Each month we want to feature one of the many monthly subscription services, to allow us all to get more details and become more familiar with each of the services; and also to get a little background on each of the companies that offer the monthly subscriptions. The way we plan to do this each month is to do a "Monthly Subscription Spotlight".
This month our first "Monthly Subscription Spotlight" shines bright on Ayieta Crawford and the SwapSack.
I am really excited to feature Swapsack this month because February is the month that SwapSack will premier the very first sack. I figured what better way to debut our new site and the "Monthly Subscription Spotlight" than with the premier of the SwapSack!!
Now Curlfriendz, let me start off by saying that SwapSack is a service that I am actually subscribed to. I met Ayieta after joining her SwapSack product swap group of Facebook. I love the swap group because it allows you to swap products that you bought and don't like for something else that you might like to try. With me being the product junkie I am (any of you that follow us on Posh Curlfriendz have seen my stash =/), this group was right up my alley! Ayieta runs the group very professional and respectfully, so when she announced that she would be offering this service - I was all in!! I cannot wait for my first sack, which is set to be shipped on February 11th.... Now, i'm gonna stop talking (or writing -lol) and allow Ayieta to give you the details about her service - The SwapSack.
This month our first "Monthly Subscription Spotlight" shines bright on Ayieta Crawford and the SwapSack.
I am really excited to feature Swapsack this month because February is the month that SwapSack will premier the very first sack. I figured what better way to debut our new site and the "Monthly Subscription Spotlight" than with the premier of the SwapSack!!
Now Curlfriendz, let me start off by saying that SwapSack is a service that I am actually subscribed to. I met Ayieta after joining her SwapSack product swap group of Facebook. I love the swap group because it allows you to swap products that you bought and don't like for something else that you might like to try. With me being the product junkie I am (any of you that follow us on Posh Curlfriendz have seen my stash =/), this group was right up my alley! Ayieta runs the group very professional and respectfully, so when she announced that she would be offering this service - I was all in!! I cannot wait for my first sack, which is set to be shipped on February 11th.... Now, i'm gonna stop talking (or writing -lol) and allow Ayieta to give you the details about her service - The SwapSack.
SwapSack
 | “Wouldn’t it be great if I could swap it with someone for something else I wanted?” ~Ayieta Crawford |
| How did it begin? I’ll try to keep it short and sweet. I genuinely enjoy helping people. Ask any of my family and friends, they will say that I am the one they look to make things happen – to solve a problem. So I guess it starts with that… I don’t want to delve too much more into my background. I’ve helped develop a few companies – Shea Essentials, which is now Duafe Naturals (www.duafenaturals.com) after merging with my sister’s company. For them I developed all of the finished product recipes and now my sister runs that entire operation. I also founded Crunchy Crate (www.CrunchCrate.com) based on the natural lifestyle research I was doing and sparked by an idea from my sister to create a monthly subscription service. Along with my health issues, I had a horrible experience with a relaxer, my hair started to break off so badly that I spent a few months transitioning and it got so bad, even though I was afraid of what I would look like, I BC’ed last July. Thus my research expanded. I subscribed to a couple of natural hair care subscription services to help me with learning to maintain my new hair texture. After a few months, I did find a few products I liked, but I also had amassed twice as many that I did not. They sat there in my bathroom, I felt as if they were laughing at me, cracking jokes behind my back. I had to do something, but if I just threw them away, they would have the last laugh; I spent money on them and got nothing in return… The idea came to me, “Wouldn’t it be great if I could swap it with someone for something else I wanted?” No waste – the money I spent would provide me with some level of satisfaction. Those products in my bathroom fell silent… I created a group on Facebook and in a week we had a hundred members. Many of us found the process of swapping thrilling I must say this group of SwapSistas is one of the best groups of curlies I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with. They remain respectful and helpful to one another. Most of them send beautiful thank you cards and additional gifts with their swaps. It is a beautiful thing to see – ladies of color actually loving, helping, sharing and caring for one another. Soon though, people ran out of things to swap. There was a post from a member stating she was having so much fun, she was tempted to go out and buy some products just to have something else to swap. So I asked if the group would be interested in such a service and SwapSack was born. | With SwapSack, I wanted to take my experience with other subscription services and merge it with that of the others in the group to develop a subscription that truly listened to what the swap group members wanted. Since formulating this concept, I have constantly communicated with the swap group and asked their input. SwapSack will be different because it will always be connected to the SwapSistas in this group. It will remain grounded and I always will, as I always have, take their opinions, comments and critiques into consideration with the subscription service.  Now, I know that I will not be able to make everyone happy, there are some things that aren’t feasible. But what I will do is maintain an open and honest dialog between SwapSack and its subscribers.There are several distinct differences in SwapSack’s service and other subscription services, and I’ll let Rorri go over those in more detail – I don’t want to completely take over her article, but one thing I am passionate about is featuring emerging brands. As a small product maker myself, I reached out to the major subscription boxes to see how to feature my products. I was told the minimum number of products I would need to give them was 500 and that they would prefer 2000 or more. That just wasn’t in the budget. But I am a true believer that some of these smaller brands create some of the best products. So part of my goal with SwapSack is to work with emerging brand to get them the exposure they deserve. For these brands, I am available to assist in other areas – if they need help with a formulation, setting up a website, or packaging idea, I am there to assist if I can.  |  About the Service 1. SwapSack is focused on the products - the sacks will contain only products. No tissue paper, no magazines, no business cards. 2. The monthly membership is $15, which makes SwapSack one of the most affordable monthly subscription sample service for natural hair and skin care products. 3. Unlike other subscription services where every member receives the exact same products, each SwapSack subscriber will receive a unique but equitable combination of products. Which gives members more products for swapping. We also encourage members who subscribe to other monthly subscription services to swap the products they receive in those boxes in their swap community. 4. Unlike other subscription services, SwapSack allows you to choose from several preferences for your SwapSack. This means there is less of a chance that you'll receive a product that you won't use.  For more info on the SwapSack visit: http://www.swap-sack.com http://www.facebook.com/groups/NCLProductSwap/ |
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