Meet The Business ~ Date Night At Home With The Box42
Sunday, August 09, 2020
Date nights are important for every relationship to thrive. They bring you and your partner closer together and allow to you make amazing memories. Whether you have been isolating together or apart, date nights have suffered massively from attraction and restaurant closures. Today, I am talking to 'Box42', which is a date night subscription box aiming to bring the magic back to dating.
Hi there! Could you tell me a bit about yourself & your business?
I’m Caroline, a PhD student, and my boyfriend Jai is a management consultant. We’re both London-based and have been together over 6 years now! We’re the couple behind Box42. Box42 is a date night subscription box. We know how date night can slip down the list of priorities in the long term relationship. We want to help by making easy, exciting and meaningful experiences that couples can enjoy every month!
Why did you decide to start a date-night subscription box & how did you come up with the name?
The inspiration for Box42 came to us during the lockdown. We realised that the lack of special, quality time together was really hurting our relationship. We tried looking for “dates” we could have at home. The only ones we found were ordinary activities framed as dates such as cooking together. We decided we could design an exciting, themed evening that could really change the perception of a date night at home. The name came to us after a lot of brainstorming with ideas late in the night. We thought about calling it “Box for two”, but ended up settling on the slightly less literal “Box42” since we also love puns.
What makes your subscription boxes different from others out there?
While we were debating whether to start Box42, we decided to try the other somewhat similar boxes out there, to see if what we envisioned already existed. After trying them all, we decided we could create something much better! We have really creative themes every month. They guarantee to transport you somewhere thrilling, and our entire box - from drinks to activities - is curated around that theme. We’ve tried to design a really immersive experience. Our main differentiator though is that we provide the value that you’re paying for. Our boxes aren’t just fluff, but contain all the physical items for your date, most of which you can use again!
What’s included in your subscription box & how does it work?
Our boxes are built around a new theme every month and contain everything you need to have your date. We include a couple of fun activities, some accessories to set the mood, indie-brand drinks and
snacks, a curated Spotify playlist, and much more! Every box is meant to be completely different from the last because our aim is to create really special, memorable experiences. As a Box42 subscriber, we send you a new themed box every month. You can have your date night whenever you get a chance in your busy schedule! If you don’t find the time or go away on holiday, or anything else - that’s not a problem! We have a really flexible, transparent subscription policy which can be paused or cancelled at any time. We really hate being scammed by subscriptions which charge you when you weren’t expecting it. We provide cancellations and full refunds, no questions asked!
You offer a virtual box, could you tell us about that?
While starting Box42, we really struggled when trying to describe our boxes. We decided to create a virtual version to let people experience what Box42 is about for free! We also knew a lot of couples stuck in different locations due to COVID, so we designed our virtual boxes to work just as well over a video call.
Why is it important to make time for date night?
It’s pretty well known that the honeymoon phase of a relationship lasts between 6 months and 2 years. After that time, many couples settle into a routine. They lose the passion and excitement they once had with their partner. An important way to sustain the romance is to continue sharing new, interesting experiences together, and staying connected on an emotional level. You can do this in many ways, like going on holiday together, taking adventures, learning new hobbies, etc. Regular date nights are just one of the best ways to make sure you don’t find your relationships stuck in a rut!
For you, what makes the perfect date night?
For us, the perfect date night contains just two main ingredients.
Novelty: It has to be a different, memorable experience. It doesn’t matter if it’s at home, outside or in a different country. As long as something about the evening makes it memorable (for good reasons!), it’s halfway there.
Intimacy: The date has to give you the chance to connect at a meaningful level. This could just be through having a heartfelt conversation, but the connection is possible in many different ways! If a date isn’t bringing you closer together, then I wouldn’t sign up for it.
What is your favourite part about working for yourself on a subscription box?
I think the best part about working on Box42 is the opportunity to do something we are really passionate about together! We want to help strengthen relationships and bring couples closer. We love hearing from people who have experienced that with Box42. The reward and fulfilment from this are unmatched!
What challenges have you faced when setting up and running your business?
Starting a business was a steep learning experience for both of us. Having never done marketing or built a website, we faced many hurdles along the way. The technology was definitely one of the biggest issues. Website development is really difficult! The hardest part has been trying to get the word out. As a small business, the biggest challenge is making sure that the people who are interested in your product get to hear about you, so that’s the part we’re trying to work on!
How has COVID-19 affected your business, and how have you overcome this?
Our experience during the COVID-19 lockdown provided the inspiration for us to start Box42. It also meant we had extra time. Lockdown played a huge role in our decision to launch the business. Despite the widespread havoc that COVID-19 wreaked on the world, ironically we probably wouldn’t be here without the pandemic.
Is there anything you’re working toward or wanting to achieve?
The response we’ve received has motivated us to keep going. We haven’t got any concrete goals. For the moment, we’re just trying to see where Box42 can take us! It’s been a great experience for us as a couple, and so we just want to make the biggest impact we can.
If you could sum up Box42 in 5 words, what would they be?
Great date nights, made easy!
Thank you for answering the questions! Did you have anything else you would like to tell the world?
If date night feels like a thing of the past in your relationship, check out Box42! And if you like the idea, spread the word - we small businesses rely on people like you.
Thank you to Box42 for this really insightful interview! It is really interesting to see how others are keeping the spark and that there are solutions for couples! Dating is hard enough without a pandemic halting date nights. I think the box is a great idea to bring back some fun and enjoyment. What do you think about a date night subscription box? Let me know what your dream date night would be like in the comments!
20 comments
Really interesting post, definitely something I’ll check our!
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
This is such a cute idea! It’s so easy to just do things together but individually, especially locked up at home, so this is great!
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
This is such a lovely idea, I'm definitely going to have more of a look into this!
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
This is such a cute idea and a great read!
ReplyDeleteDeandra|theblackprincessdiaries.com
Thank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
I love this! Sounds like such a fab idea, sounds like something my boyfriend would love!
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
Great innovative idea, I haven’t heard of this before and I really like the idea
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
Love this one! Really got something unheard to browse on. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
This is so great; and I love how the idea came from making lockdown better for many couples! Haven't heard of this before now.
ReplyDeletePaige // Paige Eades
Thank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
Wow this is such a unique and interesting idea. I've been subscribed to all sorts of subscription boxes over the years but have never come across anything like this before!!
ReplyDeleteRoni | myelevatedexistence.com
I think it's strange but interesting! One to look out for as an upcoming brand! Thank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x
This sounds like such a great idea! My husband and I are both pretty good about sticking to planning our date nights together, however, you sometimes run our of ideas and the usual 'go to' solutions lose their excitement over time... I love that this will help to inspire new and fun experiences together, especially right now with COVID grounding so many of us lol
ReplyDeleteI agree- I love date nights but I get scared about "overusing" an idea in case it become boring. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment!
DeleteEm x