Pastor Keeps the Faith with Clergy Subscription Boxes

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

[Music]

Today we have one of my favorite features, one of my favorite things about the whole podcast, the whole process of making side hustle school for four and a half years now, almost 1600 episodes back to today's episode, 1599. What am I talking about? Well, I'm talking about listener success stories. I love it when our listeners who've been with us for a little while have been inspired by a story or have applied something that they have learned or have just come to realize, you know, there are a lot of good ideas out there. Maybe I should run with one or maybe I should run with my idea.

So I'm always very, very happy when I hear from our listeners who've been able to make something work and especially in a creative, interesting way, which is exactly what we have here today. So specifically, and by the way, welcome to Side Hustle School. If you are brand new, my name is Chris Guillebeau. I am your host. Specifically in today's story, a Lutheran pastor in Minnesota creates a subscription box that is doing fabulously well.

In fact, this is a subscription box for other ministers called Consecrate, which has to be one of the best names ever. This subscription box has been blessed and given divine favor. It all reminds me of the Sermon on the Mount. Blessed are the poor in spirit, but also bless those who hustle for they shall no longer be poor. That's the extended version, not the original translation.

Not only that, but this service began as a few boxes and somehow multiplied, multiplied to serve hundreds of people. All right, the story is called "Pastor Keeps the Faith" with clergy subscription boxes. So I encourage you to keep the faith and keep listening. [Music]

Lutheran pastor, Ruth Hetland, wanted to earn extra money to pay off her student loans to get her family out of the paycheck to paycheck cycle. She had tried everything from self-publishing books of pastoral reflections to public speaking at retreats, but nothing really took off.

Still, Ruth knew that if other people could come up with great ideas, she could too. Her epiphany happened while having coffee with a friend who raved about a subscription box containing wellness items for women. The friend convinced her to give it a try with a gift code. Maybe it was divine intervention or maybe not, but that same day, she listened to one of our episodes about a woman who started a subscription box. From that story, she knew she needed to find a space that wasn't being served and one that she understood well.

Ruth started thinking about how few things there are made for people just like her, ordained women in ministry. In the US, there are about 40,000 ordained women in mainline Protestant denominations. She had just attended the churchwide assembly in Milwaukee where they celebrated the 50th anniversary of the ordination of women in the evangelical Lutheran church in America. There was a special procession with lots of ordained women. However, most of them had to adapt things that were made for men.

That night, Ruth put out her idea on a Lutheran leader mom Facebook group. When she saw their excited responses, she knew the idea had real potential. So to get started, she listened to a podcast. This would not be ours. This would be the subscription box basics podcast, which helped her think about what to do step by step.

When she got overwhelmed, she just focused on the next step. She set a goal date when she wanted the box to launch and began to tell everyone she knew to hold herself accountable. What really helped was remembering it wasn't going to be perfect when it launched. She just had to get going and could improve it from there. Ruth needed this hustle to fund itself.

So she took pre-orders on the boxes. The only thing she paid for out of her own pocket was crate choice fees. Now that was $39 a month. And crate joy, if you're not familiar, is a service that allows you to produce your own subscription box. And guess what Ruth called it?

Well, I already mentioned it, but I just love it so much. She calls her box consecrate. Each month's box is unique. It contains items that resonate with the corresponding church season. Consecrate features books, ministry gear, wellness products, sustainable solutions, assorted treasures, and access to online media.

Ruth describes it as happy mail every month just for you, or at least just for her members. The first box went out in November, 2020. And since then has grown to nearly 450 subscribers each month, paying an average price of $40 each. In addition, she offers one-time boxes people can order for special occasions, or just a gift to say, "I'm thinking of you." When Ruth got her first sale, she cried because she was so happy someone would put their faith in her idea. Quite literally, right?

I mean, I often say that, but in this case, it really is true, putting faith in her idea. While launching consecrate was exciting, it was also stressful. CrateJoy's software wasn't really set up for pre-orders, so it meant a lot of changing the order info and shipment info one by one for the first few months. And once things got rolling, the volume of orders and trying to do all the packing and labeling in too short a time was rough. Now, Ruth allows more time and also gets help from her sons, ages 13 and 14, with packing and labeling the boxes.

It's like a part-time job they can all do together and write in their own home. Monthly Profit is approaching $6,000 and growing. To be precise, it's $5,850 at the time I'm recording this. Ruth hasn't spent any money on marketing. Most consecrate customers find out about it through social media, mainly Facebook and Instagram.

She tries to post about it frequently using a combination of information, video, and just trying to stay connected. Many subscribers have helped spread the word about the box to their networks, and they give the boxes gifts to each other. Some subscribers share unboxing videos, which helps with awareness. She also had an article about the box featured in a magazine in early December that helped with Christmas orders. This spring, the family is doing their first real celebration by using some of the hustle money to go on a vacation to Puerto Rico that they would normally not have been able to consider.

Ruth and her husband both turn 50 and celebrate their 20th anniversary this year. So she says it's wonderful to have a little breathing room in the finances. Consecrate customers enjoy getting unique items not available elsewhere. So Ruth is also building a network of fellow clergy who are artists and creators. She's even come to see the box as a new ministry.

With a renewed sense of joy and gratitude, she intends to keep following wherever the path leads. [Music]

Isn't that just a fun story? I am so excited. Congratulations, Ruth. Well done on answering the call.

And here's some words of wisdom from Ruth. She says, if you're out there and you're in that situation I was in before, if you feel like you just don't know where to begin, well, start anywhere, start somewhere. There's always information available to learn what you need to know to do the next step. So don't worry about the big picture, just the next sequential step. Eventually you will get there, but it all depends on taking it one step at a time.

Also fun fact, Ruth used her expertise running a subscription box to problem solve at church. There were several boxes of leftover cookbooks gathering dust in the basement. So she suggested putting the cookbooks in boxes, maybe dusting them off first, but then putting them in boxes along with other handmade items and baked goods and selling all that together as a package, as a gift box at upcoming festivals, dinners and rummage sales. So one thing leads to another, you gotta take that next step. Thank you so much for listening today.

Inspiration is good, but inspiration with action is so much better. As mentioned, this is episode 1599, the one before 1600. So today's show notes are at sidehustleschool.com/1599. I'm so glad you're listening. Remember, there is something out there waiting for you.

You just gotta take it, well, as mentioned, step by step. All right, that's it for today. If you've got a comment or question, come to sidehustleschool.com/questions. Otherwise come back tomorrow. My name is Chris Guillebeau.

This is "Side Hustle School." [Music]

From the Onward Project.