You don't see many "unboxing" videos of our books and tools on the internet. And that is 100 percent by design.
We put a lot of thought into our packaging. But our goal is to get the product to you using the minimum amount of packaging. And with most – if not all – of the packaging being recyclable.
Elaborate packaging is disgusting to me (I tried to come up with a nicer word than "disgusting," but I thought of only meaner ones). Not only does it waste resources and labor, but it lays bare the manufacturer's priorities – marketing instead of meat.
Instead of making fancy embossed boxes tied with ribbons and other hoo-hah, I would rather do one of two things:
- Lower the price of the tool/book.
- Improve the quality of the book/tool.
I've had to endure a lot of fancy unboxing ceremonies (we own Apple products, and I have a Hamilton watch). And every time I open one of these crazy boxes I think: What a waste. Then I have to disassemble the recyclable parts from the stuff that has to go in the trash (really, a cotton cloth box for the instruction manual?).
Usually my disgust subsides if the product works well. But recently I bought a new ultrasonic cleaner (it's the only thing that will remove the sawdust from the crevices of my eyeglasses). The packaging was exactly like opening an Apple computer. Crazy boxes inside of boxes with elaborate cord wraps and whatnot.
The product is a stinker. It couldn't clean a turd if I loaned it a toothbrush.
OK, crotchety publisher signing off.
— Christopher Schwarz
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