UPDATE: Wag-in-the-Box has gone out of business.
Lulu is starting to get excited when things come in the mail.
I surprised her with this package from
Wag-in-the-Box a couple of weeks ago when I came home from work.
What is
Wag-in-the-Box? It's a subscription service, similar to BirchBox, except this is for pet stuff.
Every month, Wag-in-the Box sends a box like this filled with pet products -- from toys and treats to shampoo and dog poop bags.
Beth Halloran, founder of
Wag-in-the-Box, says she came up with the idea after getting a BirchBox subscription.
At the time, she was researching the best ways to care for her senior dog, and found there was a lot of information out there. She was looking at the best ways to learn about products, and the best ways to help other pet parents learn what's out there.
"One of the things that I am very particular about is that I want this to be a business that helps dogs live a better life," Halloran said.
Halloran and her team launched Wag-in-the-Box in Sept. of 2012. She's not the only pet subscription service out there. In the same year, Barkbox and Pawalla came out. But she says her customer base has doubled.
How does it work? Well every month, Halloran and her team pick four to eight products centered around some basic themes.
For instance, January's box centered around what is helpful for pets in cold weather -- items with lots of omega-3 in it, to help with their skin and coat:
- Full bag -- Isle of Dogs Skin Soft and Chewy Dog Treats
- Snack21 Salmon Skin Bone
- Snack21 Salmon Sushi Rolls Dog Treats
- Organic Oscar 2 in 1 Shampoo and Conditioner
And Flush Puppies in honor of National Dog Walking Month.
Halloran says the cost of the products in the box equals out to about $30.
"We do four to eight products... many full size, but sometimes we use samples," Halloran said.
To get her products, Halloran works with both national pet product boutique companies, and local companies and experts in her hometown of Richmond.
But it is not only about profits.
Wag-in-the-Box also helps charities.
"Our original concept was to donate a monthly portion of the boxes to dog causes," Halloran said. But she decided not to force customers to share with a specific charity.
Intstead, she joined with a program called
PlanG. For every box you buy, a dollar is put into a
PlanG account. Then you can choose what charities you want to share it with.
Halloran is looking toward the future now -- and the future includes plans for a product store where you can buy some of the products you try in the box, for a limited time.
