5 ms·

Sock of the month: Get a pair of socks delivered to you, once a month

19 points by alexholehouse 14y ago

z_ 14y ago
All ready to check it out and get some socks; facebook roadblock.
- alexholehouse 14y ago
  Ugh. I hadn't seen that - I just thought it was a really cool idea, reminded me a lot of Dollar Shave Club [http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/?gclid=CMjzjMnNgbICFelaMgodMHUAHA http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/?gclid=CMjzjMnNgbICFelaMgodMH...]
  - AndrewKemendo 14y ago
    That intro video is fantastic. Thanks for introducing this to me.
  - vstm 14y ago
    I had the same thought. I think they could even adapt the video for socks: "Are the socks any good? No... our socks are fxxing great".
piggity 14y ago
I don't want different socks every month, I want the same socks all the time. That way I only ever have 1 mismatched pair (I will concede that I may have several types of socks - boot socks, running socks, cycling socks, business-time socks). The ladies do not call me fashionable. I can live with that. I am safe in the knowledge that I have matching socks for every* occasion. * except where prohibited by law
- dpeck 14y ago
  I have one kind of black sock, and one kind of white/athletic sock. Never need to match socks, and once every few years when I've lost enough I throw the remaining ones away and start over. One less thing to worry about, and honestly, most of the time I'm barefoot or in sandals anyway, figure the time savings over the course of a year has to be 30 minutes or so.
- ChuckMcM 14y ago
  I discovered numbers written on my Dad's multitudinous pairs of crew socks. I asked my dad about them and he said "That is so I can pair them up to wear evenly." All different socks don't have this issue :-)
- vl 14y ago
  http://www.blacksocks.com http://www.blacksocks.com solves this problem perfectly. I don't even use their subscription, I buy in bulk, then retire them all at once and buy in bulk again.
  - therealmarkhall 14y ago
    There is a UK version of that site and business model http://www.socked.co.uk http://www.socked.co.uk
emelski 14y ago
I think my college-bound daughter would enjoy this if I gifted her a subscription. Unfortunately I can't tell how much it costs without creating an account (giving away my email), nor can I tell if it's possible to give an anonymous gift (because I find the idea of my daughter getting random socks anonymously hilarious).
- michaelschade 14y ago
  I'm not sure about the ability to give as gifts (that'd be a great idea, if it's not supported), but the pricing is on the front page: "Unlike the country club it only costs $11/month and it will help you get a job."
  - emelski 14y ago
    Wow, I did notice that when I first looked. I guess I've gotten too accustomed to the Web 2.0 presentation style, where the pricing is prominently displayed and there's an unavoidable call-to-action button.
RossDM 14y ago
Great copy on the front page.
- mthoms 14y ago
  I can't tell if you're being serious or not. The copy is terrible for quickly conveying the value proposition IMHO.
  - ChuckMcM 14y ago
    Perhaps he was referring to the "Over Quota" error.
ebishop 14y ago
My fiancee is probably your target demographic -- she LOVES socks to an irrational degree. I was very curious about what it would cost to buy this as a gift for her... but there's one major problem though: The price isn't listed anywhere on your site. Evidently I have to create an account before you'll tell me how much it costs. So... no thanks. I am immediately struck with the impression that this is almost certainly massively overpriced if you won't even tell me how much it costs before starting the signup process. Seriously... tell me how much it costs!
- mthoms 14y ago
  Probably still a valid criticism because it is a bit obtuse but, for the record is does say the price right on the home page: > Unlike the country club it only costs $11/month and it will help you get a job.
- ebishop 14y ago
  Ok, a followup. I poked around a bit more, and yeah, buried in the FAQ section I finally found the price: $11/month. That's $11/pair of socks. Yikes -- while there are socks worth that much, for that much (even a percentage of that-- I get it that you need to make a profit), there needs to be a bit more discussion about why these socks are so amazingly special. The blog has entries about awesome sock companies, and why they are good... but it never says that those are the socks you're shipping. Also, I think you're overlooking that a lot of people (like me) will want to give this as a gift. As far as I can tell your current model is sign up, then cancel anytime. Can't I buy this for just 3 months/6months/a year? If I'm giving this as a gift I'd rather not have my credit card being charged every month from now until the heat death of the universe because I just forgot about it.
  - AznHisoka 14y ago
    $11 for a single pair? That's vastly overpriced, although maybe there is a target audience that would pay that much... are there really people that care that much about wearing fashionable socks? half the time I don't even wear matching pairs because my pants cover it up, and nobody can see them anyway.
michaelschade 14y ago
I just received my first pair last month, and am actually wearing them right now. I recommend giving it a shot–the subscription is inexpensive and the socks are really great quality. Also pretty cool that he open-sourced the subscription software behind SOTM Club (https://github.com/SockClub/subscribely https://github.com/SockClub/subscribely -- disclaimer, I work at Stripe, which the project uses).
richardking 14y ago
I like the layout of the site, but the sign-up/buy-now/login buttons should be more visible. 'Buy now' currently doesn't look clickable (hovering over it, the mouse icon is still a pointer), and 'buy now' and 'learn more' don't stand out from the graphic at all.
AndrewKemendo 14y ago
Since the site is down (HN DDOS) as I write this - I wonder how this compares to what the Manpacks folks are doing. Perhaps just a shorter timeline.
therealmarkhall 14y ago
I belive all ones sock problems can be solved by http://www.socked.co.uk http://www.socked.co.uk a black sock subscription service for discerning gentleman.
therealmarkhall 14y ago
Ps that 1 dollar shave video is epic, just brilliant
skilesare 14y ago
I have some clients that have been doing this for a couple of months. I think their site looks way better. Plus: Obama Socks http://www.footcardigan.com/ http://www.footcardigan.com/

19 points by alexholehouse 14y ago

z_ 14y ago

All ready to check it out and get some socks; facebook roadblock.

alexholehouse 14y ago
Ugh. I hadn't seen that - I just thought it was a really cool idea, reminded me a lot of Dollar Shave Club [http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/?gclid=CMjzjMnNgbICFelaMgodMHUAHA http://www.dollarshaveclub.com/?gclid=CMjzjMnNgbICFelaMgodMH...]
- AndrewKemendo 14y ago
  That intro video is fantastic. Thanks for introducing this to me.
- vstm 14y ago
  I had the same thought. I think they could even adapt the video for socks: "Are the socks any good? No... our socks are fxxing great".

piggity 14y ago

I don't want different socks every month, I want the same socks all the time. That way I only ever have 1 mismatched pair (I will concede that I may have several types of socks - boot socks, running socks, cycling socks, business-time socks). The ladies do not call me fashionable. I can live with that. I am safe in the knowledge that I have matching socks for every* occasion. * except where prohibited by law

dpeck 14y ago
I have one kind of black sock, and one kind of white/athletic sock. Never need to match socks, and once every few years when I've lost enough I throw the remaining ones away and start over. One less thing to worry about, and honestly, most of the time I'm barefoot or in sandals anyway, figure the time savings over the course of a year has to be 30 minutes or so.
ChuckMcM 14y ago
I discovered numbers written on my Dad's multitudinous pairs of crew socks. I asked my dad about them and he said "That is so I can pair them up to wear evenly." All different socks don't have this issue :-)
vl 14y ago
http://www.blacksocks.com http://www.blacksocks.com solves this problem perfectly. I don't even use their subscription, I buy in bulk, then retire them all at once and buy in bulk again.
- therealmarkhall 14y ago
  There is a UK version of that site and business model http://www.socked.co.uk http://www.socked.co.uk

emelski 14y ago

I think my college-bound daughter would enjoy this if I gifted her a subscription. Unfortunately I can't tell how much it costs without creating an account (giving away my email), nor can I tell if it's possible to give an anonymous gift (because I find the idea of my daughter getting random socks anonymously hilarious).

michaelschade 14y ago
I'm not sure about the ability to give as gifts (that'd be a great idea, if it's not supported), but the pricing is on the front page: "Unlike the country club it only costs $11/month and it will help you get a job."
- emelski 14y ago
  Wow, I did notice that when I first looked. I guess I've gotten too accustomed to the Web 2.0 presentation style, where the pricing is prominently displayed and there's an unavoidable call-to-action button.

RossDM 14y ago

Great copy on the front page.

mthoms 14y ago
I can't tell if you're being serious or not. The copy is terrible for quickly conveying the value proposition IMHO.
- ChuckMcM 14y ago
  Perhaps he was referring to the "Over Quota" error.

ebishop 14y ago

My fiancee is probably your target demographic -- she LOVES socks to an irrational degree. I was very curious about what it would cost to buy this as a gift for her... but there's one major problem though: The price isn't listed anywhere on your site. Evidently I have to create an account before you'll tell me how much it costs. So... no thanks. I am immediately struck with the impression that this is almost certainly massively overpriced if you won't even tell me how much it costs before starting the signup process. Seriously... tell me how much it costs!

mthoms 14y ago
Probably still a valid criticism because it is a bit obtuse but, for the record is does say the price right on the home page: > Unlike the country club it only costs $11/month and it will help you get a job.
ebishop 14y ago
Ok, a followup. I poked around a bit more, and yeah, buried in the FAQ section I finally found the price: $11/month. That's $11/pair of socks. Yikes -- while there are socks worth that much, for that much (even a percentage of that-- I get it that you need to make a profit), there needs to be a bit more discussion about why these socks are so amazingly special. The blog has entries about awesome sock companies, and why they are good... but it never says that those are the socks you're shipping. Also, I think you're overlooking that a lot of people (like me) will want to give this as a gift. As far as I can tell your current model is sign up, then cancel anytime. Can't I buy this for just 3 months/6months/a year? If I'm giving this as a gift I'd rather not have my credit card being charged every month from now until the heat death of the universe because I just forgot about it.
- AznHisoka 14y ago
  $11 for a single pair? That's vastly overpriced, although maybe there is a target audience that would pay that much... are there really people that care that much about wearing fashionable socks? half the time I don't even wear matching pairs because my pants cover it up, and nobody can see them anyway.

michaelschade 14y ago

I just received my first pair last month, and am actually wearing them right now. I recommend giving it a shot–the subscription is inexpensive and the socks are really great quality. Also pretty cool that he open-sourced the subscription software behind SOTM Club (https://github.com/SockClub/subscribely https://github.com/SockClub/subscribely -- disclaimer, I work at Stripe, which the project uses).

richardking 14y ago

I like the layout of the site, but the sign-up/buy-now/login buttons should be more visible. 'Buy now' currently doesn't look clickable (hovering over it, the mouse icon is still a pointer), and 'buy now' and 'learn more' don't stand out from the graphic at all.

AndrewKemendo 14y ago

Since the site is down (HN DDOS) as I write this - I wonder how this compares to what the Manpacks folks are doing. Perhaps just a shorter timeline.

therealmarkhall 14y ago

I belive all ones sock problems can be solved by http://www.socked.co.uk http://www.socked.co.uk a black sock subscription service for discerning gentleman.

therealmarkhall 14y ago

Ps that 1 dollar shave video is epic, just brilliant

skilesare 14y ago

I have some clients that have been doing this for a couple of months. I think their site looks way better. Plus: Obama Socks http://www.footcardigan.com/ http://www.footcardigan.com/