Reviewed by
Mary
Toppbox has undergone a radical change! They have consulted with their subscribers, and have now moved away from a discovery service, and towards self-branded products.
It is now Topp, a monthly subscription of grooming essentials for men.
A few notes before we have a look inside.
The items in the box are considered grooming essentials, what their customers like best. They are all branded Topp.
They contain a varying percentage of organic ingredients, so while they can’t be labelled 100% organic, they are naturally derived. They are also all vegan and cruelty free.
The packaging is all recyclable, and the larger bottles are made from bio-plastic, which is a more sustainable material. They aim to package their whole range like this in the future.
So here’s the new box! The large flat box will probably require a trip to the sorting office if you’re not home to collect it.
The packaging is pretty robust, but it’s nice to see an extra layer of padding! Plus bubble wrap is very useful to have around as it can always be reused.
On top you can see their menu leaflet, which contains a list and details of your products.
Each box contains Body Wash, Hair Wash, Face Wash, and Face Moisturiser.
This is the basic box, which costs £24 per month.
In addition, there are two shaving versions: one for the clean-shaven man, which contains Shaving Lotion and After Shave Balm, and one for beards, containing Conditioning Beard Wash and Nourishing Beard Oil. These are both £29 per month.
And here are all the products!
The packaging is very nice, a simple but classy design which would look great in any bathroom.
The scents really are lovely. There’s a lot of citrus and menthol going on, which is especially fantastic in the morning to wake you up a bit!
As it happens, my husband is currently bearded, but I can say with confidence that the shaving products work very well on legs. I actually don’t mind the ‘masculine’ scent at all, not least because I usually buy men’s shaving gel because it tends to be cheaper than the female branded equivalent!
I think for a box of essentials this is really nice. The products smell good, they are suitable for all common skin types, and natural ingredients is a big plus.
I have a couple of minor reservations. I’m not quite sure how easy it would be to time the use of all the items so you finish them all at once! You can adjust your delivery day if necessary, which is helpful, but I’m not sure if it would be likely I’d run out of some things before others. I’d also quite like conditioner as well as shampoo.
This is, however, the beginning of their new format, and having had some very helpful correspondence with Topp, I understand that they have plans in the future to increase options available, as well as things like soap bars rather than body wash, and I think they are off to a very good start. I’ll miss the previous discovery boxes, as my husband and I have indeed discovered some fantastic new items, but these new products are a very welcome addition to our bathroom shelf. The only problem is with two of us using them, they’re definitely not going to last nearly as long!
I’ll be interested to see how they start to expand their range over time, but for the moment I think they’ve gotten off to a very good start.
By Evelyn 
