Friends Turn Gift Boxes into Prosperous Project

This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.

[Music]

'Tis the season of giving gifts. Now many of us fall on a spectrum when it comes to our ability to source, procure, acquire, and actually present those gifts to our loved ones. Some people are really good at it, others not so much. Welcome to Side Hustle School. My name is Chris Guillebeau.

And what I realized in working on this episode is that it's not just that some people are good at it. Some people really are good at giving gifts of all kinds. It's that there's different skills in the gift giving world. There is the art of selecting the perfect gift. There's the mere fact of remembering to buy gifts, keeping up with important dates, et cetera.

And there's the art of presentation. That last one, the art of presentation, that's what today's Sados Little is all about. Two friends in New York City aim to provide a beautiful turnkey solution to everyone who's not good at wrapping presents or otherwise struggles in that department of presentation. So I offer this story to you as a gift. And the story is actually paid for by our sponsor.

So thank you, sponsor, and stay tuned for that story. [Music]

Gabby Koshgarian and Catherine Wang have been best friends since their senior year of college. After graduating, they found themselves living just four blocks from each other in New York City as both embarked on careers in finance. As their personal and professional lives grew, they each attended more and more events, which means they needed gifts. Both Gabby and Catherine absolutely love gifting and always put effort into making their gifts thoughtful.

Unfortunately, they found their customized approach made gifting somewhat of a hassle. After finding the perfect gift, they were then left with toddler-style wrap jobs, oh no, we forgot the card, last minute sprints, and uninspiring department store gift bags when they were particularly desperate. Of course, there was one other option, the pre-curated gift box. But even when those boxes were beautifully presented, the trade-off was often generic, impersonal gifts the recipient didn't want or need. And that didn't work well for Gabby and Catherine.

So they searched for more solutions to their gifting problems. One would think it would have been an easy search. After all, unique packaging for gifts is certainly nothing new. And here's a fun fact, the first documented use of wrapping paper actually goes all the way back to ancient China, around the second century BC. But they found nothing that met their needs.

And the options they did discover left them underwhelmed. They could either have beautiful presentation or the personal touch they were looking for, but not both. So naturally they decided they would create a ready-to-gift gift packaging that they called Blank Box. And it works just like it sounds. A set of gift boxes featuring chic designs, no visible branding, a foldover magnetic closure, and a built-in satin ribbon with that effortless first impression.

Plus each Blank Box, in three simple steps, becomes a custom gift box with a personalized gift tag, featuring handwritten calligraphy text or a printed corporate logo. And of course they're convenient. Blank Box arrives right to your door and ready to roll. You just add your gift and go. Their first step was to test the market.

Before even sourcing a supplier, they compiled a list of 500 first, second, and third degree connections, 500 people, and then surveyed them on all kinds of things from pricing to designs. Yes, it was time-consuming, but it was also free and highly valuable. Gabby and Catherine believed in their new idea for that chic turnkey packaging solution, and so did many of the people they market tested, which encouraged them to move forward. They immediately began sourcing the product, which of course required money. Now in this case, the startup costs were not cheap.

All in, they spent approximately $30,000, more than $24,000 of which went to their first packaging order. They chose to do this large first order in order to keep their profit margin high, and because they were sourcing their materials from a Chinese vendor after a process of trial and error to find the perfect options. As for designing those chic packages, the two partners have many talents, but art and design is not one of them. So they were incredibly grateful to find an amazing designer, Madeline. The partners say they must have gone through thousands of designs before finalizing the three to launch with, but they persisted.

And launch they did. Blankbox went live in August 2018, and the almost immediate orders they received made for two emotional partners. While they celebrated over margaritas, Gabby and Catherine say they also probably cried 15 times during the first week. Tears of joy, thankfully, in this case. They were just overwhelmed with a positive response and couldn't believe how much people loved their project.

Their investment proved fruitful, and in the first year, Blankbox earned back $30,000, allowing them to repay themselves. They not only broke even, but also had product left over for their second year. They expect revenues to grow in year two, especially as they make inroads into that lucrative corporate gifting market. In response to customer demand, they're exploring new sizes, a line of Blankbox basics, and special limited edition collections. Gabby and Catherine say now that their Blankbox side hustle has been the most empowering, incredible, and difficult thing they've ever done.

Notice how those things go together, right? Empowering, incredible, and difficult. Their number one challenge has been the self-funding. Every dime they put into the business came from money earned from their other jobs, which forces them to make tough decisions. But of course, that's not necessarily a bad thing.

And they say their second hardest struggle has been hearing no. This is part of the pitching process. They get a lot of rejection. They have encountered no's from editors when they're seeking press coverage, or when corporate clients have chosen another solution. And they admit that all the rejections are tough to take.

But they've learned to respond by focusing on building a better product, crafting a better offer, and then writing better messaging around both of those. So now in year two and poised for higher profits, the Blankbox hustle is all wrapped up in a nice satin ribbon. [Music]

Well, what a fun project. And just in time for the holidays, the gift-giving season. Of course, you give gifts throughout the year, but in particular, I imagine they are busy at this time.

Now I was taking a look at their website. I love the product names they have for different boxes. The main three that I see on the homepage are At First Blush, which is kind of pink, and then Marblus Darling, which is not shocking, a marble look. And then Checker Me Out, which as you would probably never guess is kind of composed of like a checkerboard pattern. So really fun names.

They do a good job of telling their story. Just a nice little minimal website that really highlights the product, which is exactly what you want to do for this kind of thing. The only constructive comment I had is that there's no link anywhere to their Instagram, at least not an obvious one that I found. I looked all over the site. And for something that is so visual, like they do have an Instagram account, why not link those things a little bit closer?

Because somebody might not be ready to make a purchase, but they might be interested in connecting elsewhere and then following along. And then of course your product is fresh in their minds when they are ready. Like I said, just one constructive comment there. And here is another fun fact, by the way, I learned this myself, I did not know it. Gifts and presents, like the term gift, the term present, they're used interchangeably, but do you know that they're not exactly the same?

Because according to dictionary.com at least, such a lofty authority, if you give something to the recipient at a ceremony, it is a present. Otherwise, it's a gift, all right? Gifts and presents, now you know. You're learning all kinds of stuff. That's why you listen to Side Hustle School.

All right, inspiration is good, but inspiration with action is better. Today's show notes, including links to Blank Box and anything else I mentioned, dictionary.com. All right, sidehustleschool.com/1070. Episode 1070. All right, much more is coming up.

Do come back, my name is Chris Guillebeau, this is Side Hustle School. [Music]

From the Onward Project.