Culture Carton is a monthly lifestyle box for men. Each month you’ll receive curated lifestyle items and literature to enhance your gentlemanly status.
Culture Carton has three subscription options: Essential (just the lifestyle items for $35 a month), Standard (lifestyle items and book for $45 a month), Book Club (monthly book shipped to you for $16 a month).
This is a review of the $45 a month Culture Carton Standard.
This box was sent to us for review purposes. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).
About Culture Carton
The Subscription Box: Culture Carton
The Cost: $45 a month + shipping
ACTIVE DEAL: Free shipping on all orders over $100
CODE: FREESHIPPING
The Products: A curated selection of men’s lifestyle items and a book “that belongs on every man’s bookshelf.”
Ships to: US for a varied cost. Shipping to NC is $7.26. International shipping varies.
February 2019 Culture Carton “The Hesse” Review
My husband, John, is helping me with this review by testing all of the products and giving me his perspective. This month includes one of our favorite books and a couple of fashion accessories to up John's style game.
An info card with an introduction to the month’s theme and contents is included. This month’s theme is “The Hesse.” The items are curated to help add a "touch of class to your wardrobe."
Breed Holden Chronograph - Retail Value $150 (or on the Breed Site here for $495)
I never knew John loved watches so much until after he started receiving Culture Carton. He received his first watch in the October 2018 box, so this is his second watch from Culture Carton. He's not complaining though. This watch is high-quality with an embossed leather band, scratch resistant glass, and is water resistant. It has a date display and 3 different stopwatches on a sleek, not-too-big watch face. As for the pricing, I found this watch for sale on Macys.com for $150 (same as the listed price on the info card) but when I looked it up on the actual Breed site, I found it for $495. That's quite a big difference! I'm going to go with the listed price for the purposes of this review.
Cobbler Concierge Shoe Bag - Listed Value $15
While receiving a simple canvas shoe bag isn't the most exciting thing, I'm really happy to have learned about Cobbler Concierge. It's a luxury online shoe repair service that repairs shoes, handbags, and other leather goods. I think including a branded, functional item is a clever way to spread awareness of your brand. Both John and I have leather items that could use some love, so I think we might try the service out. Plus, now John can use this bag to pack his shoes and not worry about getting polish or dirt on his clothes.
NobleSole Shoe Laces - Listed Value $10
NobleSole is a company that designs Italian Leather sneakers that look like dress shoes. I couldn't find these laces listed for sale on their site but, like the shoe bag (above), they are a clever way to introduce subscribers to a new brand. These red laces are 32" long and made of 100% cotton. John decided to put them on his black dress shoes and they immediately looked more stylish and funky. He even got a few compliments the first night he wore them out. I love that he is beginning to add pops of color to his outfits with small accessories like these.
Siddhartha by Herman Hesse - Listed Value $16 (Found here for $12.74)
John and I both read this book in high school and love it to this day. I think being exposed to a different culture through literature is so important (and fun), not only in your younger years but also throughout life. We both read this colorful edition of Siddhartha again after he unboxed it this month and found that we gleaned totally different experiences from it than we did in school. It's fairly short, easy to read, and a great addition to anyone's library.
Here's the description from Goodreads:
Herman Hesse's classic novel has delighted, inspired, and influenced generations of readers, writers, and thinkers. In this story of a wealthy Indian Brahmin who casts off a life of privilege to seek spiritual fulfillment. Hesse synthesizes disparate philosophies--Eastern religions, Jungian archetypes, Western individualism--into a unique vision of life as expressed through one man's search for true meaning.
The Verdict: Culture Carton always does a good job of curating novels and items for a theme. This month, John's box included a luxury watch and some shoe accessories from new-to-us brands. He's happy with the novel selection and agrees that it is a great addition to any gentleman's library. I like how the items are varied each month – sometimes they're wearable fashion, sometimes they're functional tools – but they're always great. This box makes a great gift for any guy who is interested in building his library of classic novels and staple lifestyle items in a fashionable and clever way.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? No. Sign up now for the May box.
Orders placed before the 15th of the month will be shipped on 15th-17th of the month. All orders placed after the 15th will ship the following month.
Coupon – Use code MYSUB10 to save 10% off your first box!
Value Breakdown: The box costs $45.00 + $7.55 shipping to NC and it has a retail value of $191. That means each item breaks down to approximately the following cost:
- Breed Watch - $41.27
- Cobbler Concierge Shoe Bag - $4.13
- NobleSole Shoe Laces - $2.75
- Siddhartha - $4.40
Check out all of our Culture Carton reviews and more men's lifestyle boxes in the Men’s Subscription Box List!
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What did you think of this month's Culture Carton?
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