Monthly Archives: September 2020

Garage Filled with Boxes?

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This weekend was certainly a lot of work at my house.  We decided to start cleaning out our garage after the COVID-19 pandemic.  It has been a long time since our State got back to any kind of normal but since we are all able to go back to work just about as usual we are finding that going out and doing normal things again is happening too.  That means that housework is getting back to normal and we found that our garage was riddled with Amazon packages.  It was just wrong and it was filling up our garage.  Now we know we needed to organize and move a lot of things from our garage to our shed, and this was the time to do it.

This all started out with us having to clean out a shed that we had never used.  It was filthy because the tenate who lived at out home kept a dog in there and never cleaned anything.  So with a shovel, broom, and preasurized hoze we went to town with bleach.  It took a few hours to clean and to dry but once we were done we were able to start taking all the filled cardboard boxes from the garage and move them into the shed. This took many hours to get it all sorted and filled up but it left us with a good amount of space in our garage.  Then we had to decide what to do with the insane stack of Amazon packages and how to best get rid of them.

We first tried to fill them with things and move them to the shed.  We did this for what we could but we still had a pile several feet long and many feet tall of cardboard boxes in our garage.  It was really hard to figure out what to do because we didn’t want to simply put these in the trash.  The next issue is that we are only able to recycle one trash can at a time and all these packages were simply not going to fit.  We tried just stacking some in the can, but that would literalyl take a year to recycle that way and we knew we were going to have to start breaking them down.

So first we started to break them down with out hands and we ran into trouble.  Those massive staples in some of the packages were simply too tough to overcome.  That left us with a sad feeling and our hands were in pain trying to overcome the stress.  So we then decided that we needed to get scissors to break them down and get them into the can as neatly as possible.  We each got through one box before our hands were red and about to start blistering.  That was a bad idea, but we decided a knife was the answer.  So I went into my fishing kit and got out a nice fixed blade knife.

This fixed blade had a great rubber handle and was made of a good stainless steel to deal with fish and water without rusting.  It was a fallkniven f1 knife and it went through the packages really well. So the next time you run into the same issue as us you now know what to do and how to recycle them all safely and quickly.

Is Candy On your Shopping list?

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This year there are so many words being thrown out. Pandemic and Essential have been played to death and are getting on my nerves.  The topic came up when I told a friend that I was going to the store to get snacks for the family. They immediately chastised me for putting lives at risk over snacks. Let me tell you that snacks are life and I am happy to take that risk in order to live a normal life and have a happy family. I want to let you know that the need for anything outways the risk of freedom and if you need to get some top of the line candy boxes for your family then go right ahead and go to the store.

The issues that have arrived this year are always based on the word essential.  Food is essential, and life, liberty, and the pursuit of justice are as well. It is when someone goes and tells me that any kind of grocery shopping is not essential that I must protest.  I live in the United States due to freedom and going shopping is part of that.  I take a massive risk of driving to the store. The risk of getting into a crash is always there and that is higher than any other health risk in the world. I say this to let people know that they are at risk of dying every day. It is a normal thing and we all have most likely been in a car wreck or no someone who has died from one.  So going to the grocery store has always been a big risk. 

Candy kiosk inside a shopping mall

There truly should be no limits on what is considered essential food.  If your family is going crazy from being locked inside together going on 4 months than anything to save your sanity is essential. That is how I look at many things these days.  It is no one’s right to tell you what food is good and what is not. That is part of why we live in this country and that is the freedom that it brings.  Yes, that even comes down to the candy boxes we choose when walking down that lovely aisle. So indeed don’t let anyone tell you what food is essential or even come close to taking away the choice as to that. It could mean later on that some choices for food for your children may be limited. The FDA says aspartame and corn syrup are healthy. If they are soon the only options then we may all be dying of following the rules if they take away healthy alternatives.

I mean to say that going to the grocery store is really simple.  It should be allowed anytime and there is no reason to ever tell someone not to go.  The right of freedom is involved and even in 2020 when pandemics that don’t seem to be causing much harm are happening essentially has taken a different turn. So do not fret, but go out and be free. Enjoy your amazing groceries and don’t be afraid of news that is proven to be false every day.  Don’t let your friends who have been persuaded to think the world is ending dictate your actions. That would be the end of freedom and freedom of thought as we have known it.

Organizing your Warehouse or Closet with Boxes

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The world is becoming a little more complicated and sometimes we are all needing more space for less cost.  This can be from a business or a personal finance perspective but with the new covid-19 pandemic the whole world is changing.  From an economic standpoint, we are moving in the United States into a more e-commerce centric shopping environment.  Then on a personal level, we are finding that many of us are legally being forced to work from home due to Covid-19 regulations.  So the need for more space in our own homes has been paramount in allowing people to find a place to work from.  Not all homes have the space for an office or even have the space for a desk in a room.  So the idea that warehouses are bing expanded and organized with whatever is possible for the least amount possible has been huge.  One secret is that people have been taking all the cardboard boxes they are getting from all these online orders and putting them to use in making extra room in all aspects of life. 

This has been seen most in the brick and mortar stores.  They are finding that the market demands them to be an eCommerce company or to give up more room for backend shipping.  This means that many stores are literally taking space from their show floor and converting it into warehouse room.  This is because they are only allowed 30 to 50% capacity in the store and online is booming. It really makes sense for them to expand the shipping and storage facilities and using inexpensive ways to do it is wise.  The use of cardboard boxes has been the answer for tons of people and they are creating whole warehouses from it. 

The use of bin boxes is the answer for many stores in that they can take lots of small products and stack them safely all over their warehouse.  They are taking orders in great quantity now and are also expanding their staff in the shipping locations.  this means that they are storing tons of more products in the store and need the space for storage.  The key to these stores success is in planning. They are expanding smarty and without much extra cost due to the products they have chosen to expand with.  The best part of this is it can make up for the losses of COvid-19 and foot traffic. Now at home, it has been a bit different.

Homeowners and people working at home due to the pandemic are storing more in order to make space.  Luckily all of their online orders have given them lots of places to store their goods. A nice orderly system at home can create lots of extra space and room to make a workspace with. Many people are actually taking all the boxes and creating their literal workspace.

It has been a trend to make your entire desk and work area from nothing but packaging supplies that have come in from online orders.  This is actually a cheap way to not lose money on making your home office.  I suggest looking up some plans that are already online and give lots of tips for doing this economically.  It is only wise if it saves you room, time, and money in my opinion. 

Corporate Gifting Candy

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One major trend that has happened over the last few years is a little bit generous.  The idea of being thankful and showing it with a gift is nothing new to the world.  Gifting has been a sign of goodwill since before we could write, but this year it has taken off into a new level.  Corporate gifting is a new trend that has gone from small to massive.  It can be seen as not only gifting from an eCommerce company, but many companies are sending gifts for closed deals and sales proposals.  It certainly has been a new trend and who doesn’t want to get a cool set of tickets to an NFL game or a custom candy boxes for the boardroom after a deal just closed.  It really is a great way to make goodwill known and to also make friends.

So why has this trend taken off and who has been responsible for it.  Surprisingly I saw that one of the biggest companies in corporate gifting was a candy company that split apart.  It began with a one person who wanted to make candy for adults and the other partner wanted to make artistry.  Now they both compete in a different candy world and that is corporate gifting.  One company makes candy boxes that are elegant and filled with class.  The other company actually makes slightly perverted or more adult-themed candy. Each company is wildly successful, but they are working on two different ends of the spectrum.  I am very happy to see that both can succeed in the same market and I am happy that they split without much animosity. 

Each one of these companies specializes in different holidays and occasions. They each have vast products that in corporate lots of other brands besides themselves.  Now Corporate gifting is vast and includes many companies in each gift.  Candy and champaign could be in one gift or gummy bears and beer in another.  They may have t-shirts and pro sports tickets in them and they can be customized until your heart is content.  This allows companies to be able to reach out to other businesses and show that they are interested and care.  As a sales tactic, it is fun to receive cool gifts and it also shows intent.  If a company spends 10 thousand dollars on gifts just to talk to you, it means they really care. 

On the other end of the spectrum, many companies are giving corporate gifts for holiday parties and they can be wonderful. If you have a holiday party and you want to go overboard, this is a great way to do it.  Custom gifts for different departments or board members are a nice touch to show your employees that you really care.  I am fairly certain that I would personally love a corporate gift and even my company has started to send them to each of our clients after we partner up.  It is a great experience and once we were even gifted something back and we loved it.  It went to show us how much these gifts matter and that our business was on the right track for success and building lasting relationships.

So the next time your company closes a really big deal or is thinking about throwing a party remembers about these gift packages.  It could be a great addition to your occasion.