A UF alumnus’ company is taking the stress out of gift giving.
Founded in 2013, Blind Surprise allows users to treat themselves to a surprise gift every month or purchase a surprise gift for a friend.
Before purchasing a monthly subscription at blindsurprise.com, users are asked to fill out a questionnaire that details their interests or the interests of a friend. That questionnaire is then used to help select a custom gift box filled with one to three specialized gifts.
Josh Ludin, 24-year-old Blind Surprise co-founder and UF graduate, said the gifts are made by artists and cannot be found at a local store.
“A lot of them are from Etsy or marketplaces like that,” he said. “You can’t buy these gifts at like Target or Wal-Mart.”
Each month, Blind Surprise gift boxes feature about five new artists. Gift boxes can contain up to three gifts worth about $30. Past gift boxes have included personalized wine tumblers and jewelry.
If a subscriber does not like a Blind Surprise gift, they will be able to exchange it.
The company currently has about 230 subscriptions a month.
Ali Kitenplon, Blind Surprise co-founder, said the company is also looking to cater to businesses in the future.
“Everyone loves gifts and surprises, but not everyone knows what to get for someone else,” she said.
Gift boxes are then wrapped and sent to the recipient along with a card and information about the gift creators. Gifts are typically shipped out at the start of each month or on specific days if requested.
Katie Fry, a 20-year-old UF exploratory sophomore, said Blind Surprise is a very creative concept for gift giving.
“It’s definitely a cool gift idea for a friend,” she said.
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 2/10/2014 under the headline "UF alum co-founds gift-giving subscription service"]
