Some weekends, there is absolute chicken sh*t to do in Austin. Literally. Many Austinites are aware of Chicken Sh*t Bingo, which has been going on at the local Little Longhorn Saloon for more than 40 years. But a new series by a backyard chicken keeping company, Coop, is providing a more modern spin on the game; in fact, they're offering a more modern spin on all things chickens.
"We're bringing in two of our star chickens from Coop HQ," says Jordan Barnes, Coop's co-founder and CMO (Chicken Marketing Officer) about an event held on Sunday, September 15, at Soho House on South Congress. "They're not your average backyard birds; they’re part of our little biz."
These events — held as quarterly pop-ups at Soho House and REI, so far — include high-stakes chicken sh*t bingo, where patrons receive randomly selected numbers. If the chicken does his or her business on your number, you can mark that down. Just like regular bingo, if you get a line across or diagonally, you'll have a bingo.
"The lucky winner wins a heap of cash," Barnes says. Prizes range from an overnight staycation at Soho House to Chicken Daddy and Chicken Mom merch, Coop's Yard Your Yard trucker hats, freshly-laid chicken eggs, garden starter packs, and other feathered merch. The members-only hang at Soho House also serves special drinks and bites for this surprisingly lowbrow activity.
The somewhat confusing juxtaposition of a modern and sexy location with a farm animal pooping on a number may be the perfect metaphor for the company itself. Coop has created a truly futuristic and slick standalone "Smart Chicken Coop" so that anyone, anywhere, can raise chickens and have farm-fresh eggs.
Austinites also have help from the city, which provides free learning resources and even a $75 rebate. This might not make much of a dent in the $1,995 setup, though.
The Coop is made from sleek UV-resistant metal and panels, and uses modern tech so that chicken parents can easily monitor their flock, right from their phone. It includes dual HD cameras, an automatic door, AI that detects and alerts you for up to 60 plus animals, notifications for rogue eggs or hungry foxes, and of course, the ability to easily livestream your birds.
Coop transforms chicken keeping for the digital age.Photo courtesy of Coop
"Our technology turns everyday consumers into backyard farmers, creating a better food system from the ground up — starting with the backyard coop," says Barnes, also emphasizing the nutritional "richness" of fresh eggs. "We’re building Coop for the family that has always wanted to but didn't know where to start."
Coop will host this sexy-meets-sh*tty event at Soho House quarterly (so expect the next one in a few months), and they're also hosting a quarterly popup at REI on North Lamar. The first REI popup event, which they have coined "Operation Roost-on-the-Loose," took place over Labor Day weekend and was a "total blast," says Barnes.
Coop held their first "Operation Roost-on-the-Loose" popup event at REI over Labor Day weekend. Photo courtesy of Coop
"We whipped up farm-fresh egg toast with eggs that were literally laid that morning, had baby chicks for the kids — and adults, let's be real — to play with, and gave out copies of our coloring book, 'Chicken Coop Chicken Poop,'" says Barnes. "Plus, we had some great chats with folks who were just a little chicken-curious or already doing some at-home farming."
Redesigning a chicken coop is more work than it may seem to some; Barnes says the team spent more than 10,000 perfecting the design before bringing it to market. The sleekness of the design befits that time spent, but having a cool-looking coop is not the purpose of the project.
"At our core, we care about changing the way food works in communities," Barnes says. "Where does that start? Right here in our own community and our backyards. We also know that when people actually see our Smart Coop in real life, it clicks."
More information about Coop is available at smart.coop.farm.
