What types of products are included in a city’s box?

There will be food items and products locally made in the city or the surrounding area of the featured city as well as fun facts about the city and info on each product’s story.  We want you to experience the city! We try to find items which represent the area (are made or grown there); for example, Massachusetts and particularly Cape Cod is known for its cranberry production, Georgia its pecans and Vermont its maple syrup.  We also try to check out items related to industries which are important to the city such as the music industry in Nashville, or the film industry in Los Angeles. 

We strive to include small businesses and local artisans making products that are not easily attainable in your stores. Also, we love a great story of how a local business came to be, like our granola maker from Virginia who moved her family there for a more balanced life or the Portland man who created a side job repurposing fallen trees and made our coasters. 

And sometimes we just have to include something yummy that had its origins in a very small local company, but word got out and they got big such as Rickaroons or McCrea’s caramels. Like most companies, they started out small and were someone’s dream. 

How does Explore Local Box work?

Explore Local Box is a recurring monthly subscription just like a magazine. You will receive a new box at the beginning of each month. You can cancel at any time, as long as you do so before the renewal date - the 29th of the month. This is when you are billed. Sometimes people worry about this, but please just email us if you are unclear whether you stopped your membership or if you have any questions.

When will my box ship?

 If you are buying a one-time gift box, these will ship within a few days of your order, regardless of when the order is placed.  For  subscription boxes, these ship within the first two weeks of the month for existing subscriptions.  For new subscriptions (even if it is a gift  order) if the order is placed before the 14th of the month the box will  ship within a few days of your order.  If the order is placed on the  15th or after the box will ship the first week of the following month.   We ship USPS Priority Mail which usually takes 2-3 days anywhere in the  USA.  If you order after the 15th and want the box to ship immediately just email us at sales@explorelocalbox.com

What if I have a problem or suggestion?

Please share your thoughts with us. Whether it is a problem or a suggestion, we want to hear from you! Just email us at sales@explorelocalbox.com. We respond promptly. Also, we would love to hear your suggestions about great locally made items or local companies or if you would like to suggest a new fun city to explore. If you love it, we’ll bet others will too!

What cities will be featured?

There are so many great cities in the USA that it is hard to  decide!  Luckily, we have traveled quite a bit (which is how the idea  for ELB came about) and have explored so many great parts of this  country. For ELB, we choose cities we have visited ourselves so we have a  real sense of the city – not just what tourists think of the city.  We  love to talk to locals and to find interesting local businesses that add  to the unique character of each city.     

We feature a new city each month so a city will not be repeated if  you have a monthly membership or if you give ELB as a gift.  However, we  do have a couple cities that are just so popular that we often start  out a membership with them.  If you are giving a repeat gift to someone,  it is best to email us at sales@explorelocalbox.com to let us know so we can be sure that we don’t give them that same first city.    

What about the quality of the products and the value of the box?

All items in each box are locally made products chosen because they are unique to the city, have a high degree of craftsmanship and use high quality locally sourced ingredients. We agree that this does cost more - both for the individual artisan to make and for us to purchase and bring to you. We pay a fair price to the artisans and small business owners who often do not have a high mark up on their products to begin with. Mass-produced products would be cheaper, but they would not be unique to the city or support the local small business men and women which is our passion at Explore Local Box. Of course anyone can order wine charms on line that are made outside the USA cheaply, but what fun is that? Instead when we are drinking that glass of wine with the sea glass wine charms on it, we can think of the artist who combed the beaches of Long Island looking for sea glass and the care that went into making that glass into those lovely charms.

How do I give Explore Local Box as a gift?

We make that easy. Just check the “this is a gift” box at checkout and you can choose if you want the subscription to automatically renew. We include your gift message in the first box with a card explaining what Explore Local Box is.

How do I change my address (or any other account info)?

It’s easy. You can quickly update your account information using your email and password. If you have any questions or concerns, just email us at sales@explorelocalbox.com