ConfIdence, a self-care box program that provides motivation and stress-relieving tools for college students, was created by four Marquette students during the fall semester.
The team is made up of the following members: Mae Haggerty, a senior in the College of Business Administration, Isaac Feil, a senior in the College of Business Administration, Jonathan Constantine, a senior in the College of Health Sciences and Pan Roumeliotis, a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences.
ConfIdence started as an entrepreneur class project to create a start-up business. Haggerty pitched the idea to her classmates, the group of four teamed up shortly after.
“The ConfIdence team came together by a common passion for mental health,” Roumeliotis said.
Each team member has a personal experience with mental health that is shown through items in the box.
“I think that that’s why I really wanted to start off ConfIdence, because I found out so many things about my (mental health) that I wanted to relay that to other people.” Haggerty said.
The group members said they know firsthand how susceptible college students can be to unhealthy mental habits.
“That’s what’s so hard with college students. We all have diverse backgrounds, we all have goals in life, but there’s different things that lead us there and knowing how to handle all that is so important,” Feil said.
The box includes a variety of self help tools geared towards motivation, fun and stress relief, Haggerty said.
“Every single month we each pick out a bunch of different items that we think would help students,” Roumeliotis said.
January’s ConfIdence Box included Awake Chocolates, Letters to My Future Self Journal, a pen, Unwind Tea, eucalyptus rollerball oil, a worry stone, hand warmers and Burts Bees lip balm.
“(It’s) basically little things that will bring a smile to your face throughout the day,” Haggerty said.
The items are all sourced from Amazon. The group gets together every month to hand pick items and package assortments before they send the boxes out.
Right now, students can purchase a box on ConfIdence’s website. Each box is $25 and is delivered within two weeks of ordering. Last month, the team sold eight boxes and currently has 14 orders in place for the upcoming month.
The team is in the process of making The ConfIdence Box a monthly subscription service.
“For now each purchase has to to be made by month,” Haggerty said.
The ConfIdence Box offers positive solutions to help students practice good mental hygiene, Feil said.
“Just like how you brush your teeth every morning to take care of yourself, that needs to be the same kind of adjustment when it comes to mental health,” Feil said.
The team hopes that practicing good mental health now will help students be healthier in the long run.
“It’s important to set the foundation (for good mental health) where you don’t want to come back into that cycle,” Constantine said.
