Ampersand Box Co. is a subscription box company for mamas and kids that doesn't deal with sweatshops. My company is committed to bringing extremely cool jazz to the mama community by doing things completely differently than our competitors. Our inaugural box, the Original Mama Goose Box, is a seasonal (4x a year) goodies box including chocolates, teas+coffee blends, incredible books, bath products and thoughtful items meant to reassure, tickle and comfort you. Maybe challenge you a tiny bit. But not much, life is challenging enough.
Our model looks like this:
YES: yummy/funny/thoughtful products largely made in the US by companies paying living wages and seeking to make their production as green as possible.
NO: cheap crap from factories which take advantage of women and kids for labor.
YES: companies run by immigrants, people of color, single mamas, non-binary folks, domestically or abroad. If the company/manufacturer takes care of their employees, they pass muster.
NO: those weirdly-tiny bottles of wine. and cake pops (just WHY?! WHY MUST YOU TEASE ??).
So...if the supplier treats it's people right, and they make something wonderful...we want to work with them. And bring their products to you, so you can get a bit of love in the mail. Pretty straightforward.
Why am I raising money? Because great products made by people with livable wages ain't cheap and our family isn't independently wealthy. Research some of the competition, and you'll see we exist in a swamp of previously wealthy entrepreneurs with seed money just ...hanging from trees. It's ASTOUNDING to us. We have never not been on a budget. This is our chance to give our family something great and show our kids that business can make communities stronger, and not just leech off of disadvantaged folks to get rich.
We are seeking capital to: pay for the products, the packaging, the shipping, the lawyer, and all the talented marketing, web design and production folks who have brought this idea to life. Our team is largely on a consultant basis right now, but we are looking forward to hiring a supply-chain manager and as we grow, folks to pack our boxes.
Oh...and my computer. I've only ever owned one computer, Sylvia. She has been VERY good to me, but it's been 11 years and she is very ready to go to the farm upstate, if you get my drift. I can't run an e-commerce company without a decent machine.
We will grow eventually but right now...we have to start. And we want to get better and giving you more and more as we grow. So shout it from the rooftops, and please give what you can!
