Subscription Boxes for Grandparents: Q&A with GrandBox

A reader left a comment awhile back requesting recommendations for subscription boxes for grandparents. During my search I discovered GrandBox which officially launched this week. Joe and Andy were kind enough to answer a few questions about their new company for us.

What made you decide to start a subscription box service?

We’ve both wanted to start our own company for a long time, and we both have experiences with tech startups. While they are fun to work at, you can become really disillusioned with your product because it’s not physical. We wanted to impact people with something physical, and we wanted to add some joy to the world.

How did you choose your subscription niche?

We wanted a way to connect with our families, especially those that live on their own and or in care facilities. We felt awful that we don’t see our grandparents, great aunts, mothers and fathers enough. GrandBox is our way to give back to them.

How do you source the products that will be included each month?

We work with unique and interesting companies, through wholesale and partnerships, to provide a curated experience. We look to pair the imaginative and practical. It’s been fun trying to find the right items for our package.

What marketing avenues did you use to get the word out? Any memorable successes or failures?

Right now, it’s all word-of-mouth. What’s been the most interesting is that people receiving the packages have asked how they can send some to friends and family.

What was your biggest surprise – good or bad – with your new business?

Paperwork. Massive, farcical amounts of paperwork.

For the good, we’ve been happy to see the reception so far. Everyone has been incredibly supportive, especially our friends and family.

What would you change if you had to start over?

Two things, we would have started sooner, like when we first met each other. On day 1, we should have said, “Hey, GrandBox?” “Yeah, GrandBox.”

We would have had a more practical approach to filling out all that paperwork.

Where do you see your business five years from now? Any changes in the works?

We want to be a more than just a subscription box service. Our goal is to find more ways to connect families. One of our projects is to do “GrandBox vacations!” It would include taking an entire family to the Grand Canyon or on a cruise. We want to find more ways to get all the generations in a family connected.

 

Thanks to Joe and Andy for the interview. GrandBox is currently available as 3, 6 and 12-month subscriptions as low as $30 per month. Visit their website to learn more.