UPDATES:
October 26, 2011 - Bento Bloggers compare EasyLunchboxes to Ziplocs and others. Click HERE to read.
Aug. 8, 2011 - (You can see her own pics of the other brand warping ) A HELICOPTER MOM … I could tell immediately that the Easy Lunchboxes are a much better quality. The containers and the lids are clearly thicker and sturdier than the cheaper version I previously tried. I love them!
from a 5-star review posted on our Amazon store: May 12, 2011: “Yes, they really are worth it” …I’ll address what I’m guessing is likely to be the most common question/gripe . . . Yes, they are certainly worth whatever-multiple-of-the-cost of those nationally available ones (whatever name-brand you choose). These are different! …They may be inexpensive enough that your blood pressue won’t spike if/when your child loses one at school, but they are most certainly not ‘take and toss.’ You’ll know that the moment you hold one; they’re heavier, thicker, sturdier. We have had ours for a few weeks shy of a year now, and they still look/work like brand new. No stains, no etchy shadows, no warping at all (not the bodies, not the lids). I’ve never hand-washed them, they’ve been run through the dishwasher every time.
April 8, 2011 Visit Biting the Hand That Feeds You for another comparison with Ziploc.
Aug. 23, 2010: Please visit Extraordinary Life and read what an outside reviewer concluded in her very own comparative study of ours and those by Ziploc. Great videos included!
The Original Post:
Lunch box packing for three kids is a chore and, although I’m passionate about sending them to school with a healthy meal, I was annoyed by the myriad of single item containers and baggies I was using to get all the food into each lunchbox. As the self proclaimed “Queen of Efficiency”, not to mention “Solve a Problem Queen”, I took a leap, almost a year of preparation, and designed a 3-compartment, two-piece container to hold the majority of a lunch. I called it an EasyLunchbox. I launched my company in late November, 2009.
So here I am, about six months into successfully running my new business, when I do my bi-monthly Target run, and in the aisle with the lawn clean up bags I was after, I am surprised to see that a new 3-compartment reusable container has come on the market. It’s the same shape as an EasyLunchbox . (This configuration was nowhere to be found when I came up with the idea early last year. Believe me – I checked). They cost less than an EasyLunchbox. Now how do I compete with that?
Oh wait, maybe they’re competing with me? Yea, right. Have they even heard of an EasyLunchbox? Who knows.
Their cardboard packaging prevents me from being able to tell what the quality of these babies are like, so I add them to my cart and take them home for an examination and a little healthy challenge competition.
In the Lunch Container Category …drum roll please… Big Brand Reusables vs. EasyLunchboxes:
(Both brands were washed in our dishwasher)
Conclusion:
EasyLunchboxes save you money because they last a lot longer.
Here’s what some of our reviewers have said:
SURVIVING MOTHERHOOD I have purchased a ziploc version of these lunch boxes at the store BUT Kelly’s version is BPA free AND it’s so much of a better quality after comparing the two. The ziploc version is pretty flimsy and not as nice.
NEVER JUST A HOUSEWIFE “The plastic in the pics looks similar to the somewhat flimsy plastic used in those throwaway plasticware containers but instead it’s some of the most durable plastic I’ve seen in reusable storage containers!”
ANOTHER LUNCH “… let me assure you, the EasyLunchboxes are nothing like the disposable containers you are familiar with. They are very sturdy and not bendy at all and simply a really good product I feel good about endorsing.
”
LUNCHBOX LIMBO “At first glance on the website, I was expecting the plastic to be a little on the flimsy side. They remind me of the … cheapy ‘take to a potluck and who cares if it comes back’ containers. But they are not. They are much sturdier than I expected them to be.”
LUNCH BOX xobobox “The plastic is quite sturdy and rigid….I have sent ours through the dishwasher a dozen times or more and the plastic remains undamaged and unwarped.”
And I got this nice email from a mom:
“I gave my daughter (age 7) the Ziploc container in her lunch box one day and she requested to have your containers again because the Ziploc lid was too hard to get off. I also tried the cling plastic wrap on the wet fruit section of the lunch box and it’s working to keep the liquids where they should be. All is good again in lunchville! LOL thanks!!!!” – JL
When products are similar, we tend to go for the cheapest one (I know I usually do). But it’s not just the price that’s matters, it’s the quality. EasyLunchbox containers are sturdier and will last longer than these thinner ones, saving you money in the long run. So in this case, let me be bold enough to suggest – we beat our competition in both price and quality.






















{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
The lid on the disposable one cracked after 2 times in the dishwasher for me. I’m sure it was partially because the way my daughter tugs on it when she opens it. The ELBS lids just aren’t as flimsy, and I don’t think we’ll have that problem.
Thanks for sharing your experience with the other brand Jill.
I have to say I haven’t seen the new Ziploc ones, but if they’re anything like the small ones we have now at home I Won’t be spending the (probably $3) to get a pack. The ones I have at home have been used a few times and washed in the dishwasher on the top rack. The lids will warp and if you dare try to put them in the freezer, Look Out, if you take them out and accidently drop them (you’re screwed) We’ve had multiple ziploc containers end up in the trash because lids have cracked when trying to get them open. My kids love the EasyLunchBox. They saw them online before I ordered and said, “Oh mommy, look Lunchables”!!
Thanks so much for your comment and for sharing your experience with the other brand here Bambi! Coincidentally, I tossed out a Ziploc container tonight that I had stored some leftover chili in from dinner a couple of nights ago. Heated it up, and was eating it out of the container and noticed chili leaking on my table. I found a slit down the side on one of the corners
These containers are certainly low cost and handy, but it’s true, they don’t last too long.
Rubbermaid have been selling the exact same shaped 3 compartment trays for donkeys years. My grandma had one in her house, now in our garage, and we’ve had it at least since 2007. I take it they’re quite popular in the USA. Also, the Rubbermaid TakeALong.
Rubbermaid does not currently sell a 3-compartment container like ours.
Commenting on the Take Along containers: they’re terrible. We bought a pack from Walmart, and the lids were hard to snap on, let alone off. The tugging left the lids warped. Needless to say, they’re just sitting in our cupboard.
I totally forgot about re-heating the disposables! Yikes! That cuts their limited shelf-life in half! I tend to pack things that I won’t have to re-heat, since the park generally doesn’t boast a convenient microwave! But there’s been no damage to my ELBs when I pack a lunch for the hubby for him to re-heat (usually restaurant leftovers. I’m not really an avid “cook,” and a PBJ and flower-shaped cheese just doesn’t “do it” for him.)
The single-compartment disposable ones don’t seem to be as hard to open, but the 3-compartment one is a frickin’ nightmare! At least when new. Maybe after it’s all warped and ill-fitting, then it’s easier.
I got my moms group to get together on a big ELB order with me, and they all LOVE their boxes! I’m saving my last discount code to do another group order, now that they’ve had a chance to use them and realize that they’ll need more than 4 boxes total for 2 kids, unless they enjoy doing dishes every.single.day!
Ludicrous Mama recently posted..I Heart Faces Photo Challenge – Flower Power
Thank you so much for adding in all that info! Really appreciate your very informative comment …. If anyone wants to see Ludicrous Mama’s fabulous lunches in my containers – check out her ever growing collection of pics right here: http://bit.ly/i3bthu
Kelly Lester recently posted..“The Best Mom” is not a Title I Earn Every day
Do the EasyLunchboxes fit in any smaller cooler bags? OR do you find that the bigger bag works well enough for school lunches?
Hi Jenn,
Our containers will fit in other coolers, but they are best carried upright. Our coolers allow you to pack other items like a water bottle and ice block as well as additional snacks without straining to fit stuff. My daughters have used this system for school lunches since elementary school and I know many other families w/younger kids use it as well.
If you still want to purchase something smaller, just be sure that the inside measures a bit larger than our container 9.38″ x 6.1″ x 2″ . But they really do function best when carried upright in ours or similar. 8/29/11 update to this comment: Please visit this post HERE and you can read what I wrote about other coolers that might work for you.
Hi, I wanted to let you know how much I love your lunch boxes!
I have started making dinners in them. In my family we all work different hours and only see each other on the weekends and I’m not much of a cook. Ok I’m lazy…
What I have been doing is buying freezer stuff at Trader Joe’s and I make tv dinners with the containers. I put everything in while it’s still frozen, put them in the frig. Then when my family comes home they can stick one in the microwave for two to three min. And dinner is done. I put veggies in the middle size compartment and and one of their rice dishes or mashed potatoes in the smaller one. I’ve even put frozen berries and granola in one compartment to make a cobbler like dessert and no staining!
Oh and I also take them to work for lunch.
My family is eating better and I’m happy!
I have three sets.
Hi Linda – this is BRILLIANT.
I’m a HUGE fan of Trader Joe’s too. It always amazes me that when I shop there I always leave feeling happier than when I got there – I think it has to do with their wonderfully helpful and friendly staff and of course, the healthy, yummy products. That store is just a big WIN)
I think it’s great that you are able to use my containers and their food and put together great meals for your family to eat when needed! Thank you for sharing this terrific idea! Whether you use pre-packaged food or make your own, families with crazy schedules can benefit by having their own dinners packed and ready to go. Much better than hitting the drive-through. Love it!!!
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