Saturday, December 15, 2012

Cravebox review: Holiday Spruce Up box (November 2012)

Since I have been slacking a little bit with my blog (I did have a final in my one class combined with a major presentation at a conference), two Cravebox reviews get posted today.

The Holiday Spruce Up box was presented as something to clean up the house and get ready for the holidays. So I signed up expecting maybe a couple of candles and new cleaning supplies. To  be honest, when I received this box and looked at the contents, I was really disappointed - a first for my subscription box experiences. Part of the disappointment came from the fact that rather than include full-size products or even samples, a couple of products were only represented with dollar off coupons. I get those in the Sunday newspaper and certainly do not feel very strongly about going and trying out new products because I have a coupon. Especially with cleaning supplies, I like to hear some recommendations before I spend any money.
Another reason I was not happy with this box was the fact that a single Tide Pod was included, something I have received over the last 12 months on a number of occasions because Tide is giving them away for free through Facebook and their regular product page.

The other contents, the Febreeze air freshener and the Oxi Clean, were full size and even though I do not use my dishwasher, I can still use them. I may include the Oxi Clean in a housewarming gift basket. The Febreeze I was very happy about since I love to alternate air fresheners and this one smells nice and brings up thoughts of Christmas. The last item included was another sample from Bissell. The idea sound good, you got a stain in your carpet and you simply step on it and the pad soaks the stain right out. I have not tried it yet, but I am willing to give it a shot. I probably still end up using my large rug cleaner since it shampoos the carpet or rug and does a good job of removing stains, even when they have been sitting for a while.
copyright Durhamonthecheap - Cravebox Holiday Spruce Up box contents

So this would be the end of my normal review. Nothing spectacular, an okay assortment of products that can be used to clean the house, with no relation to holidays. But because this box was so substandard for Cravebox, I wrote them and they were nice enough to issue a full refund. I did not ask for a refund, simply stated that I was disappointed with the contents, both value wise as well as the selection of products included. So the customer service from Cravebox certainly came to the rescue here and restored my faith in the company. I would encourage Cravebox to take some time and listen to the feedback because the two new products in this box were only represented in form of dollar off coupons, while both full size products I was either familiar with or could not use. I did not think that the content in this box were that unusual that they classify a product discovery subscription service.

The video below shows the products included in more detail and also my overall reaction to the box after I got issues the refund. I would still recommend Cravebox as a subscription service because they overall deliver a good value for the money and most of the products can be used by just about everyone (I know I am the exception in preferring washing dishes by hand rather than use the dishwasher). So while the products may not be totally new and need to be discovered, the products tend to be items most families will be familiar with through the brand name, if not the product itself.

Disclaimer: I received the Spruce Up Cravebox in exchange for a subscription fee and an honest review. The opinions expressed in this blog are solely my own and have not been influenced by Cravebox or any third party.


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