Hello, my name is Ronald. First allow me to beg your forgiveness. I feel guilty coming here asking for help because it's just not my style. I'm the person that gives help, and when it comes to what I need... I'll usually always find a way.

Anyway, I am the owner of Rock Hard Soap Co. based in Harrison Charter Township, MI and I just celebrated my fifth year anniversary in business as a handcrafted soap maker. There are many facets and aspects to my full plan that take time to explain, but in a nutshell, I'm trying to use what I do to help others.

I have a complete business model mapped out and I have had great progress over the last 5 years getting all the pieces to fall into place. I've already created an amazing line of high quality, truly handcrafted products that perform well and people love. I've created a brand that local people recognize, with a series of unique gimmicks that work together seamlessly with my business model to inspire more sales. And I've even created a unique steampunk sales persona that draws attention and people love to interact with.

Last year I began using my product sales as a way to collect donations that I gave to a number of Fire Stations to help with community outreach programs and funding volunteer fire stations with safety gear. Now I'm ready for the next step, but I can't do this one alone.

Before going into detail on my business model, goals, and why I need your help, I would like to share a tiny bit of backstory and my motivation for this project.

Here's the slap... I'm a 52 year old mentally disabled man and have been on SSDI and a fixed income since 2005. At the time I was finally approved for my disability, I was homeless in Texas, sleeping under a tree. Long story short, due to my mental limitations, I never held a job longer than 1 year in my life. Until I discovered handcrafted soap making. I've come a long way since my days under that tree, and it's time to repay the world for giving me the opportunity to finally find my place in it.

Now, as to why we are here today. Over the last 5 years I've been slowly building a product and a brand. I personally make each and every product in small batches of 10, using natural products so that I can fully control the quality of my products. I even go as far as to personally hand harvest and process every botanical that goes into my products. No mass production, no cutting corners, just an old man enjoying what he's doing, and doing it right. I still make everything exactly the same as I did when I started. The difference? I'm not trying to get rich, I'm just trying to help people by doing something I love

Gimmicks: Rock Hard Soap Co. soap and candle products all contain an embed polished collectible rock, crystal, or gemstone. ( I also carry a line of larger rock specimens and carvings ). Inside two random bars of soap I have hidden two REAL DIAMONDS. If a customer finds a diamond, they may choose to keep it, or return it to me to get its value in free Rock Hard Soap Co products. As a maker of premium products.. I decided to raise the price of my soap bars from the industry standard price of $8 power item. This is the price of products created with lower grade, cheaper filler oils, in batches of a hundred bars or more at a time. Surely my bars were worth $2 more. So I began selling my soaps at $10 per bar and donating $3 from every sale to a firehouse. ($2 donation from the customer with a 50% match from my profit).

Now it is time for the final step in my plan. Finally making all my hard work start working for me.

A few days ago I began building an online "idle miner" game completely based on Rock Hard Soap Co. and it even uses a 3D rendering of my steampunk persona as the Master Miner. The game is 100% free to play and will be fully ad supported.

Players tap to dig and collect different rocks and other elements that can be used to upgrade and speed up their mining efforts. Hidden within the mines are "Brass Coins" (3D rendering of the Rock Hard logo as a coin) that have an actual cash value of "two bits" = $0.25. These coins can be redeemed in the store for real rocks, crystals, gemstones, soap bars, candles, body butters, perfumes/colognes, and more. Items will ship directly to the customer. There will also be an option for users to donate their brass coins to the firehouses.

I will be able to handle promotions easily by dressing in character and setting up at local craft events. I'll have a full range of products on display, do photo ops, and promote the game, telling people if they love what they see and smell, simply download the game and earn their favorites for free. All funds to operate the business will now come from advertising dollars rather than product sales.

I have already designed a fully playable mock-up of the game "Rock Hard Mining Co." I still have some bugs to work out and I need to connect a store platform (Shopify), which I currently can't afford because I'm still living of my $1100 per month disability, and it doesn't stretch far. I've done all I can using free and cheap resources, now I need your help.

As mentioned, I'm mentally disabled and never held a job more than a year in my life before this. I've never been able to run a successful business before because I don't know how. I'm a maker, not a businessman. Part of my disability prevents me from being able to fully understand and comprehend numbers. I can only perform the most basic adding and subtracting equations. I'm a highly intelligent, high functioning person, but those limitations are a big setback without help.

I need your help getting the funds I need to finish the game project and get it published to the play store so players can start earning free products.

Right now, any help is crucial, be it in the form of financial help, or even just a few words of advice.

I'm used to doing things in a minimalist fashion, so I am only seeking to raise $3000. That should be enough to finish the game design, get it published to play store, and hire an advisor/manager to help with business operations and making sure that everything is done "above board".

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out and I'd be happy to answer them for you.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Ronald