Is anyone else doing a subscription box/beauty box?

[iansmommaya]

I have a soap one up on etsy. I wanna improve it, add items beyond soap and really do it right. My own, not included in a service but just my own products. I would love to chat about ideas.

[TallTayl]

I’ve thought about sub boxes.  The trick is how to get people excited about joining.  A sister/friend of mine is huge into stationery and patently loyal to a few makers. There’s a huge following and waiting list. Let’s share ideas! 

[iansmommaya]

I don't have good photos or anything but here is what I thinking

Seasonal or quarterly

 

4 or 6 times a year with seasonal or

 

OHHH I jsut thought of something. I had to HEY SIRI something sorry about that.

at anyrate

4 or 6 times a year with seasonal or quarterly boxes

including a couple MEDIUM OR LARGE choices

with a soap or two

lotion

elixir, herbal tincture, etc.

seasonal scrub

bath bomb

bath soak

etc.

 

SO here is the vibe. I think I could do this. I can wish for 1,000 customers a month doing this but I'll start with 20 a quarter.

[TallTayl]

My instinct is to keep it simple. And packaged really pretty. With things ONLY available in the sub box.

 

it looks like your brand could do something zodiac?  

Do you make any smudge sprays? Add crystals, etc.  (I’m not really familiar with your brand yet.) 

[Paintguru]

I feel like a seasonal candle box (quarterly) would be awesome and do really well.  A mixture of sizes and scents in one nice package.  Maybe a small and a large box option.  Would be great for planning purposes.  How much below a la cart do you sell it for?  

[iansmommaya]

I don't know about candles but I would do about 20-25% below. That seems the sweet spot. ❤️

[TallTayl]

I don’t know if you really need to discount, especially if you offer something exclusive. Why do we always think LESS money? 

[Sebleo]

I agree. If you’re doing something they can’t buy from you individually there is no need to discount. 

 

However, if you are packaging things that they can buy individually, I would discount it. 

 

If if you can’t do the whole box exclusive, it would be best to offer at least one item that is. Not sure I would discount more than 10 or 15%. 

[Paintguru]

7 hours ago, Sebleo said:

I agree. If you’re doing something they can’t buy from you individually there is no need to discount. 

 

However, if you are packaging things that they can buy individually, I would discount it. 

 

If if you can’t do the whole box exclusive, it would be best to offer at least one item that is. Not sure I would discount more than 10 or 15%. 

 

Agreed.  If it is an exclusive set of fragrances, then I wouldn't necessarily discount.  However, if it is basically a boxed set of items that are for sale individually, I would do some sort of discount as the subscription provides a much better revenue stream than individual purchases.  

[TallTayl]

When looking at it through a business lens, (say your accountant or an investor), discounting can get us into some perceived value trouble. Packaging things available all the time is really a gift set, not a sub box. If there’s something in that set people would not wish to purchase singly, then the motivation to buy the box is zero since the mental calculations make the other items commonly available within more expensive. There’s zero drive to HAVE TO HAVE IT. 

 

Those indie merchants with globally popular subscriptions don’t ever discount the box. They may offer a coupon code to their shop good for a limited time, but never the actual box. FOMO is the reason for the box, not a gift set. FOMO makes it a need, not a want. 

 

take Simply Gilded, for instance. She only offers new designs through the sub box.  She sells 15,000+  of sub boxes a month and sells out every time. People then turn around and resell those sub boxes all, or in part, on eBay and make many times the original cost because they are so sought after. 

 

The boxes are pretty, the stickers that close the internal envelopes are pretty.  People save the boxes and internal packaging as well as the sub items.  The experience is almost cult like. She makes real $ on this business model. 

 

I received for christmas one year 5 rolls of her washi tape. Individually they could have been sold originally for maybe $4. Turns out those rolls were from the original sub boxes a year or so earlier. I offered those for sale for $225 and it sold within seconds. I could have asked more $ and easily sold them. There’s that much demand. I made a $200+  profit on little rolls of tape. Insane right? That is how we make real profit in our indie businesses, not by giving things away.... 

 

 

[TallTayl]

Back to the thought of gift sets, or discounted purchases... 

 

if you want people to psychologically buy more, then make individual item purchases a bit uncomfortable. Offer multi purchases that are easy. 

 

Example 1, I sell a single bar of soap at Faire for $6. It comes in a cute muslin bag. If they buy 4, the price is $20. In their words, they save $1 per bar buying 4. In my words I get the $20 sale which is my minimum desired transaction amount per person. My margins are calculated based on the multi purchase. Guess how many times the individual sales convert from 1 or 2 bars to 4? Then from 4 to 8, 12+? 

 

Example 2, I sell single mini taper “spell candles” for $2. Buy 5 get 1 “free”. How many “free” candles do you think people increase to buy? usually get to the $20 min desired sale without even trying. I offer the oils in $2 vials and allow them to mix and match to get that 1 “free” item. 

 

The point i’m Trying to make is to differentiate between group item pricing and sub boxes. They are two entirely different things and can either make or break your profits and customer perception. 

[TallTayl]

Here’s another incredibly successful indie who does both web site typical offerings and sub boxes. 

https://www.theplannersociety.com/

 

3 month min subscription. 30 day cancellation policy AFTER you’ve completed your three min months. 

She offers several different sub combos, each of which is curated specifically for the sub, and not elsewhere available. She sells out, with thousands of fiercely loyal followers discussing their goodies on Facebook groups, Instagram, etc. 

 

Her packages arrive with a cute little charm on a string to seal the inner package. Many People order specifically for that little charm. They have to collect them all. 

 

she started just like all of us. What she did differently is created that emotional connection with her followers who look forward to having their cards charged every month for something rare and special. They would not dare cancel. That has made all the difference. 

 

 

[CandleRush]

Great ideas! I thought to offer just a candle subscription although adding a room spritz, Hand soap etc. I think are popular now. I’m big on presentation, packaging and love that part as well. 

 

Frost Bread Studio, featured on candle sciences website, offers subscriptions. Talk about carving out a niche, they seem very successful. Each candle has a story around a book and asTT says, they are using that emotional connection to reach their customers. 

[Quentin]

In two sentences or less, please state what a seasonal subscription box is as I don't know. After learning the definition, my first question would be how do you get subscribers?

[kandlekrazy]

I have subscribed to both Birch Box & FFF in the past.  I expect a discount on subscriptions.  If you're talking a gift basket/box that's different, but if I'm signing up to get something every 4-6 months I want a deal.

[iansmommaya]

30 minutes ago, Quentin said:

In two sentences or less, please state what a seasonal subscription box is as I don't know. After learning the definition, my first question would be how do you get subscribers?

I can't do anything in two sentences.  😂 A seasonal subscription box would be a subscription or beauty box based upon the seasons, IE spring, summer, fall, winter.  I already have subscribers, I market to my people, my clients and shoppers, farmers market shoppers, at the stores I supply, I have a wonderful pile of ways of getting subscribers.

[TallTayl]

39 minutes ago, kandlekrazy said:

I have subscribed to both Birch Box & FFF in the past.  I expect a discount on subscriptions.  If you're talking a gift basket/box that's different, but if I'm signing up to get something every 4-6 months I want a deal.

those are pretty interesting pricing model examples. Iansmomma can do the same by doubling or tripling her prices, then offering a “deal” of a discount (still making a higher than normal profit) if you buy a few months worth in advance. 

 

Big store brands are playing with premium priced / arbitrarily high priced items to produce a perceived value, then marking them down to get you to close on the “deal” so that your money is now theirs. 

 

Which circles us right back to the beginning, doesn’t it? Make a single purchase uncomfortable enough in price, so the “deal” which is our target sale becomes enticing enough to close the sale. Generic “You” as that type of subscriber are not necessarily their ideal, target customer who will pay anything they happen to charge at a fancy department store, but “you” emotionally still believe “you” want their stuff. They cultivate emotional desire to “save” money and FOMO by closing the sale getting you to commit to buy months in advance.

 

Marketing is fascinating. 

[Quentin]

5 hours ago, TallTayl said:

Marketing is fascinating.

Oh yeah. Marketing is VERY fascinating.