Off-Kilter Kit Concepts for Your Next Event

Kit ‘Er Done – Kit-Packing done right. 

From the scheduled to the unexpected, partnering with Thysse on your next custom kitted project can create an unforgettable experience.

In the final throes of the 2020 stay-at-home order, Credit Union National Association (CUNA) set Thysse loose on a project that posed both a creative and logistical challenge: Design and ship 1,500 “Work From Home Kits” for a virtual conference to connect with attendees outside the digital realm. The box design and its contents would build excitement around the event, keep the mission top of mind, and give a nod to event sponsors.  

Rolling out a project of this scale is no small feat – but the real clincher? CUNA Governmental Affairs Conference (GAC) would take place almost a year into the pandemic. After many months of Zoom calls, virtual museum tours and a shameful number of Tiger King episodes, audiences were running out of steam on screen time. The box needed to make attendees feel like they were part of an experience – and the final product didn’t disappoint. Conference attendees reported feeling valued, excited and pleasantly-surprised as the custom, colorfully- printed boxes began to show up on their doorsteps.  

While in-person pandemic restrictions have thankfully loosened in most states, our work with CUNA got us pondering the near-limitless potential for events both in and out of virtual channels. Let’s just say our brainstorming got a little out there, but sometimes thinking of the wackiest ideas can lead the way to a uniquely wonderful execution. 

While you start wondering about ways to wow your audiences, enjoy the finalists on our short list of off-kilter kits: 

The ‘Brew Buddy’ Kit

Since we know there are really only two kinds of people in the Midwest, those who know a lot about beer and those who want to know more about beer, let’s hop to it first with a kit whose potential could be tapped at any time. Whether you’re a local brewery owner rolling out a new flavor or an event planner with a penchant for planning parties that include a beer tent, this custom caddy could easily drive and improve brand awareness. Pitcher it now: Thysse can source, design and distribute sampling kits to accompany your best brews with merch such as:

• Wooden flight trays (complete with nifty erasable chalkboard labels)
• Beer-tasting guide books outlining pour techniques and aroma/taste profiles 
• Pub glasses or snifters to suit every taste from Belgians to Stouts
• Branded bottle opener/corkscrew combos for a one-pop-top-shop
• Brew-branded coasters to relinquish rings 
• For the die-hard hops fans, throw in Electrolyte tablets & sunglasses, after a day of drinking, they’ll love your brand all the more for the additions

‘2nd Time’s the Charm’ Kit

Fair warning, this one goes to a dark place pretty quick. Bear with us, we did say we’re trying to get weird to get the juices flowing. Imagine your law office specializes in divorce proceedings. It’s safe to assume that the majority of your clients are less than thrilled to walk through your doors to discuss the impending dissolution of dreams and their life partnerships. Yet… think for a moment how uplifting it would be for your clients to receive a goofy gift box on such a downer of an occasion. We’re picturing a package prepared with:  

• Branded wine keys for the first celebratory nights of freedom
• A sampling of artisan chocolates for dinner a delicious snack 
• Soothing bath salts to drown particularly pesky memories 
• ‘Legal Steps to Freedom’ checklists to guide clients through the process 
• Finally, throw in branded tissues for… allergies and other ailments

Employee ‘Welcome Back, NOW GET TO WORK!’ Kit 

Thanks to an onset of new job openings, targeted recruiting efforts and a wave of mobility-craving millennials, employees these days have options – and they know it! Employee appreciation is an increasingly important focus for companies large and small aiming to retain (and recruit) top-notch talent, and let’s face it, the return to the office for many of your employees will be a mighty shift from the sweatpants-wearing luxuries of yesteryear. What better way to ease the transition than with a quirky ‘welcome back’ kit to get everyone back on the same page? ‘Woo’ returning employees with a kit that includes: 

• Mini Nerf® guns and a round of darts for a cubicle war of epic proportions
• Hair salon gift cards to get those unruly locks 9-5 ready [insert Chewbacca vocalizations] 
• A bag of local gourmet coffee to power through morning rush hour
• A printed ‘welcome back’ message to frame a united front 
• Stress balls in the shape of a random quirky animal – we prefer gorillas, but that’s just us

‘Cutting Edge DIY-er’ Kit

You don’t have to be the sharpest crayon in the toolbox to know how to paint furniture or raise a pole shed, but having the right tools of the trade can certainly make you look like one! If you’re an event planner tasked with putting together a trade show for the tool and hardware industry, why not put together a custom box to show off some handy new innovations in the industry, inspire attendees to tackle a new project, and give your event sponsors a shout out? Need some ideas? We’ve got the fix!

• A pocket-sized mini leveler to make sure that surface is flat-out perfect
• A flashlight with a bendable mount to light up those hard to reach corners 
• Bandaids – for those occasional, almost-lost-a-finger-but-didn’t, moments. 
• A handy new multi-tool for the jill or jacks of all trades
• Mini retractable measuring tape keychain to measure twice and cut once!

If you made it this far, it’s safe to say you see where we’re going with all of these. Creating a lasting experience with your brand can be industry-relevant without replicating your competition’s swag bags. Did our list of extremely-specific-yet-highly-unlikely options spur a kit idea you’d like to try? Do you need to keep that project you delegated to the receptionist from turning into an utter kit-tastrophe? 

We get pretty amped up about putting together custom kits and we’d love to help! Our team of promotional services experts has the know-how, space and resources to create your custom kit from packing and design to shipping, and all the crinkle-paper tornados in between. Drop us a line or check out our promotional services page to learn more.