we need to talk about subscription boxes

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Hello blog readers! It’s been a hot minute and then some since I last blogged. My apologies. I promise you I’ve been very, very busy and it isn’t that I think we’re better off as acquaintances or anything. You’re still my BFFLs (blog friends for life with the plural s at the end). I’m hoping to have some exciting bookish things to share with you soon! But for now, today’s post is only bookish-adjacent. There is a loose connection—you’ll see. This post actually started as a social media post, but then it grew long and rambling (who me?), so here we are!

(Quick aside before I dive in: if you don’t already follow me on social media, please do! I’d love to interact with you across the interwebs! You can find my various social medias here: contact)

Pretty much 99% of the time, talking about our environmental impact feels like screaming into a vacuum, but anyone who knows me or follows me on social media is probably aware I do it anyway because I'm a Hufflepuff and I can't make myself stop caring, okay? First, a disclaimer: I rely on a meal kit delivery service a couple times a month to keep me from losing my busy mother/writer/editor/sentient-human-ever-loving mind (it’s that or takeout and I go for the kit), but I do so while continuously keeping a close eye on the environmental impact, choosing a Canadian company that sources locally, uses mostly recyclable or reusable packaging and will soon be launching reusable boxes too (I’m geeking out about that). There have also been studies done on the environmental impact of meal kit services specifically and there is evidence to suggest pre-portioned meal kits lead to less food waste, aren’t necessarily worse packaging-wise to groceries (unless you’re lucky enough to live close to a bulk market), etc., which is ultimately a good thing. There are pros. There are cons. Currently, I’m on the side of “yes, occasionally” to sustainably-conscious meal kits. I may change my mind about this yet.

But meal kits are hardly the only subscription service on the market and this is where my ramblings go from "wow this chick talks about the environment a lot" to "honey better step off with her unpopular opinion", but it's something I find I keep coming back to, so here we go: I hate mystery subscription boxes.

I mean, I get it. Who doesn't love a box with a question mark on it? These services tap into that age-old question: "Would you rather achieve world peace orrrrrr...find out what's inside this box with a question mark on it?!?" (The box! The box!) Yeah. The box. It’s the best, right? And who knows? It might somehow contain world peace AND a new scented candle for the bathroom. Admittedly, I don’t think these services are all bad—some of them are pretty cool (if waaaay overpriced for what they are). A murder mystery delivered to your door? Awesome. A beer of the month club? Cheese of the month club? Cereal of the month club? (Does that exist?) If you love those things—great! There’s very little waste involved, assuming the packaging is as sustainable as it can be. What I take issue with are those mystery boxes that are filled with loot or gear or swag or booty or whatever you wanna call it, and you don’t know what’s inside and you might like some of the products you receive, but you also might not—or some of it is stuff you might already own—and more importantly, there’s a good chance a lot of it is stuff you really don’t need. And yes, as tempting as I find the book subscription boxes, I’m going to lump those in here too. If you want to discover new books, go to your local library and ask your very cool librarian what’s up. With these boxes, it’s a lot of STUFF being produced, shipped, and kept (Marie Kondo, be afraid) without the buyer necessarily even wanting it and that leads to A LOT of waste.

Sad planet is sad.

Sad planet is sad.

Long story short, I don’t hate subscription boxes entirely (assuming people are being responsible about their packaging disposal and the deliveries are fully replacing items they’d otherwise buy at the store—items they need, or at least, will use/enjoy/appreciate). It’s the total EXTRA-ness of these mystery boxes that irks me. Again, I get it. Big question mark = big fun. But our world is drowning in single-use plastic and as western consumers, we’re a huge part of the problem. It’s nice when these boxes help someone discover a new product they might not otherwise discover, but where does it end? Well, there’s a good chance it ends with us buried under piles of products we tried, but “didn’t care for”. And not caring is kind of where this whole thing goes downhill.

So there you have it, BFFLs. Unpopular opinion stated. If you’re a mystery subscription box fan, please feel free to defend your stance here or by commenting on social media—I’m open to having my mind influenced! And if you’re a loot subscriber who does worry about the eco-impact, but just can’t get enough of the box, maybe consider these eco-friendly options to satisfy your craving or consider offsetting your impact with donations to environmental charities that will work to bring balance to the force :)

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