Member Feature: BoxBrewKits

Contributor post by Michelle of EviesToolEmporium

Please join us in welcoming Michael of BoxBrewKits, our featured member!

BoxBrewKits

Tell us about yourself.

My name is Michael Langone, owner of Box Brew Kits, based in Boston. I founded Box Brew Kits in 2013 – we design and build handcrafted beer, wine and kombucha kits (I’m the one in the middle of the photo!).

When did you open your business and what make you decide to do so?

I first experimented with home brewing in college. From grain to bottle, it was a difficult but thrilling process. I still remember the feeling of pure joy when I cracked open the first bottle and – lo and behold – it tasted like beer. And I thought – why isn’t everyone doing this? Being in architecture school at the time, I thought about a new approach tobrewing – one which would make the process approachable, attractive, and a whole lot of fun.

Tell us a bit about your products.

We design and build handcrafted beer, wine, and kombucha making kits. As an alternative to some of the big, bulky, messy brewing kits out there, our approach scales down the brewing process to a compact, user-friendly scale, which fits perfectly on a countertop and looks at home in any setting. We’re particularly excited about our new handcrafted Kombucha kit – we’ve been brewing lots of tasty Kombucha here at work, and it’s been so much fun to experiment with all kinds of flavors while we perfect the design of the kit itself. We’re thrilled to finally share the finished product!

What inspires your work

I guess it’s not too different from most other design pursuits – at its heart, a desire to bring together aesthetics and functionality in a single package. Personally, my goal is to give each and every new customer that same feeling of wonder I felt when I opened my first home-brewed beer. Hearing those stories from customers is the best part of my day.

What are your future goals for the business this year? What is your dream for this business?

In 2017 we’d love to continue to grow and seek out new partners and collaborations as we do. Especially when it comes to small businesses, it’s easy to work in a vacuum, and it becomes particularly valuable to look outside for new opportunities and inspiration. My dream is to become a go-to source for all kinds of DIY (and particularly, fermentation-related) products, whether it be beer, wine, mead, cider, kombucha, cheese, kefir, etc. – the sky’s the limit!

What makes your business stand out from businesses that sell similar products?

Beer and wine making kits have been around for decades, so our subject matter is by no means new. For lots of folks, brewing big batches of beer in a 5-gallon bucket is exactly what they want – it’s the way I started brewing, and is definitely a proven model. What we’ve done differently is bring a long-missing element of style and aesthetics to the process, as well as an approach to the brewing process that makes customers ask not just “how” to brew beer, but to engage them in the “why” of brewing great brews from start to finish.

Tell us a bit about your work space. Do you have a separate studio?

We have about 3000 square feet in a warehouse building outside of Boston. We do much of our production in a small wood shop, and still have (some) room left over for fulfillment, a photo studio, and a small office. The remainder of our space is devoted to milling grains and creating the recipes that go alongside our brewing kits!

What have you learned since opening your business that you wish you had known before hand?

Inventory, inventory, inventory. There’s nothing worse than having too little OR too much, and striking the perfect balance is an art we truly haven’t mastered. Logistics aside, taking time to listen to customers and to resolve every issue by going the extra mile is crucial, even if the customer is flat out wrong. Doing so can be painful (emotionally and financially!), but going above and beyond with customer service will – almost always – result in repeat orders and a great customer relationship.

Any advice for those thinking about selling on Etsy?

Try it! Etsy was one of the first places we started selling, and we loved the platform right from the get-go. One of the things we love most about selling on Etsy is the great customers, and the relationships that develop between different vendors. As opposed to starting on a platform like Amazon (where customers tend to have a “NEED TO HAVE IT NOW” kind of mentality), Etsy is a great place for products to evolve in a more organic way – not all new products are perfect (certainly, ours aren’t!), and in ourexperience customers are often understanding of that, and are more than happy to give feedback when they can.

When you’re not working, what do you like to do to unwind and have fun? Do you have any hobbies?

My coworkers and I are all runners, and when the weather’s nice (and even when it’s not!) we’re always trying to challenge each other to go farther and faster. We have a gorgeous riverside trail near the office to escape during lunch. When I’m not working, I love cooking with my girlfriend and all things outdoors. Oh, and of course playing with our cat, Nimbus!

What is your favorite quote?

“I can. I will.” We have a sticker with that quote on our front door. There have been some pretty stressful and overwhelming moments on this journey, and sometimes it takes looking toward the door (which we’re all yearning to sprint through and leave those moments behind) to take a moment to keep calm, focus, and deal with stress in a level-headed way.

Where can people find out more about your business?

Website: boxbrewkits
Instagram: boxbrewkits

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If you would like to be featured, please go to the CIJ Etsy Forum and fill out the questionnaire. Please note you must be a member of the CIJ Etsy team to be featured.