Story-based articles
The box that changed everything
By Léna, co-founder & Art Director at swap-iit
Storytime.
One evening, at my parents’ house. A few drinks on the terrace, a relaxed family atmosphere. That afternoon, I’d gone a bit overboard with a few Smiski – you know, those little fluorescent green creatures that you hide all over the house as if they were playing hide-and-seek. The boxes were sitting next to my glass, still unopened.
That moment. That suspended second just before opening it.
You know the drill, don’t you? We know there’s a figure from the series in there, and with Smiski it’s not just a dozen – it’s far more, with whole collections to complete and hidden ones to track down. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that we’ll find the one we’re missing.
I’ll open the first one. A double.
The second one. Another duplicate.
And not duplicates “in the statistical sense”. Exactly the same as the ones I’d bought the week before. Same Smiski, same pose, same little crooked smile. 20 balles for lookalikes. 🙃
Everyone was there: my dad opposite me, my mum Sabrina, my brother Antoine, and Eliot, my boyfriend, next to me. They all noticed the look on my face. Dad didn’t say anything at the time, but I could tell he was taken aback. He’s an entrepreneur at heart; he doesn’t go looking for ideas, he recognises them. He looks at an ordinary scene and his brain turns it every which way.
And then he says, quite calmly: “Your problem isn’t the figurine. It’s that there’s nowhere to swap it. We need to create a platform.”
The thing is, the product creates the problem itself
I kept that sentence. Because it rang true and summed up all my frustration over the last few months.
When you collect blind boxes – Smiski, Labubu, Sonny Angel, whatever series you’re into – you’re bound to end up with duplicates. It’s inevitable. It’s not a glitch; it’s the very nature of the product. One series = several figurines, but you open them blind. Statistically, you’ll end up with the same one X times before you complete the set. Some have a 1 in 72 chance of appearing, sometimes 1 in 144. In other words, never.
So what do you do with your duplicates?
Today, you do what you can:
- you cram them into a drawer
- Why not give Vinted a go, where the figures get lost amongst all the fashion items?
- you leave a comment under an Instagram post that will go unanswered
- You join a Discord server with 3,000 members where everyone shouts at the same time, “WTS Smiski Bathroom looking for Reading”, without any secure system in place
And meanwhile, somewhere in France, there’s someone looking for your duplicate. Someone who, in turn, has three of yours. And you’ll never cross paths.
That’s my problem. It’s all of our problem.
The idea taking shape
At the time, we didn’t get carried away with it. Aperitifs at my parents’ house are sacred, especially for my mum, who insists we keep things light-hearted and talk about something other than work. So the idea just sat there, on the table next to the spare Smiski figures, and we moved on to other things.
But she hasn’t gone.
Eliot, my boyfriend, was the first to get really into it. Collecting was originally my thing – I love it, opening a box and discovering a random figurine. He didn’t even know about it before we got together; I was the one who introduced him to it. And now he collects Hirono figures, because I’ve been giving them to him since the start of our relationship: I think they look just like him. 💛 So, straight away, he was sold on the idea.
It was later, with a clear head, that we really discussed it again. And then everyone brought their own perspective to the table: Dad on the product design, Antoine on the technical side, and Sabrina on customer relations. The idea that had sprung up one evening turned into a project.
What we’re building
We spent months thinking about how to do it. About what it should be like. We discussed it, tested ideas, scrapped them and started again.
Here’s the plan.
A 100% blind box platform.
Not a catch-all marketplace where just anything and everything is sold. A space made just for us, with a detailed catalogue organised by brand, series and figure. Labubu comes first, because it’s the dominant brand at the moment. Then Smiski, of course – the ones that started it all. Then Sonny Angel, and the others.
A swap that really works.
You list what you’ve got, you list what you’re looking for. As soon as someone somewhere matches your criteria, you’ll be notified. No more scrolling for hours on end.
A secure exchange.
Payment is processed via a secure platform; funds are held until both parties have received their figures and confirmed receipt. No more scams.
A welcoming community.
Because that’s what’s really missing. A place where you can swap without stress, without getting ripped off, and without anyone talking down to you.
Confidence in authenticity.
Fake Labubu figures are a real nuisance. We’re working on an AI-powered verification system to help spot fakes – not as a guarantee, but as a real helping hand.
The world of swap-iit
The part I really had a blast with was the art direction. Dad gave me free rein on that, and I thank him for it every day.
I wanted something that reflected who we are – us blind box collectors. Not a cold, navy-blue website like a bank. Not some clinical, geeky affair. Something cheerful.
So I designed a world in shades of pink, chick yellow, mint and cream. An endearing mascot. Handwritten tags, just like in a diary. Little details everywhere. A world where you’ll want to stay, explore and scroll. A bit like when you open a new blind box, actually.
The tagline is ‘collect. match. swap.’ Three verbs, three moments. The collection that grows, the connection that’s made, the swap that’s completed. It says it all.
What’s happening now
We’re building everything right here, right now. Dad codes day and night, Antoine is working on integrations, Sabrina manages all customer relations, Eliot keeps our social media alive, and I draw, design mock-ups and fine-tune every screen.
Official launch: September 2026.
In the meantime, the waitlist is open. The first 500 people to sign up will receive a lifetime ‘Founder’ badge on the platform, priority access as soon as it launches, and our eternal gratitude. 💛 Everyone who signs up will also receive a referral code to invite their collector friends.
If you’re here, if you’re reading these words, it’s because you know the scene. The box you open whilst holding your breath. The duplicate that falls out, which you look at with a sigh. The figure you’re missing, the one you’ve been hunting for six months.
We’re building swap-iit for you. For us. For that moment when someone opens a box, finds a duplicate, and simply thinks: “Never mind, I’ll go on swap-iit.”
See you soon,
Léna
P.S. Those duplicate Smiski figures – the ones that started it all? I’ve still got them. I’m waiting for the box to open so I can swap them. 💛