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Questions about joining a Hub

  • What is a Food Hub?
    Box Divvy is a Box Sharing system which is an OPT OUT system. You have an order unless you suspend it BEFORE orders are created. A Food Hub is located at your neighbour’s house, local community centre/group or business. It is where the orders you have placed with your fellow members online come to, get packed by your Hubster and then you pick them up.
  • Who is a Hubster?
    A Hubster is the name of the person who runs and coordinates your Food Hub.
  • Where do I order?
    You order online at www.boxdivvy.com.au. When you join a Hub, receive the Welcome email with the User Guide, then you will be prompted to download the App to your phone or computer. All copies of emails are under your name in EMAIL ARCHIVES.
  • Where do I pick up my order from?
    The Box Divvy Food Hub will be at either your neighbour's home, a community centre or a business. When you join you will be given the address and contact details of the Hubster (coordinator of your Hub). Your Hubster will phone you to say hello so please be available for this call. Box Divvy is an OPT In system. You care expected to order weekly or 'at least' fortnightly. For security please keep the location of the Food Hub confidential when telling people about Box Divvy. We give a general idea of location only publically.
  • Do I provide my own name labelled containers and bags for packing?
    Yes, you drop your NAME LABELLED containers and bags to your Food Hub before Hub day. Maybe get 2 sets ie: Drop of one pick up one. If new then contact your Hubster to find our where you drop these. Make sure they have both your names, first and last, on it please in case someone has a similar name. The great thing is you don't have to repack when home. Provide a Tupperware so the spinach goes in, cloth bags for your mushrooms and then into the fridge. We recommend you: 1. Provide bags that can stand up on their own insulation. 2. Make or purchase cloth produce bags for your loose items like spinach, mushrooms, beans. You can buy from the discount store netted bags, check the washing section.
  • Is there Home Delivery?
    Some Food Hubs will offer Home Delivery. You need to ask the Hubster so they can agree to do the delivery. They will not deliver to security flats not flats with flights of stairs nor places where it is difficult to park. Also, if you live too far away they will not deliver. In your Profile (under your name) you will see at the bottom if the Hub offers home delivery. There is a small tick box and the amount for home delivery. You can tick and untick this box throughout the order cycle. Please check with your Hubster that it's okay to deliver to you. NOTE: The ADDRESS information spaces above this tick box clearly states that it is for the meat delivery details not home delivery. If a Hub does not offer Home Delivery there will be NO TICK BOX showing.
  • How far will they deliver?
    If your Food Hub does home delivery then it needs to be within 10 to 15 minutes from the Food Hub. Access needs to be easy and if a locked security apartment easy entry access or a safe place - the Hubster or Box Divvy will take absolutely no responsibility for produce left outside. Also Hubster will NOT climb flights of stairs to deliver ie in flats.
  • What does it cost to get Home Delivery?
    Home Delivery IF your local Food Hubster offers it ranges from $7 to $15. The Hubster will show this in your PROFILE if they offer it at the very bottom. The first address is for Meat delivery and at the bottom it will show a tick box if offered. Where do I check if my Hub offers Home Delivery? Go to your PROFILE. See at the very bottom. Is there a tick box there saying Home Delivery and the amount it costs. A Hubster reserves the right not to deliver if you are too far or in a complicated delivery address ie flats with stairs, dangerous location for parking. etc.
  • How do I cut my food bill I half?
    On average you will save up to 30% on your fresh fruit & veg compared to supermarket pricing for a seasonal basket. This is on a seasonal cycle and not on individual items. So take a basket of good value items and compare seasonally with online supermarkets. We compete with online supermarkets. This is best illustrated by using an example: Box Divvy farmers typically receive 65-70c of every dollar you spend, and they’ll receive it within days of you placing the order. By contrast, of your supermarket dollar, farmers receive less than 30c – and they often have to wait 30-60 days to get paid, as these are the standard terms by which the major supermarkets operate. Box Divvy takes costs out of the supply chain: we don’t need warehouses and cool rooms to store produce; we don’t need labour and warehouse space to re-pack products into bags and boxes; we don’t need expensive stores with packing staff, fridges, checkout registers and real estate costs. And we don’t have food waste, unlike supermarkets who over-order to avoid out-of-stocks, and often throw out 15-20% of stock that has reached the use-by-date. Box Divvy takes produce straight from where it is produced, to where you collect it: to the Hub. You enjoy the savings, together with farmers and Hubsters. It’s like taking control of the food supply chain. More importantly we are decentralising the food system.
  • I’m on a budget. Can I keep to that?
    Under your Order you will see (Max pending $xxx) This means, should all your SPLITS get bought then this is what you will pay for your produce. A IMPORTANT NOTE: Box Divvy is a coop and you need some flexibility. Overall you will get more as your Hubster will have extras. An example, if you ordered 5 pink lady apples one week they might be larger and you will get 4. Another week you might get 7. The box coming to the Hub is 10kg then that is what the Hubster will distribute. Box Divvy is about great value, freshly picked food and belonging to a food community. If that is what you are looking for then Box Divvy is for you. You are taking a space in the Hub so it is expected you will spend at least $15 a week on fresh and groceries. It is up to wach Hubster to decide what they expect their members to spend each week but this is a guide. Over an 8 week period, even if you suspend then this expectation remains in place so $30 if you order fortnightly is the expectation.
  • Are there other benefits of Box Divvy?
    You find yourself reducing the number of supermarket trips, and in doing so, you’ll reduce your spend by not being seduced by specials of snack foods and sugary drinks that are advertised on prominent aisle-ends. That could easily save another 5-10%, and contribute to a healthier lifestyle. Research suggests that when you cut the cost of fruit and vegetables by 35%, consumers increase their consumption by 25% - and usually at the expense of take-away and fast food. That will save you even more – both money and health. Reduced packaging as you provide your own name labelled containers and bags. No more repacking. Straight onto your pantry shelf. No food waste as you get pretty much what you want. You can take out three things fro m the 'Starter Box' and then share boxes with your members. At the Hub there is a Swap Box and if you change your mind and find you have too much of one thing you can swap with like numbers of items in the Swap Box. Most of the produce is from local growers in NSW and across Australia so you reduce food miles your produce has travelled. Not imported. Good for the air you breath. Some when not seasonally available like garlic will be purchased overseas. Your Food Hub is a community you can connect with like minded people who are interested in good healthy food and interested in various ways of cooking it. Box Divvy is a Social Enterprise business and part of that is giving back. At most Hubs they will have a Kindness Box. After all the extras are divvied to members there is usually enough left to create a Kindness Box. This box goes to a group like a Women's Refuge, a family in need alternating to another group so that the kindness is shared.
  • About SPLITS - share boxes?
    SPLITS - Share boxes. Your Hubster will offer Star Products. Fruit, veg, bakery, grocery that are good value or new products to look at. These are pinned to the top of the SPLITS page. You will receive and email when orders are open and there is a 3 day cycle to get your order done. you can pop in and out during the cycle to check how things are going. Do you need to add one ore thing to get a box sold? You go to the right side of the ordering page to SPLITS panel and join in sharing the boxes you might like. You can suggest boxes also ie: one or two only. You will note there is a minimum required that the group must purchase in order to get that item. Example, 6 wombok and then after that if you wish the 7th you get it or the 8th. No need to set up another box. This way members get more of what they want.
  • Do I have to have an order every week and is there a minimum spend required?
    Box Divvy is an 'opt in' system. Spaces are limited and it is expected you will order weekly or at least fortnightly. You are taking a space in the Hub so it is expected you will spend at least $15 a week on fresh and groceries. Over an 8 week period, even if you suspend then this expectation remains in place so $30 if you order fortnightly is the expectation. Within reason it's at the Hubster discretion what they set their expected spend to be in their Hub. If you've been taking a break suspend orders and let your Hubster know. If for a period of time maybe give the space to someone else and rejoin when you are going to order. The Hubster will be in contact if you are not ordering.
  • I run a cafe: can I order your produce for my kitchen?
    Yes, you can, and you join as a member in a Hub. Bear in mind that our product range is geared towards retail consumers, not hospitality. You will find that some products you use a lot – e.g. 2kg tubs of sauce or mayonnaise – will not be available through Box Divvy.
  • How do I join?
    Go to JOIN A HUB. Put in your postcode or surrounding postcodes for your area. Then follow prompts. you will need a debit or credit card and $30 to put into your Box Divvy Account. Hubs are building so you will need patience whilst this happens. If you know someone who might like to run a Food Hub ask them to register under Run a Hub.
  • What is the process when registering?
    First you find a Hub at registration page using your postcode, then join that Hub. When you set up your profile for your account you will be asked: 1. To put your Card details in (this is sent encrypted to Eway Payment Gateway). 2. You will be charge a nominal non-refundable amount between 4 and 6 cents to validate the card. SUBMIT details You will receive a Welcome email telling you about your Food Hub, the rules of this Hub and details about ordering, pick up and your Hubster (coordinator). Your Hubster will phone and speak to you. Make sure you have spoken with your Hubster before Orders are created on the week you are having an order. You are a neighbour and Box Divvy is about community so your Hubster invites you to their home and would like to know who you are. Please accept or follow-up a call they make to you. If you do not speak with them it is likely the membership will be cancelled.
  • How do I find a Box Divvy Food Hub?
    Go to the registration page (https://www.boxdivvy.com/join-a-food-hub) and enter your postcode. The page will display all public Hubs you’re able to join. If you live close to another postcode, you can enter that one to see which Hubs come up. You can also join a Hub close to your workplace, or on your way home. Some Hubs are private and can only be joined on invitation. They won’t be displayed.
  • Explain more about joining a Food Hub?
    To join, just click the button in front of the Hub you’d like to join, fill out the other fields on the registration page, read the Terms & Conditions, and click Submit. You’ll then receive a Welcome email which contains Hub and pick-up details – as well as some vital ‘how-to-and why’ information. A copy of all emails are in EMAIL ARCHIVES under your name. Box Divvy works very different from any other food delivery website – mainly because you’re buying as part of a community – and it is important you’re fully aware of the quirks and peculiarities before you sign up.
  • When do I collect my order?
    You MUST collect on Hub day. No picking up the following day. Every Hub has a collection window, set by the Hubster. Most Hubsters will message members via private message that orders are ready for collection. If you are unable to pick up your order within the window, please contact your Hubster and make alternative arrangements. Most Hubster are flexible, but the pick-up window is there for a reason. You are on their personal property so no collecting late at night. A little communication on your part goes a long way.
  • Which products can I buy through a Box Divvy Food Hub?
    In the initial Beta stage, you will be able to order: Fruit and vegetables Free-range eggs Shepherd’s sourdough bread Nuts (roasted and unroasted) Dried fruit Dried beans and legumes Rice and pasta Flour and seeds Meat Seafood Chicken offered every 3 weeks (home delivered by Box Divvy) Over the coming months, we will contract suppliers who can cover packaged groceries (including Indian, Asian and middle-eastern groceries), beverages and chilled foods including meat, deli and meat. As we are a member of the Western Sydney Diabetes Alliance, we will not be ranging products that are high in sugar and saturated fat, and low in nutrition. So for example, you won’t find Coca-Cola in our product list.
  • Can I share or on-sell your products?
    Yes – there is nothing stopping you from sharing the produce or on-selling it, but you may not sell this under the Box Divvy brand. For example, you could have a market stall at your school fete to raise funds for your school. Or you could use Box Divvy to supply your kindy or school canteen. If you sell then you must have an ABN plus maybe a Development Application from your Council if using the premises for something else - you'll need to investigate that one.
  • What’s with the numbers? I ordered 4 passionfruit but got 5. Or I ordered 4 and got 3.
    This is important: the numbers of apples or onions showing in your order are a guide only. It's a coop not a retail outlet. The Hubster receives the boxes direct from the farmer and is the next person to touch the produce. The numbers can vary because the size of the fruit is sometimes bigger or smaller than we originally anticipated. You’ll get the weight, but the numbers may vary a bit. You might have 5 apples but that week get 4 due to the apples being larger. You will always get extras of other things. That is how a coop works. Some growers do not grade their produce, so you might get a mix of sizes – which can affect the numbers you’ll receive in the bag (but again, you should get the approximate correct weight). As we don’t inspect every box, we allow for 5-10% spoilage. In many cases, the actual spoilage is zero (so any spares should be divvied), but sometimes the spoilage is higher – and you might get a little less. At the end of the day, it all comes out in the wash – but you should still be well ahead. (By the way: if the spoilage is really bad, the Hubster can reject the whole box – in which case all members who are sharing that box will receive a credit then is applied against your next order. The same would happen if a box is out of stock or simply not delivered). If you think the Hubster may have made a packing error – it happens! – please contact the Hubster "privately' directly to resolve the issue. The Hubster is not into umpiring in group hat so do this privately. In the worst-case scenario, the error cannot be fixed – but you should get a reasonable make-up in your next order from the spares the Hubster usually has available. 1 squashed tomato the Hubster will give you extra the following week.
  • When does my card get charged?
    On joining there will be a non-refundable random charge to validate your card between 4 and 6 cents. You have an order unless you suspend it. Shortly after the orders are cut off, you card will be charged with the amount you have spent. Make sure you have funds to cover this. If you cancel your subscription in Dashboard LEAVE HUB, you will receive a confirmation email with the date leaving the Hub. If you have an order you complete that and then leave.
  • Does Box Divvy charge a credit fee?
    Credit/debit card fees are included in the overall cost of the service.
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