Custom Care Packages - SentWithCareUSA
Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jim Heider & Jeremy Kozik, Founders of SentWithCareUSA, located in Boston, MA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Our business was created to benefit both college students and their parents - when Jim was in college; he studied abroad. He wasn't able to access his favorite snacks that are sold in the USA. His parents would create small snack boxes with his favorite things and ship them to Spain for him to have. The shopping, shipping, customs, everything was a bit of a nuisance to do for his parents, but Jim still loved receiving the snack boxes. Fast forward to today, and we're helping parents connect to their students (or anyone in a scenario with the distance between them) through a loving snack box care package. We include custom notecards in our boxes so the sender can personalize a message to the recipient that they can tangibly see to make the gift that much more personal.
Tell us about yourself
We have been friends since childhood and have always wanted to start a business together. After some critical thinking, the idea of an easy way for people to send personalized snacks & personalized gift messages to each other with the click of a button and not needing to do the shopping themselves seemed like a good place to start. We joined Etsy and launched our business in January of 2021. We immediately found out that people love our care packages and like the idea just as much as we do. We love seeing gift boxes that people send each other for birthdays, college finals, retirement parties, holidays & more. The feedback we receive that shows how much people (and pets!) enjoy the gift boxes is really what makes this business rewarding for us.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Our biggest accomplishment as business owners is taking our business from an idea to reality. We have built the business ourselves in every aspect from ground to ceiling and feel proud to show the world, "this is what we have made for you." From graphic design to customer support to building the physical snack boxes, Jim and Jeremy proudly do everything 100% in-house. It's a very satisfying feeling for us.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
The biggest challenge of being a business owner is the little mistakes you make along the way. As we mentioned, we try to do everything ourselves without needing to reach out to third-party companies. It's challenging to dedicate so much time and effort to the business and still come home to our families each night after a hard day's work. The work-life balance seems to tip in favor of the business more often than not, which isn't the best feeling in the world. Being an entrepreneur takes a lot of patience and cooperation from everyone in your life. We're both very lucky to have supportive partners that can deal with the imbalanced work-life balance.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Go for it. If you're unsure and afraid of the unknown in your business/industry... Don't be. You can do it.
- Maintain a work-life balance. Don't dedicate everything you have to your business. Remember to have a social life and don't block out your family and friends.
- Be creative. Your business doesn't have to be a cookie-cutter set-up. Create ideas you would like to use or do yourself and apply those to your business. A business that stands out from the competition is destined to be a successful business.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
If you want to share a referral code (for your blog/website), we'd be happy to create one for you, but if not, we would be glad to share that people can take 15% off their first box using the code FIRSTORDER on Etsy.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website:
https://www.sentwithcareusa.com/
https://www.etsy.com/shop/SentWithCareUSA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SentWithCareUSA
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/SentWithCareUSA/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SentWithCareUSA
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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