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If there’s one habit I’ve successfully stuck to over the course of the past several years, it’s regularly packing a lunch. The routine started in college as a way to stop burning cash at the food trucks that lined the edges of campus, without needing to run home in the middle of a busy day of classes to fix myself a meal. Now that I’m a Fully Grown Working Adult, I’ve continued the practice. And that’s largely thanks to my Stojo collapsible storage container.
See, as much as I love packing a lunch to take on the go, I hate using a separate bag to carry it in. As a kid I spent far too many after-school hours retracing my steps to track down the lunch box I always seemed to misplace. Today I prefer to cram everything into my one bag, be it the backpack I used to traipse around campus with, or the leather work tote I carry today. The trusty cylindrical thermos I use to transport hot foods like hearty lentil soups and leftover curry nestles easily into one side of my bag, but the boxy Tupperware I’d typically use for salads and sandwiches is awkward (and often impossible) to squeeze in among books, a computer, a pouch full of chargers, and (admittedly too many) lip balms.
That’s why I love my Stojo collapsible box: Not only does it have a slimmer profile than your typical plastic container of a similar capacity, allowing me to slip it into my work bag in the morning without a problem, but it collapses down completely after I’m done using it. The collapsed box is no thicker than a notepad, freeing ample space in my tote on the way home—a major plus when you work a job that requires you to occasionally lug home, say, a cast-iron skillet for testing.
Stojo is perhaps best known for its travel coffee cups (which earned an honorable mention in our testing). A group of dads launched the company with those cups, which were designed to be a sustainable alternative to disposable options. Since they collapse and slide into your bag, they don’t sacrifice the convenience offered by tossing your standard paper cup—just slide the tiny collapsed disk into your bag instead of throwing it away. It’s still out of your hands when you’re done drinking coffee. The brand now sells collapsible bottles, boxes, and—my favorite—bowls, all of which are made out of the same lightweight silicone and recyclable plastic as those original coffee cups. They also sell foldable straws. They’re all cute too: Each product comes in a rainbow of pastel colors, so you can go to town mixing and matching your lunch containers and your coffee cups. I’m partial to the rosy-hued Carnation, though the Sage green is a close second.
All of Stojo’s products are also fully dishwasher-safe, which means I can spend less time scrubbing when I get home from the office and more time, well, making my way through this year’s Oscar noms on the couch. They’re microwave safe, too. I still default to my tried and true thermos for soupier hot lunches, but it’s good to know that I could pack a rice bowl in my box and stick it straight in the microwave to warm it up anytime I choose.
Whether you’ve resolved to start packing lunches in 2023, or you’re struggling to keep up the habit, a cute and convenient new food storage solution might be just the motivation you need to stop dropping cash on mediocre cafeteria salads and start bringing actually-good homemade meals on the go. Stojo’s little collapsible numbers aren’t just containers—they’re routine-makers.
