PROPOSAL NAME: Ape Spirits Presents Twisted Ape Vodka For All Apes
PROPOSAL CATEGORY: Ecosystem Fund Allocation
TEAM DESCRIPTION:
Ape Spirits is a craft distillery located in West Palm Beach, FL, owned and operated by Bored Ape Yacht Club members who have been bootstrapping this project with their own private funds. We first incorporated Ape Spirits and filed the Twisted Ape trademark application in October 2022. One year later we’ve developed 2 Ape branded products, Twisted Ape and Ape Juice, designed our packaging including custom bottle, cork, and labels; partnered with manufacturers, and reviewed several prototypes to ensure the best quality; and finally, ordered a full trailer load of materials.
We also built out 2 state of the art facilities to manufacture these products at scale:
The main facility houses fermentation tanks, a distillation still, and a semi-automatic bottle filling line, where we produce, mix and bottle distilled spirits such as vodka, tequila, and rum. This is where Twisted Ape is made. It is also where Ape Juice batches are mixed and pumped into 270 gallon tanks to be transported to our second facility.
The second facility houses the canning system and our excess bulk inventory and raw materials such as bottles, corks, cans, labels, and boxes. This is where Ape Juice is made, on our fully automated canning line which labels, washes, fills, seals and laser encodes slim aluminum cans at a rate of up to 2000 cans per hour.
Building these facilities, which are capable of producing the products at scale, was no easy feat. We’ve invested substantially in machinery and currently have a sizable amount of inventory in stock at our facility. The sheer amount of time, effort and capital invested in this company and the development of our products thus far is a testament to our dedication, and should exemplify the degree of quality we are aiming for with Twisted Ape and Ape Juice.
Captain Fuego
An OG Bored Ape Yacht Club member since mint and one of the founding members of Magic City Apes DAO, one of the largest regional BAYC communities with over 150 Apes from Florida. I am a serial entrepreneur with experience in developing, manufacturing, and launching CPG products dating as far back as 2003.
Fuego is Founder and CEO of Fuego Labs, a web3 gaming startup focused on developing mobile blockchain games, smart contracts and web dApps such as minting, staking, and tokengated protocols.
Now CoFounder and CEO of Ape Spirits, a Bored Ape owned and operated craft distillery which produces, imports and bottles premium distilled spirits, as well as mixed ready to drink cocktails.
Captain Calamari
A Mutant Ape, he is an immense asset to the team with over 15 years of experience in corporate America. Capt Cal’s career has spanned across 3 divisions of 2 fortune 100 companies, both of them CPG conglomerates. He has become a seasoned veteran in retail sales after having worked on massive national sales teams as territory sales manager for Mars/Wrigley as well as Pepsi, and Frito Lay (both divisions of Pepsico). His awareness and familiarity of how to navigate within the retail space and ability to leverage relationships with national retail chains makes him an invaluable asset to the team. And that’s just his day job!
Capt. Cal is a rare breed, because although he is by trade a sales professional, his true passion lies in marketing and branding. He currently holds a digital marketing and e-commerce professional certificate from Google with a specific strength in email marketing and copywriting, as well as proficient aptitude in social media marketing and paid advertising. He has utilized this expertise to build numerous successful online marketing campaigns that have resulted in several large email list audiences and has been able to convert them into highly lucrative direct customer relationships.
Needless to say he is also a serial entrepreneur and like Fuego, has experience in developing, manufacturing, launching, marketing and direct selling CPG products dating as far back as 2003. Capt Cal is now a proud CoFounder and CMO/CSO of Ape Spirits.
ABSTRACT:
This proposal presents the opportunity for all BAYC, MAYC, and $APE holders to claim a free bottle of Twisted Ape Ultra Premium Vodka produced by Ape Spirits, while simultaneously expanding the ApeCoin ecosystem with the launch of a new affordable luxury spirits brand that is Made By Apes, Powered By ApeCoin, and features Bored Apes on the packaging.
Ape Spirits will produce 50,000 bottles of Twisted Ape Ultra Premium Vodka, featuring several Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs on the labels, which will be licensed from the community, and offer these bottles for free, to be claimed by ApeCoin ecosystem members on our website. Other Twisted Ape products will also be available for purchase on our website in $APE only.
We intend to take this product mainstream, and approving this proposal will kickstart Ape Spirits on our mission of placing Twisted Ape affordable luxury products on the shelves of thousands of retail stores worldwide, exposing Apes and Apecoin to millions of shoppers on a global scale.
This AIP offers at least 7 direct benefits to the ApeCoin ecosystem:
- Tangible IRL product in the hands of all Apes, Mutants, and $APE holders
- Massive exposure and awareness of $APE to mainstream audiences
- Onboarding normies to the ecosystem
- IRL use case and spending of $APE
- Renowned artists involvement and exposure
- BAYC and MAYC licensing deals
- Percentage of profits into a community controlled wallet
BENEFIT TO APECOIN ECOSYSTEM:
Twisted Ape has the potential to help proliferate the DAO in a manner that no other project has accomplished as of yet. We will not only reach 50,000 members who will receive the physical product, but also the entire network of people they share it with. This is in addition to the millions of people we intend to reach with our extensive marketing campaigns and distribution of Twisted Ape products at retail locations worldwide.
With Twisted Ape we present an abundance of benefits to the ApeCoin ecosystem with short, mid, long term, and perpetual benefits. To date there has yet to be a proposal that combines this many collective benefits to the ecosystem:
Short/Mid Term:
Upon approval of this proposal we will launch a targeted marketing campaign in which everyone will be made aware that the project was funded by the ApeCoin DAO. We will begin building in public, and the entire process from development, design, production, manufacturing and distribution of the products will be completely transparent and inclusive of the community. This will shine a positive light on the ecosystem and bring awareness to what we are capable of.
We will license several Bored Apes from the community allowing members to leverage their IP and earn revenue from the sales of a mainstream consumable product sold at thousands of retail outlets across the globe.
As a direct benefit to the members of the ecosystem, eligible members will be able to claim their share of the 50,000 bottles of Twisted Ape Ultra Premium Vodka for free. We will also offer a generous discount on any additional Twisted Ape products that are purchased on our website in $APE.
While we are aware that a percentage of these bottles may become collectible items on a shelf, we believe most will be consumed as intended. Either way both will serve as great conversation starters. Members will have the opportunity to share this product with their family and friends, as well as their entire network across their social media platforms. This has the potential to reach an endless number of people who will be exposed to and learn about Apes and ApeCoin.
Long Term/Perpetual:
Twisted Ape is an officially licensed Made By Apes and Powered by ApeCoin product. All orders placed on our website will be in $APE only and every bottle of Twisted Ape will feature an Ape on the label. The Made By Apes and Powered by ApeCoin logos will be prominently displayed on the packaging (if allowed). This will be clearly visible to everyone who encounters any Twisted Ape product, regardless whether purchased online or in retail stores.
There will also be a qr code on the packaging directing customers to our website where we will have a dedicated page with a plethora of educational information about Apes and the ApeCoin ecosystem, including a live ticker showing the current price of $APE along with links to buy on exchanges.
Although the DAO is not set up to receive revenue, we will allocate 5% of our profits from sales of Twisted Ape to a multisig community wallet. Members of the ecosystem can propose and vote on what to do with these funds as well as who the signers on this multisig will be.
Since all of our bottles will feature a Bored Ape on the label, all our marketing efforts will always reference back to the ApeCoin ecosystem in one way or another. Our online and social media marketing campaigns will always default to our website as well. Visitors will be exposed to Apes and ApeCoin, and overall our website will serve as an onboarding platform for ApeCoin.
The cost to implement this AIP is miniscule considering the perpetual benefits our products will have on the ApeCoin ecosystem.
This AIP offers at least 7 direct benefits to the ApeCoin ecosystem:
- Tangible luxury product in the hands of all Apes and ApeCoin holders
- Massive exposure to mainstream audiences with ads, retail space, and user generated content being shared across social media
- Onboarding platform for normies and newbies
- IRL use case and sink for spending $APE
- Renowned artist involvement and exposure
- BAYC and MAYC licensing deals
- Percentage of profits into a community controlled wallet
-The first benefit is directly for ecosystem members. All BAYC and MAYC holders will be automatically eligible to claim a bottle of Twisted Ape for each NFT they hold. Additionally, at least 20,000 wallets holding $APE will also be eligible to claim a bottle as well. Twisted Ape is a tangible IRL luxury product that members will receive at no cost to them.
-The second benefit is the fact that this item will be distributed, sold, marketed, and advertised on a global scale to mainstream audiences. The fact that it is Made By Apes and Powered By ApeCoin is a major feature of the product that will be represented and highlighted prominently on the product packaging. This will bring an insurmountable amount of attention and direct impressions to the ecosystem.
-The third benefit works in concert with the second. All our product packaging will include blatant displays of our products’ origins. This includes:
- A Bored Ape front and center on the label and packing boxes.
- QR codes that lead to our website which will provide education on BAYC, MAYC, Yuga Labs, and most importantly ApeCoin, along with a live price ticker and direct links to buy.
- The Made By Apes and if allowed the Powered By ApeCoin logos.
- If granted permission, the ApeCoin logo will be etched onto our bottle.
This will give exposure to ApeCoin and will provide a topic of conversation for those indulging among friends and family.
-The fourth benefit is creating a solid utility for $APE. Twisted Ape will be available for purchase on our website, and the only payment method will be ApeCoin. This means that anyone wanting to buy a bottle will need to either be holding ApeCoin or need to purchase some. In both scenarios our site creates a center of commerce where premium tangible IRL goods are exchanged for ApeCoin. Very few coins have actual purchasing power outside of the crypto ecosystem, this feature alone will set ApeCoin apart from the herd of cryptocurrency tokens that exist with no valid use case.
-The fifth benefit is our artistic packaging design inclusion program. Our outer packaging box will include the creative artistic expressions from numerous digital artists from all around the ecosystem. This box will serve as a canvas for them and the finished product will become a platform for them to share their work with audiences all over the world that may otherwise never be exposed to their creative work. We have already had the privilege of working with some amazing artists from within the space, and have seen the awe inspiring creativity from countless other artists we would be honored to have work with us on future releases of Twisted Ape branded products.
-The sixth benefit is directly for BAYC and MAYC asset holders. We plan to work cohesively with ape owners to create licensing agreements and utilize their apes on limited edition, small batches, and themed products. Licensees will earn revenue from sales of Twisted Ape products not only from our website, but also from mainstream sales made at retail stores worldwide! To accomplish this we will be creating a partnership program specifically aimed at apes that want to have their assets featured on a bottle of Twisted Ape.
-The seventh and last benefit works in tandem with the sixth, and benefits all members. We will be allocating 5% of profits made from all sales of Twisted Ape products to a community wallet. Funds will be deposited directly into this multisig wallet, and ecosystem members will get to decide not only who the signers of the wallet will be, but more importantly will also decide what the proceeds are used for.
We worked really hard putting this together and making sure we could provide the most possible tangible value to ApeCoin, the community, and the ecosystem as a whole. The result is a beautifully designed and great tasting luxury product.
Twisted Ape will be enjoyed at countless social gatherings with friends and family. These live interactions will lead to IRL conversations that create awareness, exposure and recognition of the benefits of being a member of the ApeCoin DAO and the overall Ape ecosystem. The social connections and bonds made between adults sharing cocktails will spark word of mouth about our ecosystem that could potentially result in onboarding, aka a trojan horse.
One of our goals with Twisted Ape is not to just create a quality product, but also to provide the market with a complete work of art. A true expression of what happens when you merge two highly prolific creative industries in a perfect artistic marriage, and make it available for anyone to have and enjoy.
KEY TERMS:
Craft Distillery: An establishment where alcoholic beverages are produced and bottled. The American Craft Spirits Association defines a craft distillery as “A distillery who values the importance of transparency in distilling, and remains forthcoming regarding their use of ingredients, their distilling location and process, bottling location and process, and aging process.”
Distilled Spirits: An alcoholic drink produced by the distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar that have already gone through the alcoholic fermentation process.
Fermentation: A metabolic process in which sugars are transformed into a new product through chemical reactions carried out by microorganisms.
Distillation: The process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still.
PLATFORMS & TECHNOLOGIES:
We’ve been hard at work for several months building Ape Spirits, and subsequently Twisted Ape, a brand for all Apes to enjoy and be proud of. The whole process has been absolutely incredible and we believe that the entire community would appreciate the opportunity to participate in it. Together we will be creating and launching a new luxury spirits brand that brings utility, awareness and exposure to $APE and the ApeCoin ecosystem. In addition to that, this proposal also offers a tangible benefit to the members with the opportunity to enjoy this amazing Ape branded product with their family and friends at no cost to them.
Ape Spirits will produce 50,000 bottles of Twisted Ape Ultra Premium Vodka. Our vodka is 6 times distilled and produced right here in South Florida. We will bottle it in our brand new state of the art facility capable of producing bottles at a rate of approximately 2000 per day. These bottles will be free to claim on our website for all verified members with a wallet holding either a BAYC or MAYC NFT, and wallets containing at least 50 $APE, fairly distributed as follows:
- BAYC holders: 10,000 bottles
- MAYC holders: 20,000 bottles
- $APE holders: 20,000 bottles +
A total of 30,000 bottles will initially be reserved for BAYC and MAYC NFT holders who will be allowed to claim one (1) bottle for each eligible NFT held in their wallet. There will be no per wallet limits applied to NFT holders. Any bottles not claimed by BAYC and MAYC NFT holders within 1 week will be released and open to claim by $APE holders.
The remaining 20,000 bottles will be allocated for all ApeCoin holders with wallets holding at least 50 $APE. The number of bottles available to $APE holders will increase after 1 week when we release any unclaimed bottles from the 30,000 reserved for BAYC and MAYC NFT holders. There will be a limit of one (1) bottle per wallet to ensure a fair and proper distribution among $APE holders.
To simplify the claim process and make it fair for ApeCoin holders, we will create a new NFT that will be free to mint by wallets holding at least 50 $APE. Holders of this new NFT will be eligible to claim one (1) bottle of Twisted Ape for each NFT held in their wallet. For a safe and secure checkout, we will use tokenproof to verify holders’ eligibility. Once the NFT has been used to claim a bottle, it will be marked as used, and the metadata will update to show which product was claimed.
Our store will be built on Shopify resembling the official BAYC merch drops for familiarity and ease of use. Shipping fees will be paid by the member claiming the product. We will ship orders via UPS with an adult signature required, to any city, state, country or territory where we are legally allowed to ship alcoholic products. Members who live in a country or territory where we cannot legally ship alcohol will be notified on our website at checkout.
Ape Spirits will also produce an additional 50,000 bottles of Twisted Ape Pure Agave Tequila and Twisted Ape Aged Caribbean Rum. These products will be available for purchase on our website in $APE, at a generous discount to ecosystem members. There will be other Twisted Ape products available on our website as well, all of which will be purchasable in $APE only.
STEPS TO IMPLEMENT & TIMELINE:
Ape Spirits has already made significant progress in the development of Twisted Ape. Most of the steps to implement have already been completed or are in the process of being executed. The steps required to implement the proposal that have yet to be completed are:
- Acquire sufficient inventory to produce 50,000 bottles of Twisted Ape Ultra Premium Vodka. This includes bottles, corks, labels, boxes and shipping cartons.
- License Apes from community members to use on bottle labels.
- Fill, seal, and label all 50,000 bottles of vodka and prepare them for shipping.
- Integrate tokenproof on our Shopify store to verify eligibility and accept orders from members of the ecosystem.
- Setup a multisig wallet to hold 5% of profits derived from sales of Twisted Ape products.
Since we are already significantly ahead in the development of Twisted Ape, we are able to expedite the completion of the steps to implement this proposal. We can expect the timeline to look as follows:
- Start date will be immediately upon approval of this proposal.
- Integrate tokenproof to accept free claims on our Shopify store: 3-5 days.
- Receive the materials to produce the proposed 50,000 bottles: 30-45 days.
- Setup a multisig wallet to hold 5% of our profits for the ecosystem: 1 day.
- Fill, seal, and label all bottles and prep them for shipping: 30-45 days.
- Open claims, process, pack, and ship orders to members: 30 days.
Total estimated time to completion: 90-120 days.
OVERALL COST: 1,100,000 $APE
The total cost to implement this proposal is 1,100,000 $APE. This amount covers the cost to manufacture 50,000 bottles of Twisted Ape Ultra Premium Vodka which we propose to deliver for free to ecosystem members.
