Posted June 15, 2018 / Revised August 1, 2020
This post is sponsored by The Nomadik, however, all views are my own personal opinion.
Nomadik contacted me last month about reviewing their subscription box and I jumped at the chance. I have always been wary about all these different subscription boxes. I mean, do they really send stuff you can use, or do they send junk?
Before I get into my review, let’s talk about the company and box itself.
Sidenote: See my warning about Nomadik at the bottom of this post and others’ warnings in the comment section.
About The Nomadik
The Nomadik is a monthly subscription box for hikers and outdoor enthusiasts. Each box contains up to 6 items with a minimum value of $45 with a goal of $50 per box.
They offer a 30 Day Money-Back Guarantee which will allow you to send an item you already have or don’t like back and they will swap it free of charge, you don’t even need to send it back.
The gear that is sent is picked just for you. You will complete your profile when you signup which helps them tailor the gear to your interests. You will get 3-6 unique high-quality gear items from premium brands.
Each box costs $32.95 for the monthly plan which saves you roughly $12-17 versus buying the items individually. You can also choose the 6 month or 12 month plan for even more savings. Investing in the 12-month plan will only cost you $29.99 per box (billed yearly).
My Thoughts
Obviously I was exited to get the chance to review one of these subscription box services. Even more so the fact that it was Nomadik, which I have heard a lot about!
My box contained three items and was named the Happy Camper. In it was a UCO Gear Hundred Headlamp, Colter Co. Forager Bandana with Insect Shield, and a 2oz bottle of Double Mint Castile Soap by Sierra Sage.
The actual cost of items: After research the total value of the items came to $46.36 or $49.36 with shipping. The headlamp I found on amazon prime for $24.69. The Castile Soap I found on Amazon Prime in a 4 pack of 2 oz bottles for $14.65 which comes to $3.67 a bottle, and the bandana was found on the Colter Co website for $18 plus shipping charges.
My initial thought: Wow, this is it!? I will say that I did not fill out any questionnaire or profile like you typically would when you order since this was sent to me to review. Hopefully, if I had I would have received something more meant for me; or even if I hadn’t I would be able to send this box back for a refund or have them replace the items that I already have, such as the headlamp.
I am pretty blown away that a bandana costs $18 and while I appreciate that it has tips on how to identify edible plants on it, I still would never be able to justify spending $18 on this! But to each their own I guess. Then again, had I never received this box I also wouldn’t have known about this company (which has some pretty cool items on their website that I would actually use). Plus, this just gave me something that I normally would not buy. That is the cool thing about subscription boxes!
The soap is not something I would use either, while hiking at least, due to the fact that it has a scent to it. However, I do plan on using it around the house and while camping in the RV.
The good thing is that Nomadik offers a money-back guarantee so I could send this entire box back for a full refund if I had paid for it (which I didn’t).
The good news for my readers is it looks like I will have items to use for an upcoming giveaway since I have no use for them!
My overall impression: While I wasn’t too excited about the items I received, I also know that they were sent without any “profile” being done on me. I have seen friends who have had past boxes and know that the items that are sent typically are items that are useful.
Overall, I would love to give this subscription box a try for at least 3 months to see what type of gear I get after setting up my own profile.
It definitely wasn’t filled with junk as they were all name brand products, which has always kept me from ordering a subscription box. It just so happened that there was only 1 item in this box that I would actually use (the soap). Again, I am still shaking my head at an $18 bandana. I feel for that price I should frame it and display it as artwork lol. I am scared to use it, haha.
Where to Sign up: You can sign up for the Nomadik subscription box or learn more about it here
Nomadik Unboxing Video
Feel free to watch my unboxing video below.
UPDATE Aug 1, 2020: Caution for Others
I have been getting a lot of emails about Nomadik, so I thought I would update this post with this caution. Please see the comments below about other’s experiences with this company. If you have an experience to share, please comment below. If you are looking for other outdoor subscription boxes, check out my post here.
I would also suggest, as a concerned consumer, to file a complaint with the BBB even though they are not registered with the BBB. This will at least make complaints public for others to see. You can do that on the BBB website here. I have NO WAY to contact this company other than using the same email you find on their website.
Disclaimer: This post is for informational / educational purposes only. Opinions expressed in this post are not intended to provide specific financial, legal, or medical advice / recommendation. Bridget is not a lawyer, financial advsior, medical professional, therapist, astronomer or palm reader. You use this information in this post and elsewhere on the site at your own risk. This information on this site should not be taken as any type of professional advice. You should always consult a professional for any kind of legal, medical, or financial advice.
My brother never received his gift package last month and I just got charged again for another month. There is no number to call and when I tried to email you it wouldn’t send my message and told me to refresh and try again. I never received a shipping confirmation from last.months purchase either. I need some information about what’s going on here and I do not want to proceed with your mailing club as I do not trust you. I ordered a package from Cairn on the same day that I ordered from you and not only did I receive a shipping confirmation the following day but the package arrived immediately after (gift for my father for fathers day). Why didn’t yours ever arrive and why am I still be charged for these boxes?! I am not happy with your company. Where can I get answers?!
I think you have the wrong site :) I assume you are talking about a Nomadik box since you commented on my review of it. You would need to contact them about any issues. I am not affiliated with them nor do I work for them. This is simply a review of the box I received.
I gave this three months because I was really wanting it to be something great but as a person who spends most weekends outside in the elements I was really let down. They basically are sending you a box of things that are the equal price to what you could get them off the internet by yourself and in reality have less correlation to the suggestions of what you put in your profile. I’ve just been so let down by this!
I agree. While I did receive my box for free from the company, I was still let down by the items in it. If I had paid for the box I would have been really unhappy.
Not Sure how The Nomadik company is still in business. No customer Service, poor products, and to expensive for the crap in it. I paid $37.5 to get a flimsy pocket knife (worth maybe $5) and a single drink-mix powder. The other items were not even worth getting thrown into my junk drawer. To anyone reading this, it is NOT worth it. Save your $. You can get better customer service by calling the DMV.
That is such a shame to hear! I wasn’t too impressed by what I was sent either, I just assumed it was due to receiving it for free to review and not actually filling out a profile. I was going to suggest posting on their social media accounts, but it looks like from other comments on their Facebook that they are deleting any negative comments.
My other suggestion is to file a report with the BBB even though they are not registered with the BBB, you can still file a report so others can see.
I will also place a warning at the top of this post for users to read the comments. Feel free to share this link with any others that you know so they can leave comments as well about their experiences with this company.
Has anyone found a reliable way to contact them? I am having a mega issue with an accidental yearly subscription that i need a refund for and am feeling uneasy due to these reviews that they will contact me. Do you know how I can definitely get a hold of them? Since they reached out to you – maybe you know how to connect with them? I am so freakin nervous that I am not gonna get my refund :(
No, sorry it’s been over 2 years since their marketing agency contacted me (I never actually dealt with anyone directly at Nomadik). I would suggest contacting the BBB and filing a complaint.
100% agree. The only thing more horrible that their cheap box of garbage was the horrible customer service. I’ve literally never had a more horrible experience: I here this company so much for how they treat their customers. I really hope someone files a class action against them. They need to go out of business ASAP
*****WARNING****** if you buy a 6 or 12 subscription you will get endless emails except for the one to tell you that you are being automatically renewed and billed hundreds of dollars. That email is one they don’t send. Just how they do business. Watch your cancellation deadlines and renewal date, or your card will be charged hundreds and there is nothing you can do. Heck you probably can’t even read the ultra fine print saying they are gonna renew you for another 6 or 12 months automatically. *******
This company is fraudulent. It’s disappointing to see people promote this company. They have excessive charges that they say are not refundable, they have “agreements” that customers supposedly sign (companies can easily create these “agreements” after the fact since everything is electronic…no copies are sent to customers during any purchases or subscriptions sign ups so there is no record of anything beforehand). They just have to pay a few promoters for their brand, then delete all social media complaints from real customers who are being robbed in the middle of a pandemic. Stay away from this company and anyone who promotes it.
That’s horrible and one of the reasons I don’t recommend them (other than the fact I wasn’t too thrilled with what they sent in the box). I do, however, suggest Carin. I had a subscription with them for a year before cancelling because I wasn’t going to be home and they are fabulous!
Welp, this is all I need to hear. Thanks for letting me know before I waste money on this crap. It’s too bad though because it’s a cool concept.
I 100% confirm what RippedOff says, that has/is also my current experience with them. It’s been terrible…to the tune of almost $500!
If you like the concept, though, I’d highly recommend the Cairn Box subscription. I found their products (over 4 years of subscription) to be high quality, interesting, and often in support of cool startups. More than anything, their customer service is unparalleled! If there was ever ANYTHING wrong with a product, they made it right and quickly, at that! They are a fantastic company to work with.
Oh okay, I might give them a look then :) Thanks!
Late to the party, but I wanted to let you know they are still up to their old tactics. They just charged my credit card for an obscene amount of money for a crappy 6 month subscription with no warning. DO NOT SIGN UP WITH THEM.
Leaving this as a caution to all who see it…
This company is renewing subscriptions without warning and charging cards without notice.
I purchased an annual subscription as a gift in 2021. While the recipient loved the gifts (one box per month for a year) the Nomadik’s business practices are unethical.
I thought I cancelled my subscription but apparently I didn’t because it automatically renewed on Feb 4, 2022.
I was surprised by a $483 charge on my bank account so I contacted customer service. The only option to communicate with customer service is by email because there is no phone number available anywhere.
At this time I was informed that once a subscription auto-renewed, there is NO option for a refund.
This is a predatory business practice. At the very least, they should send an email prior to the renewal, like ethical companies do, reminding customers their subscription is about to renew.
In addition to this, how is it ok that they charged me $6.99 for shipping on the first subscription and close to $100 for shipping on the current one. I was not given an option to approve this much larger expense.
I think it’s really important to share that The Nomadik box steals from small businesses by making purchase orders to small gear companies, selling off their gear for profit in the boxes, and never paying the small business. This personally happened to my small business and the CEO Pat Hines has acknowledged he is not paying. This has happened to many companies. For mine, it put me out of business.