YOUR specific preference of food.
Included Items
  • GroPod Meal Prep Guide
Estimated Shipping
December 2019
2 out of 25 of claimed
Ships to United States of America
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