Can Anyone Start a Subscription Box Business? | EP 157

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Can anyone start a subscription box business? Yes. I truly believe this. 

I say it all of the time - I’m not special. And no, that doesn’t mean I don’t think I’m great or suffer from a lack of confidence. It just means I don’t have anything you don’t have. 

I’m an ordinary person who doesn’t give up. And it’s that “not giving up” piece that matters. That’s the thing you need to have if you’re going to not just start a subscription box, but launch and grow one into a successful, sustainable business. 

And we all have the ability to not give up. 

It’s about being consistent - in anything. You don’t have to be the best… you just have to be consistent. That’s what I’ve done, that’s what so many of my students have done, and - if a subscription box business is what you want - that’s what you need to do, too. 

My beginning looked like a lot of you: 

• I was a solopreneur - and a mom - working from my kitchen table while my kids slept. 
• I schlepped my products to craft shows and pop-up shops all over Texas (and Texas is BIG, y’all!) 
• I found the courage to rent a tiny, 600-square-foot space and called it my first retail location. 

I dreamed of starting a subscription box for years. I didn’t know how I would do it, but I had a fire burning inside of me that meant I had to try. 

I want you to know it takes just one action. Just one that leads to another and another. Before you know it? You’re running a legit business that gives you a paycheck and freedom you’ve never felt. 

So, the answer to, “Can anyone do this? Can anyone start a subscription box?” is yes! 

I was recently a guest on Tony Durso’s podcast talking about the different types of subscription boxes and how basically any industry you are in, you can create a subscription box around it. 

If you’re wondering what kind of subscription box you could start, ask yourself: 

• What are your passions? 
• What can you talk about endlessly? 
• What lights you up? 
• How can you create an experience from what you know? 

Anyone can start a subscription box. 

It doesn’t matter if you’ve never sold products before. In episode 3 of this podcast, I talked with Anne Stuccio. Anne is a practicing dentist who had only ever purchased supplies for her office. It didn’t matter because Anne was also passionate about providing a subscription box experience for female dentists. So she figured it out. She took one action and then the next and the next. 

It doesn’t matter how old you are. Next week on the podcast, I’m talking with Bev Schweigert. Bev started her business when she was 55 after being retired for six months. And last year? She brought in a quarter of a million dollars in sales! 

It doesn’t matter if you’ve got kids at home. Stop waiting. In episode 29 of the podcast, I chat with Amy Green, mother of three including a son with special needs. This is her time to do something for herself and she’s thriving with her subscription box business - the business she built around her life and her son’s needs. 

I want you to understand that whatever reason you think you can’t doesn’t matter. We can all do this. 

Starting a subscription box business is kind of like motherhood. There is no perfect time. You have a baby and figure it out. The same goes for owning a business. 

• You don’t have to know it all. 
• You don’t have to have everything perfect. 
• You don’t have to be the smartest, the savviest, or the most put-together. 

I’ve been doing this for a long time and most days, I’m winging it. Today, during a LIVE, I tripped over my mannequin and my entire backdrop fell down! 

I’m not special. But I know anyone can rinse and repeat my success. So many of my students have done just that! 

The first step is to lay it out and visualize what this could look like for you. I have a free workshop that helps you do exactly that. It’s called the 6 in 60 workshop and you can find it at 6in60workshop.com. Grab a pen and some post-it notes and let’s lay it out together. Once you can see it, you’ll know it is possible for you. 

When you go through the workshop you’ll answer so many questions for yourself: 

• Who is my ideal customer? 
• What products will I put in my subscription box?
• How will I curate an experience? 
• How do I start? 

Join me for this episode and discover why I believe anyone can start a subscription box and how you can take the first steps toward making your subscription box dreams come true.  

• Growing Your Community! with Sarah Williams & Tony Durso
• Episode 3 - How one LYB Member Hit $10K Monthly with Her Subscription Box Business 
• Episode 129 - Getting Out of Your Own Way and Gaining 100 Subscribers
• 6 in 60 Workshop