At one of my first national conferences, I met a young women, Jodi Sinden,who was there to meet professional organizers and better understand our industry Jodi is the inventor of the Homebox . When we first met, she told me about a product that she was hoping to develop that would help people organize those dreaded personal papers. It seems, one never knows where to put the passport, birth certificates and deeds to the house.
A few years later, I was very pleased to see her featured on the hit CBC showThe Dragon’s Den . For those of you who are not familiar with the Dragon’s Den it is a reality show focused on entrepreneurs. They pitch their ideas to the ‘dragons’ (5 venture capitalists) and strike deals that will help develop their business idea. This can be a very daunting task as those dragons pull no punches and tell it how it is. If you are unlucky enough to get caught in the cross fire (pun intended) you usually leave with no money and possibly a very wounded ego. Fortunately, this was not the case for Jodi Sinden. She managed to convince three of the dragons to help her develop her product. No small feat for a shy young woman from Toronto!
The Homebox is a simple but very practical idea. This award winning desktop accessory will complement any decor that you may have in your home or office. The Homebox is an attractive embossed black faux leather box. Inside you will find nine pre-printed, archival safe poly envelopes. Each envelop is sealed with a Velcro fastener that makes it easy to open and keep securely closed. Each envelope can hold about 100 sheets of paper but the box would be able to hold more if you wanted to add more envelopes in the future (you can order additional individual folders).
Each beautifully designed and illustrated envelope will list what forms, legal documents, CDs with pictures or files should be kept inside. The envelopes also have tips on what business cards to keep, useful and important websites to help you with any concerns you may have, how to better manage your time or how to organize those important life defining document.
Let me walk you through an envelope so you can see what I mean. Take the Personal Papers envelope. On the front is a list of permanent documents that you would keep: birth certificate, adoption papers, social insurance card, religious certificates, passport, immigration papers, marriage certificates, will, power of attorney… you get the idea…THE REALLY IMPORTANT STUFF.
y Deposit Location. The tips include what you should keep in a safety deposit box, what is estate planning, and why you should prepare a will. The Taxes envelope is a bookkeeper’s dream. It clearly states what you should be keeping to get your taxes organized and off to the accounting professional for a quick turnaround.I cannot say enough about the attention to detail contained in each section as well as the easy with which you can use and maintain all of these life defining documents. The Homebox keeps everything organized and in one place. As a professional organizer, I always advise clients that the one thing they should have in their homes is a paper shredder to avoid identity theft. The second thing is to keep permanent documents in one handy place so that if you are in an emergency situation (such as a fire) all you have to do is safely get everyone out of the house and grab your who life’s records in one easy box. Well, Jodi Sinden has made that last crucial step easier by developing the Homebox .
I will tell all of my clients to get a Homebox to keep all those documents that you need close at hand, in one place and ORGANIZED.
Margarita Ibbott is a travel and lifestyle blogger. She blogs about travel in Canada, the United States and Europe giving practical advice through restaurant, hotel and attraction reviews. She writes for DownshiftingPRO.com and other online media outlets.
I bought one of these after seeing it on Dragon’s Den. I have to admit — my Homebox needs tidying, but I truly love it. I special ordered mine in brown leather to better match my decor 😉
Very nice! Proves that organizing products can be visually appealing and functional at the same time!