Zack Danger Brown, the mastermind behind one of the funniest crowdfunding campaigns ever, has profited from his visionary approach to pleading for carbohydrates.
Brown, who put up a Kickstarter page to raise $10 for potato salad, surpassed his goal many times over, getting $55,492 in contributions from people who commiserated with his humble goal.
The campaign attracted 6,911 backers who pledged anything from $1 to $110. There were inherent "risks and challenges" with contributing, and Brown was completely honest with his supporters. As he put it, "It might not be that good. It's my first potato salad." However, that didn't deter his followers, who were promised perks such as the honor of choosing an ingredient that would go into the potato salad and being the muse for a haiku with a potato salad theme.
Instead of bankrolling a lifetime supply of potato salad, Brown is spending his newfound fortune on a worthy cause. He is organizing Potatostock 2014, a free outdoor festival in Columbus, Ohio. The event, which is scheduled for September 27, will have concessions, and all proceeds will go to funding programs against homelessness and hunger in Central Ohio.
"We are going to contribute a significant portion of the remaining money to the fund at the Columbus Foundation. This will create a permanent fund to help Central Ohio's non-profits end hunger and homelessness. These types of funds gain interest ever year and grow over time, so, while our little Internet joke will one day be forgotten, the impact will be felt forever," Brown said.
While Brown has a large party in store for people in the Midwest, he hasn't neglected his supporters from far away. Judging from his plan, which he has laid out in a blog post, he has devised an elaborate scheme to reward his distant contributors. For starters, he will shout the names of his supporters while he makes potato salad, and he has promised to furnish video proof of his activities. Brown has also asked supporters to submit recipes. He will then conduct a survey on what is the most desirable potato salad, with the winning recipe eventually being elevated to the lofty distinction of Potatostock 2014 potato salad.
In spite of his plans to give to charity, Brown will set aside a part of the money for himself. He said that a chunk of the contributions would go to setting up a company with the mission to "spread humor and joy around the world."
