Subscription Box Market Fights Fatigue

Another day, another box. They land relentlessly on doorsteps across America—packages filled with eyelash-lengthening mascara, stuffed with figure-flattering belts or bearing a fresh mix of toys for Fido. The deliveries arrive in an almost numbing drumbeat of monotony, the antithesis of the unpredictability and joy they once carried. And they’ve created a new malady: subscription fatigue. The subscription market is more crowded than ever as mainstream brands, including Gap, Under Armour and Target, have rolled out their own apparel boxes, lessening the appeal of getting a monthly mailing filled with the unexpected. The marketing language has become tedious, with so many curated assortments to surprise and delight, that it’s impossible for one brand to differentiate. Even Katz’s Delicatessen, the famous New York eatery, announced in May it will offer its own pastrami subscription service beginning this month. And those buying to cure the munchies can also get monthly deliveries of marijuana (though not from Katz’s). Read more at Ad Age.