Starting a Subscription Box Business
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Hey there!!
I have some big news I want to share today! Let’s cut right to the chase!
I decided, that I am starting a SUBSCRIPTION BOX BUSINESS!
YES! AND, I have NO idea what I am doing. Nor have I gotten very far yet only being my second week into this journey.
Also, I will be filling you in on my journey along the way! Just so you know, I am and will be giving you content in REAL-TIME, as I learn and grow with this idea. I am going to be very transparent on my posts while creating my subscription box company. You will hear about my bumps in the road, obstacles I face and what I am doing to overcome them, and EVERYTHING good, bad, and ugly!
What I Will Give you
My goal is to help and encourage you in your own journey in whatever you are doing. Maybe I will just entertain you; Let’s watch me stumble! Whatever your decision to follow me is, I hope that I can help you to realize that it is okay to hit bumps along your path, and maybe even take a different path! I have a feeling this journey will be full of highs and lows, but I am determined to overcome each and every hurdle in my way in order to make this dream come true.
I plan to post updates weekly unless of course LIFE gets in the way. With two toddlers, you never know what life will bring you (I love EVERY minute of it)! My posts will share what I have done, accomplished, discovered, learned, and failed at during that week. Use my lessons and discoveries to foster your own. I will not be sharing what I plan to put in my subscription box until the very end due to confidentiality reasons, but I will share as much information as possible!
Here goes! Below are my very first two weeks in the subscription box business (almost😉).
Starting a Subscription Box Business
Week 1 (9/16-9/22)
Last week, I spent some time thinking about my business and where I want my business to go as I grow. I LOVE creating products for TpT and I have learned so much about the process in the last year. Due to my love for creating TpT products and the teachers that I have been able to help and depend on me, I am still going to continue creating for TpT.
This reflection, somehow, guided me toward the thinking that a subscription box would be the right path for me to take. Who knew?? Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think that I would be starting a company with a physical good. I’ve subscribed to Stitch Fix for a few months, it was great! But other than that, what do I know about subscription boxes?
Rather than talking myself out of the idea and thinking that starting a subscription box business is too far fetched, I decided to dig a little deeper.
I found Cratejoy, a magnificent resource for subscription box sellers and anyone looking to purchase a subscription box. This piqued my interest a bit more.
After some more research and video-watching on Cratejoy, I was sold. I am starting a subscription box business! It feels really good to say that😍!
There isn’t too much else to say about week 1 except that I decided that I am starting a subscription box business!
Starting a Subscription Box Business
Week 2 (9/23-9/29)
Week two I’m a little “down and dirty” thinking about this subscription box business. I began my Airtable workbook to get thinking about how in the world I am going to make this happen. I just recently started using Airtable to organize just about every area of my life. On Airtable I store my:
- content calendar with links to drafts, images
- data from all of the platforms I use
- Information for the new machine shop we are building (my family owns a machine shop, I work there too😋)
- Collaborative mastermind workbooks where I am working with other entrepreneurs
- Goals for myself
- Signup form (giving access to members of my group)
- And so much more!
Enough about Airtable, let’s move on to my future subscription box business🥳.
What do I do first and in what order?
This week, I am feeling overwhelmed with information and have NO idea where to even begin. I’ve read about pre-launching as being an early step, but I am definitely not ready for that step. Finding a designer to design the box, logos, and inserts is pretty early on the list too and it would be best to have that done before prelaunch. But I don’t want to invest the money unless I know my idea is going to be successful.
Here is what I have so far, and I will go into each in more detail below:
- Compile a list of designers, evaluate and contact for more information.
- Gather items for a sample box to get an idea of what size box I need.
- Find a box company that will custom print boxes at a low cost in small amounts.
- Focus on Instagram – gain new followers within my niche, comment on posts, go live in stories, post EVERYDAY!
- Keep researching!
Compile a list of designers
Ok, so the design part is SUPER important. Without an eye-catching, scroll-stopping design, the box will go nowhere except my living room. I may just need to “bite the bullet” and fork out the designing cost early on., which means I am FULLY invested in starting a subscription box business!
On Tuesday this week I spoke with the designer on the phone. She sounds absolutely phenomenal and was able to answer some of my early on questions. She does suggest branding and design as being one of the first things that you do. I haven’t gone for it yet, but am thinking that I am just going to get the branding done first. My goal is to have the least amount of costs possible come out of pocket. Which means, I need to really work on my current business!
Gather items for a sample box
Well, I started doing this. But before I could go any further, I need to determine how I am going to wrap the products inside the box. I grabbed a Uline catalog from the shop to poke around and see what my options for wrapping are. Wow, there is a lot. Now I need to digest this.
Find a Box Company
Most likely I will go with Packlane. From the reviews, Packlane offers lower rate boxes and high quality. Plus, I can play around and design a box on the website to use for my early-on social media posts! It’s a WIN-WIN!
Focus on Instagram!
I have been posting every day! Go me! But now I need to figure out how I am going to warm up my audience to my box idea, before I prelaunch. Oh, and I have about 400 followers. So I need to work on finding my “ideal customer” on Instagram and engage with them. Instagram is still new to me, so I have a lot of learning to do!
Keep Researching!
I need to learn SO much more before I can really dive in with the physical products.
Action Items
- Decide if I am going with branding and design now.
- Find some sort of packaging so I can make a sample box
- Work on my Instagram focus, post everyday in a meaningful way.
- Gain more Instagram followers that are my ideal customer.
- Start a Facebook page (EEK!)
Be sure to tune in and signup below to be the first to receive notifications when I create a new blog post. You can read about Week 3 of starting my subscription box business here!
I hope that you will hang out with me for this journey, and it won’t be too painful on my end!