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Meet Yanina Rabinkova of Fun Gift Boxes in Aurora

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Yanina Rabinkova.

Yanina, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve been a graphic designer for 15 years and have had several corporate design jobs. I genuinely love design, but after many years in the corporate world, I felt a creative plateau. During this time, I had two little kids and my youngest was still an infant. Taking care of little ones and commuting to work almost two hours every day was exceptionally hard. I kept looking for ways to advance my creative design journey while working full-time – knowing something meaningful would come from it.

The idea for gift boxes first came when several friends complained on Valentine’s Day that they were tired of getting the same old gifts – roses and candy. They wanted a gift that would make them feel special – something with a little more thought and uniqueness. This conversation led me to think of designing chic packaging and filling it with a unique variety of gifts that you couldn’t find in generic stores. I already enjoyed creating fun gifts packages for people and had a habit of going to local shops to curate unique items. My husband encouraged me to create a gift box prototype, and I did. I gave the prototype to a friend for her birthday. I included a unique curated gift, handwritten birthday note, and put a vinyl cutout of her name on top. She was pleasantly surprised when she realized it was a unique gift made just for her!

I spent an entire summer visiting local gift shops, buying samples, and contacting vendors to form partnerships. While creating and testing prototypes, it came to light that many people had the best intention of giving thoughtful and wow-worthy gifts, they just didn’t have time to curate them. The time spent searching for great gifts can really add up, and it still needs to be packaged beautifully. Most people don’t even know where to start, and that’s why many resort to last-minute gifting.

My desire was to create a one-stop-shop solution with curated gift boxes – where we provide everything: from the box to the gift, to a handwritten note, to the shipping. This allowed clients to send personal, unique luxe gifts with minimal effort. Shortly after starting the company, I noticed an even bigger need with gifting in the corporate space. I started connecting with local businesses and spreading the word in the local business community. My first corporate client was KeyBank. They gave out gift boxes as a thank you to customers. It’s been an incredible experience working with them. Since then, I’ve created gifting solutions for a variety of businesses and I’m looking forward to working with more companies!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Fun Gift Boxes has seen its fair share of complications and successes. I started Fun Gift Boxes while taking care of my kids and working a full-time job. There was so much to figure out! My husband, thankfully, has a business background, so he was able to provide guidance. However, I had to figure out many of the aspects on my own as I went. In the beginning, I spent a lot of time educating business leaders on why they should give gifts and the value it brings. Some businesses really like the idea of giving gifts, but don’t want to spend the money on it. Other businesses want to do it but need several leaders to sign off on the idea. Other businesses just do it! You never know what you’re going to get. I’ve learned not to get super excited about opportunities until the deal is closed.

Another struggle was working on gaining trust and credibility. It’s hard to gain, but it’s the only way to move a business forward. I started this business with absolutely nothing, and it was very tough to get clients. I didn’t have many testimonials, success stories, or my brand name established in the beginning. I did a lot of networking, worked on forming relationships, emailing businesses, showing up in person, etc. and sometimes it felt like wasted efforts. I knew I had to be intentional with my time and not say yes to every opportunity. Finally, I’ve learned to adapt and come up with ideas on the fly. When my first real estate client wanted to buy gift boxes from me, they wanted a type of product I didn’t sell at that time. I had to find a vendor who created that type of product and fast! Thankfully, I was able to do so.

Fun Gift Boxes – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Fun Gift Boxes is a Denver based gift-giving company that creates memorable gift experiences. Our mission is to make it easy for people to give unique and useful artisan gift sets. We design gift boxes and fill those boxes with awesome gifts for a variety of special occasions or events. Our gift boxes are known for their luxurious look and personalization options.

We provide both B2C and B2B gifting products and services. For B2C, our online retail gift shop offers many ‘ready to ship’ curated gift sets for a variety of special occasions. Consumers simply choose a gift, gift box design, and personalization options (such as notecard messages). We fulfill the order and ship it to the recipient.

For B2B, we design custom branded boxes and create custom gift sets for client appreciation gifts, employee appreciation gifts, conferences, business partners, etc. The process for B2B is a bit more involved and has a minimum of ten gift boxes to start.

There are three main things that make us stand out:
1. Gift box design and personalization (outside the box)
Our gift boxes are not standard. We offer multiple gift box designs and personalization options. For example, if you order a gift for a friend, you can leave the gift box as is, or select a different design. You can personalize the top of the box (Example: “Happy Birthday, Lucy!”) to add a super personal touch to the gift. This makes the recipient feel really special and is what keeps our clients coming back.

For businesses, we can brand gift boxes with their logo, company colors, etc. We design matching ‘thank you’ postcards. It’s a great way to stand out and make a powerful impression.

2. Artisan gifts (inside the box)
Unique gifts are rare and have a much higher chance of adding value and delighting recipients. Artisan gifts made in the United States are particularly sought-after and are known for elevated craftsmanship. Our curated gift sets are combinations of products made by many artisans and small businesses in the United States. Many are those businesses who are from Colorado. We partner with businesses that create products that are practical, aesthetically pleasing, unique and ethically made. We arrange these products into an elevated gift composition – this same composition can’t be found anywhere else.

We also provide handwritten notecards on behalf of the sender and make our own confetti to sprinkle inside the boxes for a festive finish!

3. Corporate Gift Strategy
Corporate gift strategies include employee appreciation gifts, client appreciation gifts, business partner gifts, gift boxes to get new leads, and many others. We work with a wide variety of ideas, budgets and timelines. Some client’s come to us with an idea of what they would like to give, while others want us to provide ideas for them. No matter what, we help them accomplish their end goal. Businesses that do work with us are very satisfied as we guide them every step of the way and ensure the entire experience is an enjoyable one.

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
I feel most successful when my clients provide positive feedback! The feedback that their gift was awesome and recipients loved it, that they haven’t received anything like it before, that the customer service was top-notch, that the items inside the box chosen with taste and care, that the personalization on top of the box made them feel special, that they want to reorder in the future, things of that nature. This type of feedback validates this idea works and brings me so much joy! It makes me want to move forward and see what else is possible with Fun Gift Boxes! Nothing makes me feel more successful.

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
Kimberly Benfield Photography

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