Cowboy Cricket Farms

What Cowboy Cricket Farms does

Cowboy Cricket Farms operates as a direct-to-consumer e-commerce business under the brand name Atropia, hosted at cowboycrickets.com and powered by Shopify. The company, headquartered in Bozeman, Montana (with the corporate entity referenced at Belgrade), designs and sells military-themed apparel and accessories — t-shirts, hoodies, AR 670-1 compliant uniform shirts in TAN499, distressed hats, deployment patches, mugs, drinkware, and vinyl stickers — alongside a consumable product line, Atropian Survival Rations (whole roasted crickets), priced at $5 per pack.

The company was founded in 2016 and is led by CEO Kathleen Rolin. Its core business model is asset-light DTC commerce: products are largely produced via print-on-demand and third-party manufacturing, with select items such as deployment patches made in the USA. Distribution is exclusively online through its own Shopify storefront, accepting Shop Pay, PayPal, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. The platform integrates with Google Analytics for traffic analysis. Revenue mechanics rely on one-time unit sales with low average order values ($4 stickers through ~$46 hoodies), with size-based price tiers and SKU customization.

The customer base is concentrated in US active-duty service members, veterans, and their families, with a secondary commercial segment comprising military units, MWR funds, veteran non-profits, schools, and JROTC programs purchasing custom and co-branded merchandise. A formal fundraising/affiliate program allows these institutions to earn a share of sales via discount codes, and the company has executed custom merchandise relationships (e.g., 1063rd SMC) where proceeds are routed to unit MWR funds. The company discloses a $20,000 funding round in August 2018 from Boomtown Accelerators (lead) and Right Side Capital Management.

Name

Cowboy Cricket Farms

Legal name

Atropia

Website

https://cowboycrickets.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cowboy Cricket Farms dba Atropia is a Shopify-powered DTC brand selling military-themed apparel, accessories, and cricket protein snacks to US active-duty service members, veterans, and their families, plus custom merchandise for military units and veteran non-profits.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Belgrade

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. E-commerce merchandise sales: One-time product sales of apparel including t-shirts, hoodies, patches, hats, mugs, and accessories. Products are sold directly through their Shopify storefront with standard e-commerce fulfillment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Cowboy Cricket Farms produces whole roasted crickets sold as "Atropian Survival Rations" and operates the Atropia direct-to-consumer e-commerce brand selling military-themed branded apparel (AR 670-1 compliant uniform shirts, hoodies, t-shirts, hats), accessories (patches, mugs, stickers, water bottles), custom military unit merchandise, and co-branded partner swag. Products are sold primarily to veterans, active-duty service members, and their families through a Shopify-powered storefront with print-on-demand and third-party fulfillment.

Product overview

Atropia operates as a fictional military training nation brand selling apparel and novelty merchandise. The product portfolio centers on Atropia-branded t-shirts, hoodies, hats, patches, mugs, and stickers, along with specialty items like whole roasted crickets marketed as survival rations. The company also produces custom merchandise for military units (e.g., 1063rd SMC) and co-branded partner swag. The e-commerce platform is powered by Shopify with various payment integrations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Atropian Survival Rations (Whole Roasted Crickets) Protein-packed whole roasted crickets available in Plain, BBQ, Mango Chili, Wasabi, and Cinnamon flavors, containing 7 grams of protein per pack. Made in the USA from all natural ingredients and marketed as a novelty/survival ration to the Atropia customer base.
• AR 670-1 Approved Shirts Military uniform-compliant t-shirts in correct TAN499 color with designs low enough to hide under uniform blouse, allowing active-duty service members to display Atropian affiliation while in service.
• Atropian Pride Apparel Clothing merchandise featuring Atropia branding and flag designs, including t-shirts, hoodies, and sweatshirts, for showing national/cultural pride.
• Hoodies and Sweatshirts Unisex hoodies and sweatshirts featuring Atropia messaging and branding, available in multiple colors, priced from $37.50 to $46 depending on size.
• Hats and Headwear Headwear including distressed dad hats, beanies, and caps featuring Atropia branding and military-style distressed finishes, priced from $20.99.
• Atropian Deployment Patches Hook and loop fastener patches commemorating Atropia deployment, attachable to clothing, backpacks, and uniforms. Made in the USA and priced at $7 each.
• Mugs and Drinkware Ceramic mugs, stainless steel water bottles, and drinkware featuring Atropia branding. Mugs priced from $15.
• Vinyl Stickers High quality water-resistant vinyl stickers featuring Atropia branding for laptops, water bottles, cars, and other surfaces, priced at $4 each.
• 1063rd SMC Custom Merchandise Custom shirts and deployment sweaters for the 1063rd SMC military unit out of Billings, MT, with all profits from sales going toward the MWR fund for deployment and family support.
• Partner Swag (Co-Branded Merchandise) Co-branded merchandise from partner organizations such as Pink Man Van, offering packable weather-resistant jackets, hoodies, beanies, and polo shirts. Atropia offers custom printing and shipping services for veteran-centric partner businesses.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Military Non-Profits and Veteran OrganizationsminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAtropia partners with military-oriented non-profits, veteran organizations, military unit MWR funds, schools, and JROTC programs through a fundraising program. Partners receive discount codes to share with supporters who get merchandise discounts while the organization earns a portion of sales.
• Pink Man VanminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-branded merchandise partnership featuring Pink Man Van Packable Weather Resistant Jacket, hoodies, beanies, and shirts in the Partner Swag section. Atropia offers custom printing and shipping services for veteran-centric businesses.
• ShopifycoreTechnology or IntegrationE-commerce platform powering the online store, providing payment processing, storefront hosting, and analytics capabilities.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Grunt Style: Veteran-founded apparel brand selling military/grunt-style themed t-shirts, hoodies, and accessories directly to consumers — directly comparable positioning, customer base, and product mix to Atropia's parody-nation veteran apparel focus.
• Nine Line Apparel: Veteran-owned DTC apparel brand with military-culture themes, comparable price points, and a similar authentic-veteran identity — competes for the same active-duty and veteran customer wallet.
• Ranger Up: Veteran-owned apparel company selling military-themed shirts and merchandise with insider humor targeting the same active-duty/veteran demographic that Atropia addresses.
• Article 15 Apparel: Military/spouse-themed apparel brand operating on a similar DTC model with humorous insider references to military culture, comparable to Atropia's parody-nation humor.

Emerging players

• Y'all Brand: Veteran-owned novelty apparel brand using military humor and culture references, targeting an overlapping but slightly broader southern/veteran customer base than Atropia.
• Oath (veteran apparel): Veteran-owned DTC apparel brand with mission-driven positioning supporting veteran causes, partial overlap with Atropia's fundraising/community ecosystem model.
• Chirps Chips: Direct-to-consumer cricket-snack brand providing a parallel for Atropian Survival Rations as both a cricket-protein product and a specialty/novelty snack positioning.
• Duece Apparel: Veteran-owned lifestyle apparel brand targeting military/veteran customers with humor-led designs — comparable in tone, distribution (DTC), and target segment to Atropia.

Broad incumbents

• Black Rifle Coffee Company: Larger veteran-founded CPG brand that successfully built a veteran-community identity across multiple product categories — provides a category-creation precedent for Atropia's brand-extension ambitions into cricket snacks.

Others

• Tactical Gear Junkie: Specialty tactical/accessory retailer that also manufactures the Atropia deployment patches; an ecosystem supplier/advertising partner with partial overlap in the military accessory category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/atropiabrand
• Instagraminstagram.com/atropiaofficial
• Xx.com/cowboycrickets

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors2 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cowboy Cricket Farms