Doodla Farms Inventory Liquidation Project

Overview

Doodla Farms is facing a building project financing gap after a bank loan shortfall left them short of funds needed to complete a new facility they've already committed to. To avoid selling family land (held for three generations, ~800 acres), they are pursuing a sales-first approach: liquidating approximately 1 million pounds of white popcorn from existing inventory to generate the cash needed to close the gap.

This is primarily a sales project with marketing support components — the goal is to identify and reach buyers for a commodity product at scale, not to build long-term brand awareness.

Financial Context

Item	Detail
Inventory available	~1,000,000 lbs white popcorn
Target price	$0.50+/lb
Potential revenue	~$500,000+
Grant available	~$250,000 (popcorn-specific grant)
Grant use	Fund project work (agency fees, packaging, production)

The ~$250k popcorn-specific grant is a new funding source Doodla Farms did not previously have. It can be used for project work, packaging, bags, and production runs — not exclusively for agency fees. The liquidation project will be scoped and priced to draw from this grant rather than from the client's existing retainer.

Strategic Rationale

Selling land is emotionally untenable for the family (land held 3+ generations) and is a last resort
Inventory liquidation is a faster, lower-friction path to generating cash
The popcorn grant provides a funding mechanism that doesn't require the client to pay out of pocket for the project
Selling commodity inventory at volume ($0.50/lb or better) can meaningfully close the financing gap

Note from discussion: Mark flagged that the building project itself may be a distraction from getting the core business cash-flow positive, but acknowledged the decision is already made and the focus now is on helping them execute.

Project Scope (Proposed)

The project is a sales engagement, not a traditional marketing retainer. Key components will likely include:

Identifying target buyers (distributors, wholesalers, food manufacturers, co-packers, etc.)
Developing outreach materials: who Doodla Farms is, what they have, why buyers should purchase
Executing outreach and managing the sales pipeline
Coordinating with Doodla Farms on logistics and fulfillment

Karly's involvement is expected to be limited until marketing documents or support materials are needed.

Relationship to Old World Brand

Old World is a separate brand under the Doodla Farms umbrella. The popcorn grant and liquidation project are specific to the Doodla Farms white popcorn inventory and are distinct from Old World's retail/ecommerce operations. However, both share infrastructure (e.g., potentially the same Google Merchant Center account). See ^[1] for Old World-specific work.

Status & Next Steps

Owner: Mark Hope
Status: Proposal in drafting (as of 2025-11-24)
Timeline: Proposal to be completed this week or next (week of 2025-11-24 or 2025-12-01)

Open Actions

[ ] Mark — Draft and deliver the inventory liquidation project proposal to Doodla Farms
[ ] Mark — Confirm grant budget allocation available for agency project fees
[ ] Mark — Determine pricing/scope for the engagement (to be funded via popcorn grant)

^[2] — Initial discussion of the project concept and financial context

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