April 22, 2024 • 25 mins
Join me on a stroll down memory lane with the remarkable Antoinette Abrahamson, the entrepreneurial spirit behind The Ring Boxes and The Belly Bundle. Antoinette's passion for celebrations sparked the inception of her companies, offering brides-to-be and expectant mothers beautifully curated, cost-effective gifts.
Our candid conversation takes us back to our early days, the trials of product sourcing, and the sheer delight of seeing our labors of love come to fruition. Listen in to her juicy story on a vendor gone bad and learn from her mistakes. As two entrepreneurs woven together by mutual support and growth, you'll love this conversation!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
So you want to launch a subscription box and don't
know where to start?
Girl, you are in the rightplace.
I'm Julie Ball and I'm ReneeGonzalez, your host here at
Subscription Box Basics, apodcast for new and aspiring
subscription box entrepreneurswanting to avoid overwhelm.
So grab a coffee, some pen andpaper and let's have some fun.
(00:21):
Hey everybody, and welcome backto Subscription Box Basics.
I'm Julie Ball, your head coach, and today I have a very
special guest, someone I'veknown since 2016, when we were
baby entrepreneurs in thesubscription box space.
So I want to introduce you toAntoinette Abrahamson, the
(00:42):
founder of the Ring Boxes andthe Belly Bundle.
Antoinette, welcome to thepodcast.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Hi Julie.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm so excited to do thisfinally with you.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
I know We've known each other for so long.
We'll have to tell a little bitabout our origin stories.
But why don't we first startwith a little bit of
introduction, a little bit moreabout yourself, because a lot of
people they're going to bemeeting you for the first time,
so tell us a little bit aboutAntoinette.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Okay, so I'm Antoinette Abrahamson.
I founded two differentsubscription box companies over
the past almost eight years.
I am a mother of two and Istarted my first company, which
is a bridal subscription box thering boxes.
That was started in 2016.
And then, two years later, Ilaunched the belly bundle which
(01:38):
is a pregnancy subscription box.
Speaker 1 (01:39):
Okay, and so we?
What did we meet in a Facebookgroup?
I think was that how we first.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
I feel like it was because when I started my first
company, I honestly had no ideaanything about the subscription
box world or really being anentrepreneur at all.
I had followed subscription boxschool, yes, in Cratejoy, in
Cratejoy, and there werebasically all these like online
webinars, and you kind of justlike walked through them and
(02:02):
they walked you through like howto start a subscription box,
and I just followed every singlething like step by step.
I feel like you were in aFacebook group related to that
and that's how we connected.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
Yes, and it's so funny too, because there's a lot
of Facebook groups now for thesubscription box industry and
owners, but then there werethere was only subscription
school, which was run byCratejoy, and then there was
this little group called I thinkit was like Subbox Ladies or
something, and there was maybe30 of us in there and we just
shared war stories, cheered eachother on, did whatever we could
(02:33):
, and it felt very tight andsmall and intimate.
And I remember saying in thatgroup that I was going to oh
gosh, this had to have been 2017.
I was going to the NationalStationery Show in New York City
and that is just what it soundslike.
It is a show where all thesestationery suppliers would show
(02:55):
up.
So it was like U Brands pop inand they had pens and stationery
and cards and all these funthings.
And I was like, okay, this isright up my alley, and
stationery and cards and allthese fun things.
And I was like, okay, this isright up my alley, this is, I
can go to this one stationeryshow, pick my vendors, pick my
products.
For the whole year I'm going.
And that was the same year thatI believe you said you were
going right 2017.
Okay, and what were you goingto source there?
Speaker 2 (03:22):
So we were looking at the time for planners, for
wedding planners, because at thetime I only had the ring boxes
and that was like a reallystaple item I wanted to make
sure we had.
So that's, that was like mymain intentions of going there.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
Just okay, under for that so we actually started
messaging and we're like I'mhere and you're like I'm here,
let's meet up.
So we have this picture of usat the national stationery show
from 2017.
As baby, I'll have to post iton social media like the then
and now, because we got to meetagain in person last year at
some summit and I'm so excitedyou're going to be there again
(03:52):
this year, so we'll get to spendsome more time together.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Yes, I really can't wait.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Yay, okay, so tell us about your subscription boxes.
You have two of them and youknow who.
You said that the ring boxes isbridal box, but what's the
problem you solve with it andhow did that idea even come
about?
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Okay.
So kind of, like I mentioned, Iwasn't.
I didn't have any businessbackground or intentions of
becoming a business owner.
It kind of I couldn't sell intoit, I feel.
So I used to do cardiovascularultrasound and I was super
passionate about what I wasdoing.
I had an amazing job.
I loved everything about it.
I had gotten hurt at work it'sa very physical job so I got
(04:32):
hurt at work and I wasn't ableto work because of the injury I
had and I was out of work, forit had to be over six months and
at that point obviously I had alot of time to think about
different things and I was 26.
All of my friends were startingto get engaged and I love, love.
So I was always creating thesebig gift baskets for them filled
(04:54):
with all these things that Iknew they were going to need as
a newly engaged woman.
And it was very expensive to tryto find all these different
items and put them into a giftbasket or a gift box, to try to
find all these different itemsand put them into a gift basket
or a gift box, and I just Istarted to slowly notice that I
was always getting them similaritems and I was like this there
(05:16):
has to be an easier way for meto gift things to a newly
engaged bride, or even for abride to buy for themselves to
celebrate their engagement withthings that they need, without
spending hundreds of dollarsevery single time.
So that's really how the ideacame about, and at the time,
subscription boxes were kind ofjust becoming a bigger thing
this was 2016.
So there were some out there,but I don't think it had really
exploded yet and, as far asbridal boxes, there weren't any
(05:38):
that I saw.
So I was like all right, I'mgoing to do this, I'm going to
try to figure this out and seeif it's something I can do.
And that's really where theidea came from.
And, like I said, I startedfollowing all the different
webinars online of how to getstarted and I started it in my
husband's then he was myboyfriend his father's basement
(05:59):
and it was.
It's pretty wild that it wentfrom there to where it is today.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
Yes, so tell the story of the first month's
shipment, because you grewincredibly fast and I remember
you posting a picture of a Idon't know was it UPS or FedEx
or something like that truckthat was filled completely.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
FedEx or something like that truck that was filled
completely.
Yeah, so it was.
I believe it was USPS, becausewe were so new, so we were doing
it out of the basement and Ihad planned to ship like 250
boxes for our first shipment.
That was my goal.
I wanted to sell 250.
That's what I planned for.
So we launched January 1st of2017 and we sold out within
three I don't even know if itwas three days.
I want to say it might havebeen like a day and then we're
(06:45):
trying to get more products,because I was like, oh my God,
we're sold out.
I thought it would take me allmonth to even sell these.
So I started calling all of ourvendors and at the time, I was
using all these small businesseslike local Etsy shops.
So I'm now calling them andasking them how much can you get
me quickly?
Basically?
So I was able to get 650 moreand then we sold out of that
(07:08):
like nothing, but that was oursecond shipment was 650, because
it's all I could get.
Yeah, and then by our thirdmonth, I was able to do a
thousand and we also sold out,and after our third month, we
moved to a fulfillment companybecause we couldn't even package
a thousand boxes in thisbasement and it was crazy.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
That is so crazy.
Okay, so what was your secretsauce at the beginning?
Like, how did you grow yourlist and get all these people to
know about what you wereselling and then how did you
convert them?
Like, give us some hints onwhat your secret sauce was.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Okay.
So back then again, it was 2016.
So I don't need a ballgame.
It's a different ballgame.
Yes, I don't think influencermarketing was really a thing yet
.
So I had studied, like how topre-launch, what should I be
doing, how to get my name outthere, and I had reached out to
a brand at the time Well,they're still here.
(08:03):
It's called Wedding Chicks, andI felt like they really aligned
with what I was creating.
They were two women that ownedthis brand.
They had a few hundred thousandfollowers, I think.
Today they have like twomillion.
I mean, they're huge, yeah.
So I had reached out to themand explained to them what I was
creating and, like, I mean,they're huge, yeah.
So I had reached out to them andexplained to them what I was
(08:23):
creating and, like I said, thisdidn't exist yet in our industry
.
So I think it was very excitingfor them as well.
And then we partnered.
I sent them one of our boxes,like a sample box, and they did
a whole unboxing experience.
They posted about it and Ithink that was like the biggest,
the biggest thing for us.
We did that right in thebeginning of December and then
we launched in January, so wewere able to like start building
our list from that and thenlaunch to those people in
(08:47):
January.
Love it Okay.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
So fast forward.
You become a bride this is avery personal project for you at
this point and then fastforward later.
Now you're a mom of two boys,and so I'm assuming that your
own personal journey had to dowith why you started the belly
bundle?
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, definitely.
So I I mean I kind of quicklythought to myself that I wanted
to continue the journey with ourcustomers and with our brides,
and obviously they're going toget married and there's not much
more you could do after likethe honeymoon for them and not
for everybody, but most startinga family is that next stage of
life, and I felt like, again,for pregnant women, this is such
(09:28):
a great gift or it's so greatfor especially like a first time
mom, you don't know what youneed.
You don't know, you don't knowanything really.
You're researching all thesethings online and it's just nice
to be able to get a gift box inthe mail that's literally
created for you, tailored toyour due date, by moms that have
already been through it.
They know what you need andit's just felt like the right
(09:50):
direction.
And yes to what you said.
So after I got married, I wastrying to start a family, so I
was completely aligned with allthese feelings and it just took
off.
So, 2018, I got married in 2018.
I launched the Belt and Build.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
Nice.
Oh, I love that and so often somany of our listeners they are
their own target audience aswell.
So when you're in it it's soexciting and it's easy Like for
me as a female entrepreneur whenI was running Sparkle Hustle
Grow, it was easy because I knewwhat I needed.
I might not know everythingabout everything, but I'm like I
know I need to learn about this.
(10:26):
So let's bring that guestexpert in or whatever.
So okay, so you've got the twoboxes running.
They can play to each other.
So do you do marketing from youknow one box to the other box,
do you kind of overlap like that?
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Yes.
So both of the boxes aretailored to either their wedding
date for the brides, or they'retailored to their due date.
So we know when they're gettingmarried, you know when they're
having their babies.
So it made it easy for us to beable to basically retarget our
brides because you know whenthey're getting married.
We can ideally envision whenthey're going to be trying to
start a family and then we'llstart retargeting them for the
(11:02):
belly bundle and hopefully, ifthey're pregnant then they can
subscribe, or if they're,friends are, because a lot of
people will go through thesestages of life together.
You know Totally, and I mean Ithink that's like a chain
reaction, like I said, for me,one friend gets engaged and then
it's all of my friends gotengaged, and that's why you see
people that are like I have 12weddings this year.
(11:23):
Look at everyone kind ofaligned, and the pregnancy too,
yeah, so it's pretty awesome.
Speaker 1 (11:28):
So we've talked a little bit about the launch
story, about launching thesecond box and how it was a
different ballgame in 2016, 2017.
So what are some of yourbiggest challenges?
Throughout pick anywhere?
Throughout the journey, whatare some of your biggest
challenges and how did youovercome them?
Speaker 2 (11:47):
I really think the biggest challenge is adapting,
Just like I've had to grow withit Every time your business was
changing.
I needed to change to keep upwith really so when we were
growing like that.
I didn't expect to grow likethat, so obviously I had to
immediately start to learn moreand educate myself on like, well
, what are these next steps?
And then also when we startedand we were smaller and then
(12:12):
growing so quickly like wecouldn't even use the vendors we
were using, so we also had togo and figure that out.
Supply chain, you know, are wegoing to still be able to source
here in the US?
Do we need to go overseas dueto the quantity demand?
So all of that, I would say,are more challenging in the
beginning, but it's justsomething you need to adapt with
(12:32):
and just take time to getthrough it.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
That's really good advice and I know one of the
challenges you told me about.
We were chatting a little bitbefore the podcast and you had
mentioned something aboutoperating agreements and vendors
and that you had a challengewith a vendor.
So you want to tell that juicystory.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
Yeah, yeah.
So this was a very dramaticstory years ago, but it's been
so long that now it feels alittle more juicy.
Speaker 1 (12:59):
Yes, we won't share any names, but you tell the
story and we can learn thelesson from it.
Speaker 2 (13:03):
Yes, yes, so years ago, when I had first started my
business this was probably acouple of years in so 2018, I
had both companies.
One of my largest vendors wasfulfilling for us, for both
companies.
I mean, it was a very largeamount of our inventory was
coming from this one person whowas based here in the US, and I
(13:24):
was working with her, you know,for a long time, and I just I've
always felt, like you know, Iassume people have the same
moral compass that I have Likethey have the same good
intentions.
They're going to treat me theway I would treat somebody, and
that was a very hard lesson Ihad to learn.
I didn't have specificcontracts in place with her,
(13:46):
like non-competes andnon-disclosures.
These are things you need tohave with anyone who is going to
be working with you on yourcompany, especially at that
quantity level, yeah, andespecially if you're growing,
because they're going to see thegrowth and it's going to.
It's hard to not want to be apart of that right or to have it
for yourself, I guess.
(14:07):
So we were working together foryears and I had discovered that
she had actually gone andlaunched a competing business
and I kind of stumbled upon it.
I had reached out to herbecause the designs were very
similar, so and it just madesense that it was.
I felt like it was her.
She had obviously said I havenothing to do with this business
, like it's not me, and Itrusted that.
I was like okay.
And then time went on and I wasI don't know.
It just feels like like maybeshe's not telling me the truth.
(14:30):
So I ended up looking up theLLC information, because she
lived in the same state as meand I know that's public
information.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Public information.
Yeah, public information.
Sure enough, it was her name onthe LLC as the owner and I just
remember being mortified and Iwas hysterical because I just
couldn't believe someone woulddo that to me, because I would
never do that to somebody else,and it was a very hard lesson to
learn and then to have to pivot.
I needed to find a new vendorimmediately.
I couldn't continue to workwith her, obviously.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
It was a lot.
Did you share with her?
Say, I know that this is youand our business together is
over?
Or like, how did you evenhandle?
Speaker 2 (15:08):
that, yeah.
So I think I was very emotionalabout it.
So I did reach out to her and Iwas trying to be very
professional at the same time.
But you know, we were bothwomen, we lived in the same
state, we had met in person, sheknew my husband, it felt it
felt personal too.
So I did, I just reached outand I was direct, like I know
(15:29):
this is you.
This is the information that Ihave come across.
I'm so disappointed that thishas happened and we had to go
through a lot of legal stuff aswell that followed that.
So the biggest takeaway thereis have contracts in place with
everybody and just expect theworst.
Go in expecting the worst,because at least then you have
everything there if the worst isto happen.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Yes, so have your legal contracts in place when
you're working with vendors.
Yes, and don't always assumethat someone's going to have the
same good intentions that youdo.
Oh, that's a hard lesson tolearn.
Yeah, it was, but you learned.
I learned from it.
Well, I'm so sorry that youwent through that and thank you
for sharing that story, becauseyou sharing your story honestly
(16:14):
could help other people fromfalling prey to that same
situation.
So let's take the conversationmore positive.
What are some of your favoritethings about?
Speaker 2 (16:25):
Honestly, I love the creativity that comes along with
subscription boxes, becauseespecially for both of our boxes
.
But we go with themed boxes sofor our brides, like I said,
they're tailored to theirwedding date.
So if you're newly engaged, thetheme is all about planning and
prepping and then, as you getcloser to your actual wedding
date, it's like we have abachelorette theme, we have the
(16:46):
night before the wedding, wehave a big day, honeymoon.
So being able to be so creativeand design all these different
themes and products and that'sreally my favorite part about it
it's not like I guess our boxis the product, but there's so
many products inside that I getto design and be a part of that
I would definitely say that's myfavorite part.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
I love that part too.
It's like you get to goshopping for your friends as
part of the job part too.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
It's like you get to go shopping for your friends as
part of your job.
Yes, absolutely, and I alwayssay that, especially for our
moms, because my boys are twoand four now.
So anything that we're puttinginto our boxes for our moms, I
want to make sure I'm going touse this.
It's going to be a style.
It's going to be high quality,the right style, on trend and
useful.
It's not going to be somethingyou only can use.
Maybe, you know, in the firstthree months you could use this
(17:31):
for years with your baby as theybecome a toddler.
It's very useful stuff, so Ireally love creating that as
well.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
And coming up with an idea of a product working with
a manufacturer and then actuallyseeing that and holding that
product and knowing that thatwas your idea.
There's just something reallyspecial about it.
I've tried so many differentbusiness models throughout my
entrepreneurial life.
I've been an entrepreneur since2011.
(17:59):
And I feel like theproduct-based businesses just
keeps drawing me back in.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
Yeah, no, it's definitely fun, I really, and I
like to have that tangible itemthat I could see it, touch it
and just know it's mine.
Yeah, yep.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
Okay, so what's one piece of advice you can share
with new and aspiringsubscription box business owners
?
Because I mean, here you areeight years in, you've learned a
lot of lessons, so what kind ofadvice can you give us?
Speaker 2 (18:25):
Okay, so I have a few things.
I would say the biggest thing,if you are new and you're trying
to launch a subscription box,is to start small.
I think the worst thing youcould do is to jump into high
quantities because you'reexpecting or hoping for a lot of
success right away, because ifit doesn't happen, then you're
going to be just more stressedout about the fact that you have
(18:47):
all this inventory now and likethe costs that are associated.
So you can start small and thensee where that goes and grow
with it.
That's the better way to gothan just jumping into these
larger quantities to get bettercosts.
You can improve your costs asyou grow.
You don't need to come out thegate with the perfect cost right
.
That would be one of my biggestthings, and my another one is
(19:10):
masterminds.
I recently started to reallydive into masterminds and
mentorships and I think that hasbeen so incredibly helpful for
me, because being able to meetpeople, especially in our
industry, that have been doingthis for a long time so trying
to meet someone in the industrythat's a little bit ahead of you
or somewhere that you're likeaspiring to be.
(19:32):
So if you're just starting outand you want to get to like a
million in revenue, two millionin revenue.
Then you want to meet someonewho's there or has been there
recently, so that they can giveyou some advice that aligns with
getting there.
I definitely think that's a bigone, and just being able to
communicate with people in theindustry as well for learning
about what kind of apps they'reusing, what do they do, what are
(19:54):
their strategies, what doestheir tech stack look like.
All that kind of stuff is souseful.
Speaker 1 (19:59):
Nice, nice, yeah.
And going to the sub summit isa great thing too, because
that's where you can meet theother people in the industry and
actually shake hands and havecoffee with, and sit down and
chat with them.
So that's what you know.
I know, antoinette, you and Iwill both be there, and so if
you're listening and you'regoing to be at SubSummit, come
introduce yourself to us.
We'd love to talk shop with you.
(20:21):
And so, antoinette, one of thethings you said was to talk to
others about what's working foryou right now.
So I don't have this on ourquestion list, but tell me one
thing that's working for yourbusiness right now.
That's helping you,specifically if you have any
advice on new customeracquisition, because I know a
lot of people are strugglingwith growing their email lists
(20:41):
and getting new subscribersright now.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
Yeah, so okay, so something that I recently
integrated with was Klaviyo, sowe were on MailChimp when I had
launched my boxes and we werewith MailChimp for very long
years.
We recently switched over toKlaviyo and that was because
Klaviyo is another emailsoftware but they allow you to
do so many differentsegmentations so you can really
(21:04):
retarget these customers afterthey come to your site and even
once they do become a subscriber, you can really nail down like
a nurture campaign based on theactual customer and just align
with them more.
And it just is amazing.
It's an amazing program thatMailChimp just like didn't give
that to us the way we neededthat segmentation.
So I definitely think Klaviyois a huge one and it integrates
(21:26):
with everything.
So it's just seamless for meand I would say Gorgias as well.
We were on Zendesk for a longtime and then we recently went
into Gorgias for our customersupport and that also has so
many different integrations withall of our social networks.
So you're getting people whoare DMing your company, leaving
comments for the company, andyou have all these different
(21:46):
employees that are trying tokeep up with it.
Gorgias lets it all integrateinto one system where everything
can be tagged and at least yoursupport staff can just all be
in this one hub basicallyfiguring everything out and
answering all your customers.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
I love that those feel like almost like
graduations, so like you wereusing MailChimp and you sort of
graduated to Klaviyo, and I seethat happen a lot.
I don't recommend Klaviyo outof the gate because it can be a
little bit intimidating and youdon't need that much right at
launch, but it's definitelysomething if you're in that
(22:21):
scaling phase or you're workingon your growth.
And then we had used Help Scoutin the past and it was just a
really simple, probably verysimilar to Zendesk, but it
sounds like then this gorgeousplatform which I haven't heard
of I'm totally gonna look thatup is like a graduated version
of that.
So that's really cool.
I'm gonna look those up andwe'll make sure that we put
(22:42):
links to all of that stuff inthe show notes so, listener, you
can think about okay, if that'sme, if I'm in the scaling phase
, maybe that's something I needto look at for my tech stack.
Speaker 2 (22:57):
Yeah, and then back to MailChimp.
For the beginners, I was onMailChimp for seven years, I
mean, so that supported mycompany, even through scale as
well.
I just now that othertechnology is out there.
We started moving more that way, but MailChimp still did it for
a very long time.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Yeah, that's what we started on too with Sparkle
Hustle Grow, and we used it forprobably five years maybe.
So you got to love that goodold MailChimp.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
Yeah, definitely Big piece of advice I would give for
anyone like newer is puttingyourself out there, especially
with SubSummit.
So if you sign up for SubSummit, they will actually send you a
list of who's going to be thereand you can start looking up
who's going to be there, whatkind of boxes do they own, and
start kind of planning who doyou want to connect with and
meet.
And then just try not to benervous about putting yourself
(23:38):
out there because people want tohelp.
If somebody came up to me andtold me they were just starting
a subscription box and theywanted advice, I am here for it.
I have so much advice I wouldlove to help.
So just keep that in mind.
Everyone's there if they wantto help, especially when you're
in the same realm as us.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
Yeah, and everyone there is so kind and giving and
just like generous with theiradvice.
All right, so where can peoplefollow you?
Where can they find both ofyour subscription boxes?
Because I want to make sure Iput those in the links in case
anyone is a bride-to-be or amom-to-be or has friends that
are.
So tell us where we can findyou.
Speaker 2 (24:14):
Okay, so we on all of our socials for the Ringboxes.
We are at the Ringboxes and ourwebsite is theringboxescom.
And then for the Belly Bundlesame thing it's at the Belly
Bundle on all of our socials andthebellybundlecom and the Belly
Bundle on all of our socialsand thebellybundlecom.
And I also have a professionalInstagram.
It's Antoinette underscoreAbrahamson.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
We will put those all in the show notes so everyone
can follow along.
Antoinette, thank you so much.
It was really fun catching upwith you and it's hard to
believe we've both been doingthis since 2016.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
I know it really it really is, but I love doing this
.
I'm so glad that we finally gotto do it.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Yes, Thanks for agreeing to come on everyone.
Thanks for listening today andwe'll see you in the next
episode.
Bye, Bye.
So you want to launch a subscription box and don't
know where to start?
Girl, you are in the rightplace.
I'm Julie Ball and I'm ReneeGonzalez, your host here at
Subscription Box Basics, apodcast for new and aspiring
subscription box entrepreneurswanting to avoid overwhelm.
So grab a coffee, some pen andpaper and let's have some fun.
(00:21):
Hey everybody, and welcome backto Subscription Box Basics.
I'm Julie Ball, your head coach, and today I have a very
special guest, someone I'veknown since 2016, when we were
baby entrepreneurs in thesubscription box space.
So I want to introduce you toAntoinette Abrahamson, the
(00:42):
founder of the Ring Boxes andthe Belly Bundle.
Antoinette, welcome to thepodcast.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Hi Julie.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm so excited to do thisfinally with you.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
I know We've known each other for so long.
We'll have to tell a little bitabout our origin stories.
But why don't we first startwith a little bit of
introduction, a little bit moreabout yourself, because a lot of
people they're going to bemeeting you for the first time,
so tell us a little bit aboutAntoinette.
Speaker 2 (01:09):
Okay, so I'm Antoinette Abrahamson.
I founded two differentsubscription box companies over
the past almost eight years.
I am a mother of two and Istarted my first company, which
is a bridal subscription box thering boxes.
That was started in 2016.
And then, two years later, Ilaunched the belly bundle which
(01:38):
is a pregnancy subscription box.
Speaker 1 (01:39):
Okay, and so we?
What did we meet in a Facebookgroup?
I think was that how we first.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
I feel like it was because when I started my first
company, I honestly had no ideaanything about the subscription
box world or really being anentrepreneur at all.
I had followed subscription boxschool, yes, in Cratejoy, in
Cratejoy, and there werebasically all these like online
webinars, and you kind of justlike walked through them and
(02:02):
they walked you through like howto start a subscription box,
and I just followed every singlething like step by step.
I feel like you were in aFacebook group related to that
and that's how we connected.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
Yes, and it's so funny too, because there's a lot
of Facebook groups now for thesubscription box industry and
owners, but then there werethere was only subscription
school, which was run byCratejoy, and then there was
this little group called I thinkit was like Subbox Ladies or
something, and there was maybe30 of us in there and we just
shared war stories, cheered eachother on, did whatever we could
(02:33):
, and it felt very tight andsmall and intimate.
And I remember saying in thatgroup that I was going to oh
gosh, this had to have been 2017.
I was going to the NationalStationery Show in New York City
and that is just what it soundslike.
It is a show where all thesestationery suppliers would show
(02:55):
up.
So it was like U Brands pop inand they had pens and stationery
and cards and all these funthings.
And I was like, okay, this isright up my alley, and
stationery and cards and allthese fun things.
And I was like, okay, this isright up my alley, this is, I
can go to this one stationeryshow, pick my vendors, pick my
products.
For the whole year I'm going.
And that was the same year thatI believe you said you were
going right 2017.
Okay, and what were you goingto source there?
Speaker 2 (03:22):
So we were looking at the time for planners, for
wedding planners, because at thetime I only had the ring boxes
and that was like a reallystaple item I wanted to make
sure we had.
So that's, that was like mymain intentions of going there.
Speaker 1 (03:31):
Just okay, under for that so we actually started
messaging and we're like I'mhere and you're like I'm here,
let's meet up.
So we have this picture of usat the national stationery show
from 2017.
As baby, I'll have to post iton social media like the then
and now, because we got to meetagain in person last year at
some summit and I'm so excitedyou're going to be there again
(03:52):
this year, so we'll get to spendsome more time together.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
Yes, I really can't wait.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Yay, okay, so tell us about your subscription boxes.
You have two of them and youknow who.
You said that the ring boxes isbridal box, but what's the
problem you solve with it andhow did that idea even come
about?
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Okay.
So kind of, like I mentioned, Iwasn't.
I didn't have any businessbackground or intentions of
becoming a business owner.
It kind of I couldn't sell intoit, I feel.
So I used to do cardiovascularultrasound and I was super
passionate about what I wasdoing.
I had an amazing job.
I loved everything about it.
I had gotten hurt at work it'sa very physical job so I got
(04:32):
hurt at work and I wasn't ableto work because of the injury I
had and I was out of work, forit had to be over six months and
at that point obviously I had alot of time to think about
different things and I was 26.
All of my friends were startingto get engaged and I love, love.
So I was always creating thesebig gift baskets for them filled
(04:54):
with all these things that Iknew they were going to need as
a newly engaged woman.
And it was very expensive to tryto find all these different
items and put them into a giftbasket or a gift box, to try to
find all these different itemsand put them into a gift basket
or a gift box, and I just Istarted to slowly notice that I
was always getting them similaritems and I was like this there
(05:16):
has to be an easier way for meto gift things to a newly
engaged bride, or even for abride to buy for themselves to
celebrate their engagement withthings that they need, without
spending hundreds of dollarsevery single time.
So that's really how the ideacame about, and at the time,
subscription boxes were kind ofjust becoming a bigger thing
this was 2016.
So there were some out there,but I don't think it had really
exploded yet and, as far asbridal boxes, there weren't any
(05:38):
that I saw.
So I was like all right, I'mgoing to do this, I'm going to
try to figure this out and seeif it's something I can do.
And that's really where theidea came from.
And, like I said, I startedfollowing all the different
webinars online of how to getstarted and I started it in my
husband's then he was myboyfriend his father's basement
(05:59):
and it was.
It's pretty wild that it wentfrom there to where it is today.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
Yes, so tell the story of the first month's
shipment, because you grewincredibly fast and I remember
you posting a picture of a Idon't know was it UPS or FedEx
or something like that truckthat was filled completely.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
FedEx or something like that truck that was filled
completely.
Yeah, so it was.
I believe it was USPS, becausewe were so new, so we were doing
it out of the basement and Ihad planned to ship like 250
boxes for our first shipment.
That was my goal.
I wanted to sell 250.
That's what I planned for.
So we launched January 1st of2017 and we sold out within
three I don't even know if itwas three days.
I want to say it might havebeen like a day and then we're
(06:45):
trying to get more products,because I was like, oh my God,
we're sold out.
I thought it would take me allmonth to even sell these.
So I started calling all of ourvendors and at the time, I was
using all these small businesseslike local Etsy shops.
So I'm now calling them andasking them how much can you get
me quickly?
Basically?
So I was able to get 650 moreand then we sold out of that
(07:08):
like nothing, but that was oursecond shipment was 650, because
it's all I could get.
Yeah, and then by our thirdmonth, I was able to do a
thousand and we also sold out,and after our third month, we
moved to a fulfillment companybecause we couldn't even package
a thousand boxes in thisbasement and it was crazy.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
That is so crazy.
Okay, so what was your secretsauce at the beginning?
Like, how did you grow yourlist and get all these people to
know about what you wereselling and then how did you
convert them?
Like, give us some hints onwhat your secret sauce was.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Okay.
So back then again, it was 2016.
So I don't need a ballgame.
It's a different ballgame.
Yes, I don't think influencermarketing was really a thing yet
.
So I had studied, like how topre-launch, what should I be
doing, how to get my name outthere, and I had reached out to
a brand at the time Well,they're still here.
(08:03):
It's called Wedding Chicks, andI felt like they really aligned
with what I was creating.
They were two women that ownedthis brand.
They had a few hundred thousandfollowers, I think.
Today they have like twomillion.
I mean, they're huge, yeah.
So I had reached out to themand explained to them what I was
creating and, like, I mean,they're huge, yeah.
So I had reached out to them andexplained to them what I was
(08:23):
creating and, like I said, thisdidn't exist yet in our industry
.
So I think it was very excitingfor them as well.
And then we partnered.
I sent them one of our boxes,like a sample box, and they did
a whole unboxing experience.
They posted about it and Ithink that was like the biggest,
the biggest thing for us.
We did that right in thebeginning of December and then
we launched in January, so wewere able to like start building
our list from that and thenlaunch to those people in
(08:47):
January.
Love it Okay.
Speaker 1 (08:49):
So fast forward.
You become a bride this is avery personal project for you at
this point and then fastforward later.
Now you're a mom of two boys,and so I'm assuming that your
own personal journey had to dowith why you started the belly
bundle?
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, definitely.
So I I mean I kind of quicklythought to myself that I wanted
to continue the journey with ourcustomers and with our brides,
and obviously they're going toget married and there's not much
more you could do after likethe honeymoon for them and not
for everybody, but most startinga family is that next stage of
life, and I felt like, again,for pregnant women, this is such
(09:28):
a great gift or it's so greatfor especially like a first time
mom, you don't know what youneed.
You don't know, you don't knowanything really.
You're researching all thesethings online and it's just nice
to be able to get a gift box inthe mail that's literally
created for you, tailored toyour due date, by moms that have
already been through it.
They know what you need andit's just felt like the right
(09:50):
direction.
And yes to what you said.
So after I got married, I wastrying to start a family, so I
was completely aligned with allthese feelings and it just took
off.
So, 2018, I got married in 2018.
I launched the Belt and Build.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
Nice.
Oh, I love that and so often somany of our listeners they are
their own target audience aswell.
So when you're in it it's soexciting and it's easy Like for
me as a female entrepreneur whenI was running Sparkle Hustle
Grow, it was easy because I knewwhat I needed.
I might not know everythingabout everything, but I'm like I
know I need to learn about this.
(10:26):
So let's bring that guestexpert in or whatever.
So okay, so you've got the twoboxes running.
They can play to each other.
So do you do marketing from youknow one box to the other box,
do you kind of overlap like that?
Speaker 2 (10:42):
Yes.
So both of the boxes aretailored to either their wedding
date for the brides, or they'retailored to their due date.
So we know when they're gettingmarried, you know when they're
having their babies.
So it made it easy for us to beable to basically retarget our
brides because you know whenthey're getting married.
We can ideally envision whenthey're going to be trying to
start a family and then we'llstart retargeting them for the
(11:02):
belly bundle and hopefully, ifthey're pregnant then they can
subscribe, or if they're,friends are, because a lot of
people will go through thesestages of life together.
You know Totally, and I mean Ithink that's like a chain
reaction, like I said, for me,one friend gets engaged and then
it's all of my friends gotengaged, and that's why you see
people that are like I have 12weddings this year.
(11:23):
Look at everyone kind ofaligned, and the pregnancy too,
yeah, so it's pretty awesome.
Speaker 1 (11:28):
So we've talked a little bit about the launch
story, about launching thesecond box and how it was a
different ballgame in 2016, 2017.
So what are some of yourbiggest challenges?
Throughout pick anywhere?
Throughout the journey, whatare some of your biggest
challenges and how did youovercome them?
Speaker 2 (11:47):
I really think the biggest challenge is adapting,
Just like I've had to grow withit Every time your business was
changing.
I needed to change to keep upwith really so when we were
growing like that.
I didn't expect to grow likethat, so obviously I had to
immediately start to learn moreand educate myself on like, well
, what are these next steps?
And then also when we startedand we were smaller and then
(12:12):
growing so quickly like wecouldn't even use the vendors we
were using, so we also had togo and figure that out.
Supply chain, you know, are wegoing to still be able to source
here in the US?
Do we need to go overseas dueto the quantity demand?
So all of that, I would say,are more challenging in the
beginning, but it's justsomething you need to adapt with
(12:32):
and just take time to getthrough it.
Speaker 1 (12:35):
That's really good advice and I know one of the
challenges you told me about.
We were chatting a little bitbefore the podcast and you had
mentioned something aboutoperating agreements and vendors
and that you had a challengewith a vendor.
So you want to tell that juicystory.
Speaker 2 (12:52):
Yeah, yeah.
So this was a very dramaticstory years ago, but it's been
so long that now it feels alittle more juicy.
Speaker 1 (12:59):
Yes, we won't share any names, but you tell the
story and we can learn thelesson from it.
Speaker 2 (13:03):
Yes, yes, so years ago, when I had first started my
business this was probably acouple of years in so 2018, I
had both companies.
One of my largest vendors wasfulfilling for us, for both
companies.
I mean, it was a very largeamount of our inventory was
coming from this one person whowas based here in the US, and I
(13:24):
was working with her, you know,for a long time, and I just I've
always felt, like you know, Iassume people have the same
moral compass that I have Likethey have the same good
intentions.
They're going to treat me theway I would treat somebody, and
that was a very hard lesson Ihad to learn.
I didn't have specificcontracts in place with her,
(13:46):
like non-competes andnon-disclosures.
These are things you need tohave with anyone who is going to
be working with you on yourcompany, especially at that
quantity level, yeah, andespecially if you're growing,
because they're going to see thegrowth and it's going to.
It's hard to not want to be apart of that right or to have it
for yourself, I guess.
(14:07):
So we were working together foryears and I had discovered that
she had actually gone andlaunched a competing business
and I kind of stumbled upon it.
I had reached out to herbecause the designs were very
similar, so and it just madesense that it was.
I felt like it was her.
She had obviously said I havenothing to do with this business
, like it's not me, and Itrusted that.
I was like okay.
And then time went on and I wasI don't know.
It just feels like like maybeshe's not telling me the truth.
(14:30):
So I ended up looking up theLLC information, because she
lived in the same state as meand I know that's public
information.
Speaker 1 (14:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:37):
Public information.
Yeah, public information.
Sure enough, it was her name onthe LLC as the owner and I just
remember being mortified and Iwas hysterical because I just
couldn't believe someone woulddo that to me, because I would
never do that to somebody else,and it was a very hard lesson to
learn and then to have to pivot.
I needed to find a new vendorimmediately.
I couldn't continue to workwith her, obviously.
Speaker 1 (15:00):
It was a lot.
Did you share with her?
Say, I know that this is youand our business together is
over?
Or like, how did you evenhandle?
Speaker 2 (15:08):
that, yeah.
So I think I was very emotionalabout it.
So I did reach out to her and Iwas trying to be very
professional at the same time.
But you know, we were bothwomen, we lived in the same
state, we had met in person, sheknew my husband, it felt it
felt personal too.
So I did, I just reached outand I was direct, like I know
(15:29):
this is you.
This is the information that Ihave come across.
I'm so disappointed that thishas happened and we had to go
through a lot of legal stuff aswell that followed that.
So the biggest takeaway thereis have contracts in place with
everybody and just expect theworst.
Go in expecting the worst,because at least then you have
everything there if the worst isto happen.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Yes, so have your legal contracts in place when
you're working with vendors.
Yes, and don't always assumethat someone's going to have the
same good intentions that youdo.
Oh, that's a hard lesson tolearn.
Yeah, it was, but you learned.
I learned from it.
Well, I'm so sorry that youwent through that and thank you
for sharing that story, becauseyou sharing your story honestly
(16:14):
could help other people fromfalling prey to that same
situation.
So let's take the conversationmore positive.
What are some of your favoritethings about?
Speaker 2 (16:25):
Honestly, I love the creativity that comes along with
subscription boxes, becauseespecially for both of our boxes
.
But we go with themed boxes sofor our brides, like I said,
they're tailored to theirwedding date.
So if you're newly engaged, thetheme is all about planning and
prepping and then, as you getcloser to your actual wedding
date, it's like we have abachelorette theme, we have the
(16:46):
night before the wedding, wehave a big day, honeymoon.
So being able to be so creativeand design all these different
themes and products and that'sreally my favorite part about it
it's not like I guess our boxis the product, but there's so
many products inside that I getto design and be a part of that
I would definitely say that's myfavorite part.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
I love that part too.
It's like you get to goshopping for your friends as
part of the job part too.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
It's like you get to go shopping for your friends as
part of your job.
Yes, absolutely, and I alwayssay that, especially for our
moms, because my boys are twoand four now.
So anything that we're puttinginto our boxes for our moms, I
want to make sure I'm going touse this.
It's going to be a style.
It's going to be high quality,the right style, on trend and
useful.
It's not going to be somethingyou only can use.
Maybe, you know, in the firstthree months you could use this
(17:31):
for years with your baby as theybecome a toddler.
It's very useful stuff, so Ireally love creating that as
well.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
And coming up with an idea of a product working with
a manufacturer and then actuallyseeing that and holding that
product and knowing that thatwas your idea.
There's just something reallyspecial about it.
I've tried so many differentbusiness models throughout my
entrepreneurial life.
I've been an entrepreneur since2011.
(17:59):
And I feel like theproduct-based businesses just
keeps drawing me back in.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
Yeah, no, it's definitely fun, I really, and I
like to have that tangible itemthat I could see it, touch it
and just know it's mine.
Yeah, yep.
Speaker 1 (18:14):
Okay, so what's one piece of advice you can share
with new and aspiringsubscription box business owners
?
Because I mean, here you areeight years in, you've learned a
lot of lessons, so what kind ofadvice can you give us?
Speaker 2 (18:25):
Okay, so I have a few things.
I would say the biggest thing,if you are new and you're trying
to launch a subscription box,is to start small.
I think the worst thing youcould do is to jump into high
quantities because you'reexpecting or hoping for a lot of
success right away, because ifit doesn't happen, then you're
going to be just more stressedout about the fact that you have
(18:47):
all this inventory now and likethe costs that are associated.
So you can start small and thensee where that goes and grow
with it.
That's the better way to gothan just jumping into these
larger quantities to get bettercosts.
You can improve your costs asyou grow.
You don't need to come out thegate with the perfect cost right
.
That would be one of my biggestthings, and my another one is
(19:10):
masterminds.
I recently started to reallydive into masterminds and
mentorships and I think that hasbeen so incredibly helpful for
me, because being able to meetpeople, especially in our
industry, that have been doingthis for a long time so trying
to meet someone in the industrythat's a little bit ahead of you
or somewhere that you're likeaspiring to be.
(19:32):
So if you're just starting outand you want to get to like a
million in revenue, two millionin revenue.
Then you want to meet someonewho's there or has been there
recently, so that they can giveyou some advice that aligns with
getting there.
I definitely think that's a bigone, and just being able to
communicate with people in theindustry as well for learning
about what kind of apps they'reusing, what do they do, what are
(19:54):
their strategies, what doestheir tech stack look like.
All that kind of stuff is souseful.
Speaker 1 (19:59):
Nice, nice, yeah.
And going to the sub summit isa great thing too, because
that's where you can meet theother people in the industry and
actually shake hands and havecoffee with, and sit down and
chat with them.
So that's what you know.
I know, antoinette, you and Iwill both be there, and so if
you're listening and you'regoing to be at SubSummit, come
introduce yourself to us.
We'd love to talk shop with you.
(20:21):
And so, antoinette, one of thethings you said was to talk to
others about what's working foryou right now.
So I don't have this on ourquestion list, but tell me one
thing that's working for yourbusiness right now.
That's helping you,specifically if you have any
advice on new customeracquisition, because I know a
lot of people are strugglingwith growing their email lists
(20:41):
and getting new subscribersright now.
Speaker 2 (20:44):
Yeah, so okay, so something that I recently
integrated with was Klaviyo, sowe were on MailChimp when I had
launched my boxes and we werewith MailChimp for very long
years.
We recently switched over toKlaviyo and that was because
Klaviyo is another emailsoftware but they allow you to
do so many differentsegmentations so you can really
(21:04):
retarget these customers afterthey come to your site and even
once they do become a subscriber, you can really nail down like
a nurture campaign based on theactual customer and just align
with them more.
And it just is amazing.
It's an amazing program thatMailChimp just like didn't give
that to us the way we neededthat segmentation.
So I definitely think Klaviyois a huge one and it integrates
(21:26):
with everything.
So it's just seamless for meand I would say Gorgias as well.
We were on Zendesk for a longtime and then we recently went
into Gorgias for our customersupport and that also has so
many different integrations withall of our social networks.
So you're getting people whoare DMing your company, leaving
comments for the company, andyou have all these different
(21:46):
employees that are trying tokeep up with it.
Gorgias lets it all integrateinto one system where everything
can be tagged and at least yoursupport staff can just all be
in this one hub basicallyfiguring everything out and
answering all your customers.
Speaker 1 (22:01):
I love that those feel like almost like
graduations, so like you wereusing MailChimp and you sort of
graduated to Klaviyo, and I seethat happen a lot.
I don't recommend Klaviyo outof the gate because it can be a
little bit intimidating and youdon't need that much right at
launch, but it's definitelysomething if you're in that
(22:21):
scaling phase or you're workingon your growth.
And then we had used Help Scoutin the past and it was just a
really simple, probably verysimilar to Zendesk, but it
sounds like then this gorgeousplatform which I haven't heard
of I'm totally gonna look thatup is like a graduated version
of that.
So that's really cool.
I'm gonna look those up andwe'll make sure that we put
(22:42):
links to all of that stuff inthe show notes so, listener, you
can think about okay, if that'sme, if I'm in the scaling phase
, maybe that's something I needto look at for my tech stack.
Speaker 2 (22:57):
Yeah, and then back to MailChimp.
For the beginners, I was onMailChimp for seven years, I
mean, so that supported mycompany, even through scale as
well.
I just now that othertechnology is out there.
We started moving more that way, but MailChimp still did it for
a very long time.
Speaker 1 (23:06):
Yeah, that's what we started on too with Sparkle
Hustle Grow, and we used it forprobably five years maybe.
So you got to love that goodold MailChimp.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
Yeah, definitely Big piece of advice I would give for
anyone like newer is puttingyourself out there, especially
with SubSummit.
So if you sign up for SubSummit, they will actually send you a
list of who's going to be thereand you can start looking up
who's going to be there, whatkind of boxes do they own, and
start kind of planning who doyou want to connect with and
meet.
And then just try not to benervous about putting yourself
(23:38):
out there because people want tohelp.
If somebody came up to me andtold me they were just starting
a subscription box and theywanted advice, I am here for it.
I have so much advice I wouldlove to help.
So just keep that in mind.
Everyone's there if they wantto help, especially when you're
in the same realm as us.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
Yeah, and everyone there is so kind and giving and
just like generous with theiradvice.
All right, so where can peoplefollow you?
Where can they find both ofyour subscription boxes?
Because I want to make sure Iput those in the links in case
anyone is a bride-to-be or amom-to-be or has friends that
are.
So tell us where we can findyou.
Speaker 2 (24:14):
Okay, so we on all of our socials for the Ringboxes.
We are at the Ringboxes and ourwebsite is theringboxescom.
And then for the Belly Bundlesame thing it's at the Belly
Bundle on all of our socials andthebellybundlecom and the Belly
Bundle on all of our socialsand thebellybundlecom.
And I also have a professionalInstagram.
It's Antoinette underscoreAbrahamson.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
We will put those all in the show notes so everyone
can follow along.
Antoinette, thank you so much.
It was really fun catching upwith you and it's hard to
believe we've both been doingthis since 2016.
Speaker 2 (24:45):
I know it really it really is, but I love doing this
.
I'm so glad that we finally gotto do it.
Speaker 1 (24:50):
Yes, Thanks for agreeing to come on everyone.
Thanks for listening today andwe'll see you in the next
episode.
Bye, Bye.
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