SPRING//SUMMER 2018 19 18 SPRING//SUMMER 2018 run by micro businesses, sometimes a one man (or frequently woman) band, from the ground up. Deb McCormack, creative director at Boxcitement, for example, told me: “We wanted to start a creatively led business without the up- front costs of opening a shop or buying lots of stock in advance. The monthly nature of the business also means we are constantly creating and designing new items, which we love.” Boxing Clever Some offer different box sizes at a variety of price points, others just one size. All offer the possibility to subscribe to regular deliveries, often monthly, while many have a one-off option to see if the customer likes it enough to become a regular subscriber. Talking to a number of subscription box companies, it becomes clear that this is an evolving channel, in which constant sales reviews and careful attention to customer feedback help to establish what works best for each operator. Deb McCormack of Boxcitement continues: “Customers sign up to a one, three, six or 12 month sub, or try us out by buying without subscribing. We also send crafting projects and ideas via regular newsletters, which include free downloads and printables as a way of keeping our customers engaged throughout the month. We sell directly via our website and also through channels such as Look Lane and Cratejoy Marketplace, though the vast majority of our customers find us directly.” Roger la Borde’s RLB Paper Society has hit on something that works for them. Tim Solnick, partner at Roger la Borde, told me: “Subscribers receive a beautifully wrapped pack in the post every two months. We deliberately spaced the packs far enough apart that it wouldn’t become an overwhelming project to run alongside our usual sales to retailers and beyond. We make sure our packs are filled so generously that our subscribers won’t miss us too much in the interim! Orders are fulfilled via our online retail partner, paperfly.co.uk.” Claire Keay launched Sherbet Lane as a Kickstarter campaign, “both to gauge interest and promote the box, which was fully funded within a few hours. The boxes cost £14 per month with free UK postage and packing. Customers sign up to a rolling monthly subscription which they can pause, skip months or cancel. I have recently started selling individual bits of stationery on there too, mostly extra stock from the SherbetBox, and that has gone really well.” What’s in the box? Each brand puts its own spin on the selection, with many choosing to theme their boxes. Whatever the box size or theme, most send a carefully thought-out selection of items like greeting cards, both seasonal and evergreen, gift wrap, notepads, slim and pocket notebooks, sticker sheets, pencils and pens. Themes are a popular way to curate stationery that looks great and works well together, based on a variety of fashion, interiors and cultural trends. Carla Watkins, director (“plus fountain pen addict and glitter ambassador”) at Ink Drops, told me her favourite Ink Drops box “has to be the Harry Potter limited edition, with sparkly fountain pen ink and a Harry Potter-themed Moleskine; it appeals to my inner Hogwarts pupil!” Mary Wright of Spotlight Stationery said: “My favourite is Space, which we sent out in July 2017. I’m no copywriter but I was quietly pleased with the tagline in that box: “It’s stationery, Jim, but not as we know it…” It was one of the best collections we’ve put together; a set of three pocket notebooks from an artisan British producer, a tin of pencils from the US, a star patterned roll of washi tape and a zero-gravity pen from Germany. It was a huge hit with our subscribers and sold out completely. Unusually, I was able to restock this box a few months later, so I sent out a mail shot to our list and they all sold within 40 minutes.” The companies I spoke to are aware of the growing popularity of the stationery box concept and how increased competition for customers requires them to make their box stand out from the crowd. Spotlight Stationery’s Mary Wright uses the box to introduce the work of young illustrators to her subscribers, adding: “The box contents vary every month but the one constant is a set of four exclusive postcards featuring the work of third-year students or recent illustration graduates. We include their contact information and it’s something our subscribers regularly tell us they really like.” Helen Allen-Burt, owner at the green gables, which runs The Happy Paper Club, commented: “The box style is centred around positivity, happiness and mindful pieces. There is also an eco-friendly message; our products are made using 100% recycled stock and packaging. Green and happy is the theme!” This evolving market will surely be driven by its growing army of stationery-loving consumers, with companies offering subscriptions finely tuned to their customers’ needs and tastes. It will grow and thrive if, as Lizbeth Holstein, ‘Queen Bee’ at HoneyTree Post adeptly describes how they keep their regular subscribers happy – by sending their customers “exceptional design, quality and a little bit of love of every month.” Why so popular? The stationery subscription box makes a perfect gift, especially to yourself. One recent newcomer to the market, Nero’s Notebooks (formerly Pocket Notebooks), is an example of the Remington effect: Stuart Lennon became a Pocket Notebooks customer in 2016 and liked his subscription box so much, in 2017 he bought the company. He said: “Part of the joy of a subscription is getting a present in the mail (even if it’s a present from yourself).” So customers benefit from receiving regular deliveries of ‘happy post’ to their door, and it’s a wonderfully self- indulgent way for them to discover new products and brands. Most of all, it’s a treat, a regular pick-me-up for the stationery addict or paper connoisseur. From a business owner’s point of view, the regular revenue stream is an obvious attraction. Small companies can buy what they need rather than sit on expensive stock. Some subscription companies bypass that element all together by designing and making the stationery themselves. Whatever their style or subscription offer, the companies pioneering the concept in the UK all share a desire to delight their customers with regular papery parcels of joy through the post. RLB Paper Society,from Roger la Borde Happy post from Sherbet Lane The Space box from Spotlight Stationery The Fairytale box from Ink Drops Happy Paper Club at the green gables Nero’s Notebooks PART OFTHE JOY OF A SUBSCRIPTION IS GETTING A PRESENT INTHE MAIL (EVEN IF IT’S A PRESENT FROMYOURSELF).