Not a prepper, but want to be? There’s an app for that
Britton Beckham, co-founder of the emergency preparedness app Prepify, demonstrates different features of the app Jan. 15, 2018.
Britton Beckham, co-founder of the emergency preparedness app Prepify, demonstrates different features of the app Jan. 15, 2018.
Britton Beckham, co-founder of Prepify.
Clint Laub, co-founder of Prepify.
Emergency preparedness is a hot topic in Utah and as news of natural disasters frequently hits the front pages, there seems to be an urgency to prepare ourselves and our families.
For the many people who have no idea where to start — yes, there’s now an app for that.
Britton Beckham and Clint Laub are two tech-savvy Utah gentlemen who developed the Prepify app: a smartphone application designed to make preparedness easy to start, maintain and use in an emergency.
“The whole purpose of the Prepify app is to simplify preparedness,” Laub said, who identifies as a “prepper” himself. “Many feel lost not knowing where to start or overwhelmed by everything to do and keep track of. With Prepify, we aim to simplify or automate many of these tasks so everyone can always stay up to date.”
The new app, launched for both Android and iOS in December, categorizes more than 55 different emergency situations — from the need for a simple 72-hour kit to essentials needed to survive a solar storm — and walks users through what items should be on hand for each. As a user purchases those items, he/she can then make notes on where the item is stored, when it expires, and other information.
“Prepify currently offers an easy yet robust inventory system. This allows you to add all of your gear and items, which is perfect for home insurance purposes. The feature helps you rotate expired items like food or medicine, and restock items that you use,” Laub said.
Beckham and Laub partnered on Prepify in March 2016 after talking about emergency preparedness and the lack of good apps in the space.
“Boy Scouts instilled in me a sense of being prepared. I have been ‘prepping’ for over 13 years and have loved the ability to share my experience with others,” Laub said. “When I met Britton, he and I started talking about how he could further prepare his family. From those conversations I envisioned that there could be an app developed that would help others prepare without needing to become an expert.”
The duo first looked around for an app to fill those requirements, but weren’t pleased with what was already out there.
“There really were no other cloud-based preparedness apps. They were glorified spreadsheets, susceptible to being lost pretty quick,” Beckham said. “And they weren’t effective in the way we wanted to be.”
Beckham explained that cloud-based storage protects users from phone accidents and other problems. When users change phones, they just download the app, sign in, and all of their information is there. Another feature unique to Prepify, he said, is the social community aspect of it. This allows users to access experts’ knowledge and recommendations, but also gives families the ability to connect their preparedness efforts.
Beckham’s own Prepify inventory includes emergency items in his home, car, and even in his mother’s home and car. Using the phone’s camera, he has pictures of where the items are stored, and what they look like.
“Our target market isn’t necessarily preppers. We’re targeting anyone who wants to get their family prepared. It’s for those that don’t have a plan. They can use this app, and it does it for them,” Beckham said. “For emergency preparedness, there is so much knowledge you have to gain. That is a barrier to entry for many people. We simplify it. There are no barriers to entry with Prepify.”
Prepify is currently a side business for both, based in Beckham’s home office in Pleasant Grove. But they have a vision of features they hope to add as the app gains popularity. Laub said they hope to add notifications about current events and disasters near individual users, and will enhance the app’s social features.