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🪩 Volume 125 | February 25, 2026

 

I'm at that age where even if we're best friends, I still have no idea WTF to get you as a gift—because let's be honest, you've probably already bought yourself everything you actually want.

 

OR you're in a season where you're actively trying to have less stuff, not more.

 

So what the hell do you gift? I’ll tell you. Snail mail.

 

 

 

 

First of all, I am fully blaming Gen Z for the rise in Snail Mail subscriptions this last year or so, ok? 

 

Because us millennials are only recently figuring out that being chronically online is worsening our mental state.

 

BUT I’M SO HERE FOR THIS. 

 

Tell me it doesn’t feel like Christmas when you order something online and then you get home and—Oh! A package! On the front doorstep!

 

Nine times out of ten, I don’t even remember what I ordered. And I partially credit my short-term memory to the aforementioned aging. But it’s still like a little gift to myself.

 

 

Social media is LOUD. Immediate. Instant gratification for updates, humor, validation, and NOISE. 

 

Snail mail is the opposite. It’s slower, tactile, intentional… it’s a surprise you can hold. 

 

And a few of my favorite rising brands are leaning all the way in:

 

 

 

(if you recall, did a former deep-dive, here). The Flower Letters  is one of the most compelling proof points that snail mail is far from dead. Founded in 2020 by husband-and-wife team Michael and Hannie Clark out of their kitchen in Utah, this subscription service delivers serialized fiction through actual letters—two per month, for twelve months, telling an unfolding story. What started with 38 subscribers has scaled to over 31,000 subscribers and more than 1.8 million letters mailed as of 2024. This is the gold standard for what happens when storytelling meets the mailbox, and the momentum here is undeniable.

 

 

Tiny Post is the monthly snail mail club from The Tiny Project: delivering a curated envelope full of creativity, connection, and community that lands in your mailbox once a month. Members receive stickers, a surprise paper good (think bookmarks, mini prints, stationery activities), and even a handpicked Spotify playlist to set the whole mood. This is a creator-led, community-first brand built around the belief that slowing down and connecting is the most important thing. Based on a podcast I listened to on this one, she’s doing 4,500 sends THIS MONTH at $11 a pop. You do the math ;)

 

 

Book of the Month is the OG of ~ this kinda snail mail ~ founded in 1926 (dinosaurs! wow!) and fully reinvented for the modern reader, this is one of the most impressive subscription turnaround stories out there. After relaunching in 2015 under CEO John Lippman, they went from near-irrelevance to $10M in revenue by 2017, and industry sources now estimate annual revenue north of $50 million (WWD, 2024). As of 2025, Fast Company reported the club has grown to over 400,000 members—over 80% of whom are Gen Z and Millennial women. Every month, subscribers choose from 5–7 curated new hardcover releases at a fraction of retail price.

 

 

Ann Marie Artworks—run by artist AnnMarie Henderson—is a monthly snail mail art club that delivers original, surprise goodies for just $8/month: A curated envelope packed with art prints, stickers, and other small treasures, all stamped and sent the old-fashioned way. The concept is perfect: an affordable, accessible, joyful way to become an art collector without even trying. Reviews RAVE about the quality and the personal touch—and it's a beautiful example of an artist building a recurring revenue stream directly with her audience through something as simple and meaningful as a stamped envelope.

 

 

Wish Upon Magic is a magical stationery and sticker brand founded in 2017 by Ada—who started making Mickey Mouse ears on her kitchen table in a 600 sq ft apartment, quite literally wishing a product like hers existed. Today it's a small team that has amassed 259K Instagram followers, 536K+ TikTok likes, and a community that is deeply, genuinely devoted. Their "Fairygram" snail mail subscription sends a monthly envelope of exclusively designed stickers, prints, and stationery—all with a whimsical, park-inspired, dreamer aesthetic that hits perfectly for the Disney-adjacent, cottagecore, stationery-obsessed corner of the internet. What makes this brand extra special is their commitment to giving back; they've donated over $53,000 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation since 2021.

 

--

 

 

Generations evolve. Purchasing behavior evolves. The emotional drivers behind buying evolve. 

 

 

This is not me saying, “Yeah!! Go launch a snail mail arm of your business!” (Unless that is actually something that would make sense for you. Then pop off. Who am I to stop you?) 

But  it 100% is me encouraging you to ask:

 

Sustaining as a brand means evolving and not clinging to what “works,” forever. You have to evolve as your buyers evolve. 

 

SPEAKING OF :) In March we’ll be zooming in on brands who have done this really well. Some of those… legacy brands that you probably know and love.

 

 

My current Sunday night guilty pleasure is Season 2 of The Pitt—a fast-paced, no-romance Grey's Anatomy set in a Pittsburgh ER where you actually get attached to every character and patient. I'm obsessed.

 

This week's episode had ONE commercial break. At the beginning.

 

It was a Volvo ad featuring one of the show's main characters, interviewing real-life 25+ year paramedics on what they consider the safest car. (Volvo, obviously.)

 

The storytelling and tie-in is WICKED SMART—and it ended with: "Enjoy this episode, ad-free, thanks to our sponsor, Volvo."

 

So yeah. I watched the entire episode without a single ad break. I'm also deeply questioning my car choices. Watch a version of the ad here.