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Home / Business

E-commerce entrepreneur Iyia Liu, founder of Waist Trainer, launches gift box business

Aimee Shaw
By Aimee Shaw
Business Reporter·NZ Herald·
15 Aug, 2018 06:00 AM3 mins to read

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Iyia Liu has launched another e-commerce business. Photo / Supplied

Iyia Liu has launched another e-commerce business. Photo / Supplied

Instagram-worthy gift boxes packed to the brim with sweets are the latest craze to hit the Internet thanks to Kiwi e-commerce entrepreneur Iyia Liu.

Auckland-based Liu, 25, who founded Waist Trainer which was catapulted to success following an endorsement from Kylie Jenner, along with Luxe Fitness and Bambi Boutique, came across the idea for a gift box business online.

View this post on Instagram

#ad I love sharing my beauty secrets with you guys and this is a favourite! @waisttrainer_nzaus helps to maintain and accentuate my curves and is one of the best quality waist trainers I have used. Visit www.waisttrainer.co.nz and use my code KYLIE for a discount

A post shared by Kylie 🤍 (@kyliejenner) on Jul 29, 2016 at 3:54pm PDT

She approached cake baker Briar Howard, now her business partner, and they teamed up to start Celebration Box - her latest e-commerce venture offering a convenient way to send loved ones gifts.

The indulgent gift boxes filled with doughnuts, chocolate and loose lollies cater for a range of occasions. "We saw this kind of thing happening in Australia and I thought it was such a cool concept," Liu said.

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"People are so lazy these days we thought it would make the whole gifting process easier."

In less than a month Celebration Box has sent out around 2000 orders.

"We didn't expect this volume so quickly," Liu said.

"We're adding more and more gift boxes as we go, including healthy options - we want to cover every avenue."

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Liu said the business was run on the same e-commerce model which had been tried and tested with her other businesses.

"It's e-commerce, it's using social media marketing and because the product looks pretty people are sharing it so it is getting a lot of organic reach."

Liu last year sold Waist Trainer and Luxe Fitness for millions of dollars.

She now splits her time between Celebration Box and clothing business Bambi Boutique, which she launched in December last year.

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"Bambi was good when we started and now it's okay, that's why I wanted to find something that was new and exciting," Liu said.

"Clothing, it is a very competitive industry, this is my second time round doing clothing and it has been hard. Celebration Box is similar to Waist Trainer in the sense that people want to share it [online]."

View this post on Instagram

Beautiful boxes heading out today 👏🏼

A post shared by Celebration Box (@celebrationbox_nz) on Aug 6, 2018 at 7:18pm PDT

Long term, Liu wants to focus on growing Celebration Box.

"I wanted to find and form something that would stick and I definitely think this one is a winner so I will probably just focus on growing that," she said.

"The first time I tried clothing I ended up shifting all my time to Waist Trainer because I felt it was a better use of my resources and it seems like it is happening again."

View this post on Instagram

Sent off this beauty today 🤤🤤🤤 PARTY BOX ❤️ p.s you can choose a delivery date at our checkout so you can order in advance for special occasions!

A post shared by Celebration Box (@celebrationbox_nz) on Aug 6, 2018 at 10:22pm PDT

Liu also runs networking events through her group Girls In Business which aim to inspire women to get into business. At the last event she had a range of speakers, including reality TV star Matilda Rice and Lisa King from Eat My Lunch.

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YouTube star turned beauty brand creator Shannon Harris will be a speaker at the next event in November.

Liu spends between 30 and 40 hours each week on Celebration Box.

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