Packing for a move usually leads to the hunt for cardboard boxes—lots of them—but one Spokane couple has created what they call an eco-friendly alternative with Conservabox LLC, a Spokane-based online reusable-box rental company.

Husband and wife Bob and Andria Hollen, who co-own Conservabox and operate it from their home, started marketing the business this past spring after a year of development as a company that rents durable plastic moving boxes.

The couple has a truck to deliver the boxes, dollies, and packing materials to an initial location, and after the move, picks them up from the new location for customers who are relocating within the Spokane area.

Each Conservabox has a hinged lid that flips open or shut at the center, which makes it convenient to add or remove items, the owners say. The boxes easily stack as well, the couple adds.

"These are uniform in size, so they stack nicely and more efficiently into a moving van," Bob Hollen says. He and his wife also own Hollen Construction, a residential contracting company here.

Andria Hollen adds, "You can get unlimited uses with Conservabox. As for a cardboard box, you maybe get two or three uses. Our boxes are rigid on the sides and there is no taping, no assembling, and you don't have to drive across town to get them. It's all delivered to your doorstep."

Conservabox targets both residents and businesses planning a move. It also has helped a sizable number of senior clients who often have fragile antiques and china, Andria Hollen says, adding that it's easier for them to stack the boxes on a flat, close-to-the-ground dolly that can be wheeled from room to room.

"We work with a lot of seniors, and they really like them," she says. "They want to be independent, and they often have a lot of antiques. They can pack them the way they want to."

She adds, "Realtors have expressed an interest in using them when they list a house and remove some personal items; they can secure them in these boxes. They can be used for an open house."

The business has a total of 3,000 high-density plastic boxes in two sizes for rent at a cost that starts at $3.25 each for one week, but the price goes down 10 percent for a two-week rental and for large quantities of containers. "We offer discounts for quantity and length (of time) needed," Andria Hollen says, including a 10 percent discount for seniors and military.

She says a typical 1,800-square-foot home with four bedrooms would require 50 to 70 Conservabox containers, which would cost roughly $135 to $150 for a two-week rental.

"It would depend on how many possessions," she says, adding that clients can request estimates either in person or over the phone before ordering.

Because of fuel costs, the company charges a $35 delivery fee, both at the initial dropping off of the containers and when the empty ones are picked back up again, Andria Hollen says. However, the Hollens contend that clients still save time and money with Conservabox if they don't have to drive to pick up and pay for cardboard boxes, and then drive again to dispose of them.

The Conservabox containers come in two sizes: 27 inches by 17 inches by 12 inches, and 21 inches by 15 inches by 12 inches.

The smaller container is often used as a file box for business moves or people with hanging files in a home office, but it can be used to hold any items.

"We have enough boxes to do a corporate move," Andria Hollen says.

She got the idea for Conservabox after trying to find a way to help an elderly couple pack up some antiques.

Andria Hollen also has collected antiques since sixth grade, and she often packed and hauled delicate pieces when she was a vendor in antique malls in Coeur d'Alene and Hawaii. In such settings, individual antique dealers typically rent space from someone who runs the store.

"The problem with cardboard boxes is you have to find ones sturdy enough to protect your antiques," she says. "The other problem you're always worried about is stacking them when you're dealing with items that are delicate and fragile."

She adds, "Sometimes, when you put a heavy box on top of a lighter cardboard box, the items don't come out the same way they went in."

Conservabox also sells different packaging materials, including heavy craft paper to wrap items, thinner packaging paper, bubble wrap, tissue paper, and a biodegradable die cut paper that expands for cushioning as an alternative to bubble wrap.

The company rents hand trucks and offers labels for identifying contents of a box, and the labels easily peel off, the Hollens say. Additionally, it can provide numbered security closures, which basically are locking plastic strap seals, as well as different colored plastic tabs to organize contents by room or function.

When empty, the Conservabox containers can easily be nested inside of each other and take up little room, Andria Hollen says. "It's nice for a business as they're moving, the business can still be open and unpacking, and they look nice."

Bob Hollen adds that some of the construction company's clients have used Conservabox containers to protect belongings from dust and debris while one part of a house is being remodeled.

He says the new business required about a year of planning, including six months to arrange and have delivered the boxes that were manufactured in the Midwest. He adds that after his wife came up with the Conservabox idea and the name, "We had it trademarked."

Andria Hollen says she hopes eventually to franchise Conservabox, but for now, the couple describes the business as being in a startup phase. In addition to a website, they have displayed Conservabox at a home show, worked mostly with clients from referrals, and listed the business in a homebuyers guide.

"It's an educational process," Bob Hollen says. "What do you do when you're moving, you go look for cardboard boxes. Whenever we've shown Conservabox to people, we've had a great response. We're focusing on getting our name out in the community because we're new."

To keep overhead costs low, the Hollens say they don't intend to open a storefront.