Wouldn't you get more choices and potentially more information to consider by going to a bricks and mortar tea store?

Yes, but we don't have one in our area. And I enjoy the "surprise" each month.

I think part of the appeal of subscription boxes is the enjoyment and entertainment value of receiving a package with unexpected contents. I've never enjoyed shopping particularly so I wouldn't go out and source the items myself. I don't mind effectively paying someone to do the shopping for me. I keep looking at the offerings, but I haven't found one that matches my needs yet. I also find them to be an interesting way to give a gift to a friend or relative who doesn't live near me.

I was a long term tea drinker and have to agree with Elmer. Of course not every place has a tea store that sells bulk tea. Most subscriptions do not give enough varieties to actually provide a wide range of types. Either you end up with boxes of things that you just did not like and do not want to waste the money but keep or find a favorite and the brand on the container is only sold by them. Tea is also a natural product and like all natural products one year they are good the next batch because of growing conditions it does not have the same flavor.

It's interesting how one person can have an excellent reason that leads them to a preference about something that is the opposite of or contradictory to how another person sees the same matter, also for a good reason.

The reason why our first season of a CSA was our last was precisely because of the surprise factor. The inability to anticipate or choose what was being delivered each week was annoying and made us feel like we were overpaying for what we got that we wanted to have (after considering what we were in essence forced to pay for but didn't want and often discarded).

I don't like shopping and always minimize the time spend doing it but for items where there's a range of choices that can be taste/preference dependent, I dislike even more when someone makes the choices for me. Interesting all the same.

I really want to try one of those fruit of the month boxes. Someday....

Elmer, I think the difference in our enjoyment of surprise contents might be related to the reason for a particular subscription. If I were getting a box of vegetables that I knew needed to be a part of my weekly menu planning of set recipes or specific tastes, then I wouldn't want surprises either. On the other hand, if I wanted to explore the variety of organic produce available in my area and wanted to let that variety drive my menu, then I would be interested in whatever was in the box.

I see most of the subscription boxes as a fun way to be introduced to products that I might not find otherwise, not as a way to fulfill a specific requirement.

With rare exceptions, I believe subscriptions for non-essentials are not for the money-wise. I think it is dangerous to commit to being charged on a recurring basis for enjoyment items. I suspect that some items in the box don't get used, and some people tire of the process before they think to quit. Think gym memberships. How many of them go unused month after month?

Financial advisors tell the debt ridden to pay cash for everything because then you see the money going out for what you get. Subscriptions are the complete opposite of this. You pay ahead of time and don't even know what you are getting.

Subscription services have been around forever. Anyone else old enough to remember the Columbia Music House Club? It was a scam where they sent the products cheaply at first, and then when you didn't cancel, the prices went up steeply and you were stuck with music you didn't like.

Gray wings, my kids subscribed to Columbia without telling me. They thought they were going to get a bunch of records for a few pennies. Fortunately I unsubscribed in time!

I tried Stitch Fix twice. The first box had some nice clothing choices although the sizes weren’t ideal. The second box was a joke. I clearly told them I am a senior citizen and they sent clothes for a teenager. Ripped jeans and a short skirt. Never ordered again after that. I guess that’s not exactly a subscription, but it is a box service. I will say it was fun to see what they sent.

LOL

I still have around 600 vinyl albums. Probably 75% of which came from my Columbia House subscription in the 70s and 80s.

Yes, I did the vinyl record thing when I was 13 or 14yrs.old - 12 albums for $.10 or something like that. I specifically remember one of the albums was Morrison and The Doors. Honestly don't remember what happened after that, I wonder if Mom canceled it right away after she found out or paid for future albums.

Also joined a book club when I was in junior high as did my best friend and neighbor. A book came every month whether you selected the title you wanted or not. Lots of adult books I remember, not x-rated, but something a pre-teen wouldn't necessarily read. Again, Mom and Dad must have paid for them because I sure didn't.

LOL, Angela, I used to use them too. Had forgotten all about them.

Fun2BeHere - you hit the nail on the head. It isn't just about tea, it's like a little luxury gift to myself every month.

I belonged to Try the World for a couple of years. Some of the items were too exotic and even with the recipe cards, not really useable. The best item was Le Saunier de Camargue Fleur de Sel, which I love and now purchase elsewhere.

A long time ago I was sucked into a cheese of the month club. They would send cheeses of various types from around the world in various amounts. After several months of interesting stuff they started sending things like Baby Bell and foil packages of processed cheese. At that point I dropped it but kept the block of Sap Sago cheese for years. It came hard as a rock and stayed that way.

I've seriously considered subscribing to a cosmetics-based box service. I am tired of buying entire bottles and they not work for one reason or another. Plus, it's like getting a present to myself every month. I've shopped enough, and picked up enough in other places, so it'd be over and above, a frivolous splurge.

:)

Happy sipping!

Go for it! The fact that I can cancel at any time is my security blanket - I don't have to commit to any length of time. I have a friend that enjoys Birchbox for cosmetics, but i haven't tried it.

We used Blue Apron for about 9 months. It was sort of fun to try new ingredients and new recipes. After a while it seemed they fell into a rut and I was getting bothered by all of the packaging waste with cooler bag and ice packs.

After that we signed up for a CSA that seemed similar to what Elmer described: Unpredictable random fruit or vegetable things. Sometimes there would be two or more things in the box that I didn't recognize so that even though they provided a list naming everything in the box, I had to guess which unknown name went with which unknown item. After about 4 months the CSA cancelled the subscription saying that it wasn't working out for them.

Since I am aware that CSA's provide what is available if I would have signed up for one I would have known and hoped that some of the things were not what was available in the regular grocery stores. Although in this area receiving something that is not available in a regular store would be unusual. It is one of the purposes for most CSA's to provide something different and some growers for CSAs actually do research to find those obscure or new on the market plants to expand what they grow.