We fund food through community.
FAQ / Help
See below to answers to frequently asked questions. Contact us if you have other questions!
Is Three Revolutions a non-profit?
Crowdfunding describes the collective cooperation of people pooling money and other resources in order to create a network that supports people, organizations, projects, initiatives or ideas.
Crowdfunding at the scale we see today is a relatively new phenomenon, but its roots go back to 1883 when a form of crowdfunding was used for the Statue of Liberty. In just five months the “crowd” donated $100,000 (the equivalent of $2.3 million today). Much of it came in gifts of one dollar or less. The reward for a $1 contribution was a 6” statuette and the reward for a $5 contribution was a 12” statuette.
Today crowdfunding has been successful in the areas of art, film, music, journalism and start-ups. According to Growthink.com, crowdfunding in the US grew by 259% in 2011 to an estimated total raise of $248 million. Three Revolutions is the only crowdfunding platform in the world wholly dedicated to farm and food enterprises.
We care passionately about building a vibrant, sustainable food system and believe that building connections — both social and financial — between producers and consumers is a vital part of this effort. Crowdfunding is perfectly suited to food and farming enterprises because it is tangible and because so many people wish to connect with the people behind these enterprises. Three Revolutions is the only platform of its kind wholly dedicated to food and farming ventures.
The beauty of crowdfunding is its broad access; anyone with a credit card or bank account and at least $10 to invest can use the platform to support food or farming ventures. Any sustainable food or farming related initiative wishing to raise funds can use the platform to generate financial support and expand their following. This includes not only farmers, processors, and distributors, but also those who make music at farmers markets and fill our barns with merriment and dance, the writers who tell our stories, the advocates who organize our efforts and build markets, the chefs who prepare farm fresh foods, the purveyors of local food and the many artists who sell their wares shoulder to shoulder with farmers and food producers making markets exciting and viable.
This is explained here.
It does not cost anything to post or back an initiative unless the funding campaign is successful. If it is successful, Three Revolutions keeps 6-1/2 cents per dollar raised to fund the platform’s operation and expansion. The backer is also charged three-and-a-half cents per dollar pledged by WePay, a third party which handles the financial transactions on the site. These costs are on par with other crowdfunding platforms.
Is Three Revolutions a non-profit?
ThreeRevolutions is a social enterprise. This means though we are a for profit business we are not singularly profit driven. Our mission of funding food through community is our guiding principle. Our social mission led us to establish a Low-Profit Limited Liability Company (L3C). Vermont is the first state in the US to enact this type of business structure, meant to bridge the gap between for-profits and non-profits. The LC3 structure allows a business like ours to put our mission first and foremost (like a non-profit) and still operate as a self-sustaining, for-profit company.Three Revolutions is one of a growing number of social enterprises registering as Low Profit Companies. Americans for Community Development calls the L3C the “for-profit with a nonprofit soul.”