How it began - Cabin Fever

Roll back to April 2020. Lockdowns, working from home, walls closing in, cabin fever!

Most of the world was in the same position, so nearly everyone can relate. At the time, we were building an extension to the house, home-schooling an eight-year-old, and getting to grips with a young baby, who was only 6 months old. At the time, I knew that I was not unique, and this was one of the main coping mechanisms. I needed space, space to work and space to escape the madness. I often wondered; how many people feel like me?

Even though we were building an extension for our expanding family, the new open planned living space or the extra bedroom gained, wasn’t going to cut it for home working. I needed to get out of the house. I needed to separate work life from home life. How about an outdoor office?

After sketching up my plans, picking the perfect location and consulting with my dad, the seed was planted. Understandably, my family thought I was mad. My plans were shot down with remarks such as, “Can we get the extension finished first, before you plan your next project!”

Next port of call for some advice was my brother, and business partner Ciaran. He had the knowledge and expertise in creating glamping pods, therefore a home office would be easy. After a discussion we came to the realisation that we could sell these. The market was hot with many others getting ‘Cabin Fever’. Why not start prescribing ‘Cabins’ to people in need? Why not start a business?

Now the idea was born, the business plan was loose, and our targets were clear… let’s build a few garden rooms to cover the cost of my home office. Let’s give it a go…

What are we going to name ourselves?

A few sleepless nights, names such as GardenBOX, BOXoffice and BOX Mod, I felt like I was getting nowhere. After almost giving up on the idea, I woke in the middle of the night with the name ‘Yard Box’ on my mind. This could work and it’s universal. Once we had the name nailed down, the rest of the business fell into place.

Four projects later, we finally got around to building my Yardbox (As seen in the picture). Mission accomplished!

We had underestimated at the time how much ‘Cabin Fever’ had gripped the nation, and how many people wanted to build a ‘Cabin’ in their garden. We now had a fresh, and exciting new business, armed with all the experience from working in the industry for over 40 years combined. We were now creating the space people needed.

We are excited to continue the journey and are now into our second year.

We are only getting started!