How to Start a Subscription Box Company

With more and more people looking to pay more for an uninterrupted amount of the products that they want, it’s apt to say that subscription boxes are super popular, from mailer boxes that include fun products to even new ideas that are being tested for audiences. This is one that’s definitely growing, with three quarters of their brands being told to use this to sell to others. If you’re curious about how to get started, let’s go into the details of how subscription boxes work, and how to get started. 

What are They? 

These are boxes that customers can order, getting monthly supplies of items, including food, beauty products, fitness supplies, and even teas, candles, and coffee. For example, you can set up subscription boxes based on your brand. If you’re a fitness brand for example, you might include apparel, food, and even exercise tools to help meet the goals that you have. You can also create ones specifically for business professionals. For example, if your products are for teachers or doctors, your subscription box can reflect that by having that type of content inside of this. Now that you know the basics, here’s what you need to get started. 

First: Money 

Money makes the world go round and knowing how this business will be funded is the first step. If you’re going to offer products that are much more niche, it may cost more money to find the suppliers that’ll fit this. 

If you’re going to expand the current subscription company resources that you have, you should look to see just how much you can dedicate to this. 

Right now, the current average for subscription boxes in terms of investment is 10 grand, but that’s ultimately depending on the way you’d like to scale, what kinds of products you want to have on launch, and how you’d like to sell them. The shipping and packaging are ultimately quite consistent, so that’s much easier to predict compared to the other businesses too. 

Time is Of the Essence 

Time is the next consideration. You need to think about if you’ve got the time to set up subscription boxes that customers can buy. This is something that does require a bit of effort and time to set up. You also need to process the packaging supplies, m and the product supplies that are there, in order to ensure the proper supply of the boxes to send it to, especially when you place these orders. 

Spaces and People 

People are definitely going to play a huge part in this. You need people to help with this. There are also spaces to consider, and the place for this. Where are you going to package and ship out the products? What do you need to do to get started? Make sure that you have a space and the people set up, so you’re not being a one-man show trying to run everything. 

Then, do market research 

The next step is if you’re serious about this, and you have the capital, to look at what you should have for market research. What are people buying? You can cultivate your items to fit this. There are a lot of different ways you as a brand can use this. 

Subscription boxes are a great way to build a brand, and if you already have a solid foundation, you can dedicate resources to this. With that said, make sure that you are prepared before you start, and make sure that you have the capital, along with the time to make this a reality.

Packaging Fragile Items

Packaging items that are fragile in order to ship them is important. And that also means that there might be a difference between the item reaching the destination, versus it being so badly off that you need to replace it. Items that are fragile do demand the most care when you’re shipping them. That, or else you risk items that are broken and damaged, harming the reputation of this. While the item type does dictate the protective supplies that you need to be able to use, you’ll want to make sure that you get the highest quality materials. 

Here is a guide to determine what’s fragile, what’s not, and the best ways to pack it.

The items that are Fragile.

It’s important to consider that some materials are fragile by some standards. 

Fragile means anything that breaks easily, or even shatters too.

This also includes anything made from materials that are delicate, such as paper. Remember, this does tear and crush quite easily. This can include décor for the house, glass, crockery, picture frames, and even crockery and musical instruments too. 

Some of these are also of higher value and usually, they might be exposed to air and some force, ruining them. Electronics and screens also fall into this.

Now that you know what they are, here is a guide on how you should pack these.

Choose your best product Solution for the Product 

The best way for you to determine this, is to also make sure that you have the right materials. 

Some items require different types of protection than others. 

For instance, when you transport some items that are made of glass, you’ll want something more robust in terms of protection. That’s because these break easily. If you’re transporting different items that aren’t able to be bent, like documents and whatnot, you might need different types of protection for this.

Get a Box that’s Slightly Larger 

You want something that’s slightly larger than what’s necessary.

This is because you can add the material in there to protect it from shock. If the box gets too small, then you won't have enough material to protect it. You do risk it possibly getting damaged while it’s being transported.

Choose Cushioning Materials 

You want to choose a cushioning material that works. Air pillows, crinkle paper, and bubble wrap are good for the needs of a product.

Add a Label for Fragile Products 

This is the final step, but you want to make sure that you add a label for fragile items.

While it won’t protect the items that are inside, it signals to most people who can see the label that they need to be a bit more careful for you to send this from one way or another. 

Void Fill is key 

You want to make sure that you use void fill to keep things safe. This is really important for glass, and also anything that’s super breakable. This is usually made from different items, and they now have eco friendly options too. Packaging peanuts for example are a great item. 

You want to make sure that you include void fill for anything that does have gaps. This provides it with the ideal cushioning that’s needed for this, so that everything can be protected from the impact that they’re feeling. This is great too.

You want to make sure that you use different items, including mailers that are bubble or rigid depending on your needs. 

Either way, you need to be smart with the type of items that you pack, and when you pack these correctly, use your discretion to make sure that they’re packed right.