ZaaBox Women of Color Subscription Review – December 2018

ByNich BavieraJan 5, 2019 | 14 comments

ZaaBox December 2018 - Box Front

ZaaBox is a luxury WOC spa box with 100% all natural ingredients and products from black-owned retailers and black artisans. ZaaBox “delivers 5 of the finest all-natural full-sized products directly to your door every month.”

This month’s box is being reviewed thanks to an MSA reader request!

ZaaBox December 2018 - Box Open

ZaaBox December 2018 - Inside Top

The box is lined with glitter paper and rose petals.

My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

ZaaBox December 2018 - All Product

About ZaaBox

The Subscription Box: ZaaBox

The Cost: $34.95 + $5 shipping

The Products: “ZaaBox is a unique monthly collection of 5 surprise luxury-themed and expertly curated all-natural spa products to awaken the senses, soothe the body and awaken your inner goddess!”

Ships to: United States

ZaaBox “A Very Merry Christmas” December 2018 Review

Enclosed in the box is an info card describing the products and the product ingredients.

ZaaBox December 2018 - Envelope And Handwritten Note

Each month the founder Mr. Strong sends a handwritten note. Thank you for all your comments last month regarding the handwritten notes.

ZaaBox December 2018 - Shower Gel

Mattie + Daisy Bath and Shower Gel-Candy Cane, 4oz – Estimated Value $10.00

This holiday scent faintly smells of candy canes, it also has an unfamiliar aroma, I couldn’t detect what the aroma was but it wasn’t overpowering. The bath and shower gel was gentle on my skin and the four-ounce size will give me a handful of uses, if not more.

ZaaBox December 2018 - Pontie Wax Front

Pointe Wax NYC Christmas Tree 4oz – Estimated Value $9.00

I love receiving candles in subscription boxes and when the candle is a holiday scent that’s even better. This 4 oz. hand-poured soy candle reminds me of the evergreens and being surround by a Christmas tree farm. The scent, NYC Christmas Tree is a combination of fresh pine and Fraser fir.

From Pontie Wax:

Pontie Wax is a line of beautifully scented hand-poured soy wax candles founded in 2015. Made from 100% plant-based soy wax, each candle features non-toxic fragrance and essential oils. There are no parabens, plastics or additives included in Pontie Wax candles, making each burn pleasant and safe. All Pontie Wax candles are decoratively wrapped in signature ribbon. Each candle is hand-poured with love in Brooklyn, New York.

ZaaBox December 2018 - Spray Front

Demoseά Hearth & Home Holiday Ambiance Mist, 2 oz. – Retail Value $18.00 (Found here for $9.00)

OMG, I love this item, it reminds me of all the scents of Christmas with notes of evergreens, and holiday spices. This captures the essence of the holiday season. The ambiance spray has a blend of intense woodsy notes of sandalwood and oakmoss, crisp herbal notes of pine and balsam, radiant notes of pomegranate and orange that transport me to the joy of the holiday season. I can relive the moments of Christmas during the New Year and beyond.

ZaaBox December 2018 - But First Coffee Front

ZaaBox December 2018 - But First Coffee Back

ZaaBox December 2018 - Coffee Scrub

Heritage 1933 But First, Coffee-Exfoliating Coffee Scrub, 2 oz. - Retail Value $10.00

This exfoliating coffee scrub was gritty, granular, and has a strong coffee smell. The scrub consists of ground Arabica coffee, sugar, cinnamon, cocoa powder, coconut oil, and vitamin E oil. The coffee scrub is best for my face or body and I opted to use as a facial scrub. I applied the scrub to my damp skin and gently massaged and left the scrub on my face to dry for five minutes and rinsed off with cold water. The scrub was superb with no irritations and left my skin glowing.

Benefits:

Exfoliates the skin
Removes dry and dead skin
Reveals new healthy looking skin
Stimulates blood flow
Helps reduce the appearance of cellulite, stretch marks, psoriasis and eczema
Tightens and brightens skin

ZaaBox December 2018 - Phillip Ashley Chocolates Box Front Top

ZaaBox December 2018 - Phillip Ashley Chocolates Open

Phillip Ashley Chocolates - Estimated Value $10.00 (buy a 12-piece box for $49)

I received a small box with two circular dark chocolates in the flavor earl grey tea and mint. The center tasted of dark chocolate, and mint; I didn’t detect the earl grey tea flavor. I’m not a fan of dark chocolate so this month’s chocolate wasn’t my favorite. The chocolate is handcrafted in small batches using the finest ingredients with fair trade chocolate. I didn’t find this particular set of chocolate on their website, so the value is an estimate.

The Verdict: Another enjoyable box and they continue to pamper me monthly as well as leaving me blushing from the handwritten note from Mr.Strong. This month’s $57.00 value is slightly lower than previous boxes. I’m still waiting for that higher value box, at least double the cost of the box. This month’s “A Very Merry Christmas” theme was holiday magic, each item captured the essence of the holiday season and a nice treat to come home to this holiday box after Christmas with my family. I was able to continue to revel in the holiday season with the lovely holiday scents of the candle, ambiance mist, and the shower and bath gel, as well as have my face and body exfoliated with the coffee scrub. I look forward to being pampered and indulged in 2019.

The Wrap Up:

Can you get this box if you sign up today? From ZaaBox.

Once you order you will receive your initial welcome box within 1 week and then your monthly recurring charge will occur on the 1st of the month every month until you decide to cancel.

Value Breakdown: The box cost $34.95 + $5.00 shipping, which means that each of 5 items in the box has an average cost of $7.99.

Check out all of our ZaaBox reviews and Women Of Color Subscription Box Directory!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist.

What do you think of December’s ZaaBox?

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"Awaken Your Inner Goddess. The Black Luxury Spa Box that delivers 5 of the finest all-natural full-sized products directly to your door every month."

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Posted in Subscription Box Reviews, Subscription Boxes for Women, Women of Color Subscription Boxes

Nich Baviera

Nichelle has been obsessed with subscription boxes since 2012, when she received an email to subscribe to PopSugar Must Have Box. Since then, she has subscribed to Glossybox, Allure Beauty Box and GoodeBox which is now called GoodeBeing Box. She currently subscribes to: Birchbox, FabFitFun, Essence Beauty Box, PopSugar Must Have Mini Box, and Play! by Sephora. She is an avid admirer of PopSugar, so much so that she had an office tour of their San Francisco headquarters in April of 2015.

Read More By Nich Baviera >

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14 comments

Nich

Thank you, ladies for your comments. It’s our policy to show everything received in the box. I will pass on your comments to the MSA team. Thanks for being a part of the MSA community.

LisaFalana

This box is not all that great to me., with or without the written creepy sexual innuendos. Definitely not worth $40. And the adjective “luxury” to describe it is highly questionable. I’m beginning to think the creepy note is supposed to distract you from the ripoff of your $40… Hard pass.

Nich

Thank you, ladies, for the comments, it’s our policy to include everything that comes in the box but I understand reading the note from Mr. Strong can be unsettling. I will pass this feedback to the MSA team. Thanks

Wendy

Am I the only one that finds the note to be slightly too much? That’s what you write to a lover, not a purchaser of a subscription box. I would not want this.

Terence Strong, CEO @ Zaabox

Thank you Wendy for the feedback. While I will admit that the notes have been edgy at times, the box is not for everyone and does have a romantic nature to it. Our customers love it and have the option to opt out of the note or receive less romantic notes. But I still honor your voice and will incorporate your feedback into future editions of ZaaBox.

ReeRee

Wow! I don’t sub to your box but I appreciate you responding these comments! Much success to your brand! Blessings!

Aarjullor

You’re not the only one! That note creeps me out. Calling this box a luxury? Nope! These isn’t anything about these items that says luxury. This should be $19.99. There are so many boxes that are $40 and under, that are so much better then this. It’s wonderful that this is company uses black retailers and artisans, but they still need to up their game.

Terence Strong, CEO @ Zaabox

Definitely taking feedback about the notes…we do not not mean to offend but aspire to give a romantic experience…we will definitely tone them down…but as with regards to luxury..all of our vendors are artisans that hand-make the all- natural product themselves the same month as shipment, no mass made, artificial products, made by people outside the black community, to us, that is the definition of luxury. But one point, I do understand you on is the packaging. We will make sure to continue to work with all of our vendors to ensure the packaging reflects the quality of the products themselves.

JennR

I will say in their defense that the type of box they’re curating is niche, and I think the when they use the term “luxury” they are referring to the sort of pampering products it includes: candles, chocolates, bath & body, scented products. So they’re trying to create a luxurious experience, but they have a mission statement to source through businesses owned by POC. You’re going to see a lot of small batch products that are probably generally good quality, but you’re not going to see a lot of big name mainstream brands. I actually think that the box itself is pretty good, if you consider that helping to uplift smaller businesses owned by POC is part of the value.

The note, though…I still can’t get past it. I’d much rather get a note from either a male or female employee saying, “Hey, girl. You’re killin’ it everyday. You are a beautiful, strong, intelligent woman who works hard and you deserve to treat yourself…”, or something like that. I’m figuring they could take the creepy out and make it a little bit more empowering, right?

Jenn

I love the concept of the he box, also. In their defense, it does seem like sourcing options are more limited given their mission statement. I’m not super familiar with products they feature, because I’m assuming they’re coming from smaller, independently owned business owners who are also POC. So you’re not going to see a lot of well-known stuff because they are trying to promote and uplift smaller companies. I think maybe the luxury aspect mentioned would be in the “pampering” product themes…so luxury as indulgence.

Jenn

I laugh at it every month. It’s a bit too much of a “me, too” moment in a sub box for my taste. Lol.

Chris

Hopefully not “me too”….lol…we strive to make the box as relaxing, romantic and luxurious as possible….but given the constraints of the messaging and the time period we are in…we will take that into consideration for our future boxes.

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ZaaBox Women of Color Subscription Review – December 2018

About ZaaBox

ZaaBox “A Very Merry Christmas” December 2018 Review

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