Looking Back, Looking Forward: Our 2021 Story
Six years. I keep coming back to that number. Six years since I started shipping RFID sleeves from my Vancouver apartment. Six years since Boxiki was just an idea and a lot of optimism.
Today, we're a multi-brand company selling in over 20 countries with a team spanning eight nationalities. We have eight distinct brands, each with its own personality and purpose. And somehow, despite everything the last two years have thrown at us, we're still here. Still growing. Still caring too much about things like zipper quality and packaging color.
The 2021 Highlights
This year, we launched two new brands. Astorn brought us into health and wellness and practical tools — a direction that felt right the moment Margaret from Alberta told us she could carry her groceries again. Smart Storage was born from a messy apartment and a team meeting that went gloriously off-track, and it's already becoming one of our fastest-growing lines.
We received the customer email that changed how we think about everything we make. I've written about it before, but it bears repeating: our products end up in people's lives in ways we can never predict. That's a privilege and a responsibility, and 2021 was the year we truly internalized it.
We hit milestones we wouldn't have dreamed of in 2015. Total reviews crossed 30,000. Products sold numbered in the millions across all brands. Our team grew to its largest size ever, with talented people joining from around the world.
We also rejected a major shipment because the supplier changed materials, costing us money but keeping our promise to our customers. I'm as proud of that decision as I am of any sales number.
The Team
Every year-end post I write ends up being mostly about the team, and this year is no different. These people are the reason Boxiki works. Their talent, their dedication, their willingness to argue with me when I'm wrong (which, I'm told, is more often than I think) — it's everything.
Priya's work on branding and storytelling has given our company a voice that feels human and real. Our operations team kept products moving through a global supply chain that's still recovering from 2020. Our customer service team answered every message with patience and care, even on the hard days. And our warehouse crew — the unsung heroes who touch every single product before it reaches a customer — continued to set a standard I'm deeply grateful for.
This team isn't just good at their jobs. They're good people. And in a world that can feel cynical and transactional, working with good people is the greatest luxury I know.
First Steps Toward Sustainability
I want to be honest about something: we haven't done enough for the environment. We're an e-commerce company. We ship products around the world in boxes and packaging materials. Our supply chain has a carbon footprint, and for too long, we haven't addressed that as seriously as we should.
That's starting to change. In 2021, we began researching sustainability initiatives in earnest. We've been in early conversations with ClimatePartner — a company that helps businesses measure, reduce, and offset their carbon emissions. We're looking at our packaging materials, our shipping practices, and our supply chain with fresh eyes.
I don't want to make promises we can't keep, so I'll just say this: sustainability is becoming a core priority for us, and 2022 is the year we start putting real action behind it. We'll share more details as they come together. And we'll be honest about what's working and what isn't — the same way we're honest about everything else.
What's Coming
2022 is going to be a big year. I can feel it in the way the team talks about our plans — there's an energy, an excitement, that reminds me of the early days. New products. New markets. New initiatives around sustainability and community. And a continued, stubborn commitment to quality that occasionally drives our accountant to despair.
But the thing I'm most excited about isn't any specific product or initiative. It's the fact that, after six years, we still care. We still get excited about making a product 5% better. We still read every review. We still argue about the right shade of blue. We still send handwritten notes to customers who share their stories with us.
That's not something you can manufacture or strategize into existence. It's either there or it isn't. And after six years and all the challenges and growth and failures and wins — it's still there.
Thank you for being part of our story. Thank you for trusting us with yours. And here's to six more years of making good stuff for good people.
Happy holidays. We'll see you in 2022.
With gratitude,
Stan