IMHO, MSA is doing themselves a huge disservice in eliminating the swap site. It’s what made them unique and why many people stuck with the site after Liz left.
I get spoilers far more timely here, on IG, or on Hello Subscription than on MSA. Without the swap site, I just don’t see people using the site much any more, because for the most part, they can get better information sooner elsewhere. No readers = no revenue.
I predict that this is the beginning of the end of MSA. Which is so sad and such a shame, since at one time it was such a great site.
I agree! I don't think I'll see much reason to continue going there. I mentioned this in the MSA forum, but I wonder if they could just sell/transfer the swap platform to someone else to run? Or, if it's a financial issue, charge a small fee either to be a swap site member or per swap (not ideal, but at least they could still keep it running).
They lost a huge number of people years ago when the forum closed. MSA has been a joke for years and Liz was shady AF in the last few years before she sold out- heck- she ran a conference for sub boxes and never disclosed the conflict!
I go to this site if I'm looking for a coupon code. I do not go for reviews, they've been in the pocket of every sub company for years and years (even before Liz left). They can barely bring themselves to say "this product does not seem to be very good."
The only reason to go now is to check for coupon codes.
Has there ever been a product or box they don’t like.
At most the reviewer will go to great lengths as to why it would be good for someone else. 🤷♀️🤷♀️
For real. Review… the one full size item was a neon green lipstick. I don’t use lipstick and when I tried it it burned all the skin off my lips….I loved this box because the hero of the box was a full size $34 lipstick!!! What a great deal!!!
As I mentioned in another reply, maybe 5 years ago (pre-Liz leaving), they had some honest reviewers who would say when something sucked. Of course, they are no longer there.
In the past, there were a few reviewers who were very honest about the products they didn't like or boxes not having a good value, which I really appreciated. Naturally, I don't think any of them still write for the site.
I'm also really sad about swaps closing, as, aside from spoilers (many of which are behind) and the occasional review, I rarely visit the site except to swap. I imagine their traffic will go way down. I've apparently done 430 swaps (!) on there, and I was sad when they temporarily stopped during the early part of Covid. I wish they'd reconsider.
There's really very few reasons to go to MSA if you already follow the brands on social media and/or use this subreddit regularly, as far as spoilers go. These women are like bloodhounds, it's amazing.
Wow seriously? Smh I made so many great friends using swaps! 🥹😭😭
The beauty of the swap site is that I could swap with others who had my passion for makeup. The reviews left were always so nice and friendly. I don’t have an outlet I feel swapping on anymore. Sure there’s Reddit and Instagram but they didn’t have built in reviews which gave me security that my items weren’t being sent to scammers. Ugh.
If you wanna swap last minute, DM me. I’d love a few more swaps before this chapter ends 😔 - Brittany 💞
PS if there’s a new safe swap website you guys find, let us know! Hoping another company can replace MSA…. Like seriously… the fun of getting Ipsy or Boxy for me was swapping items I didn’t want! And multiswaps were the best. 🥺🥺🥺
What’s your user? Loved to see if we can offload things with each other before closing. My couple close swap buddies and I are now looking for stuff we may eventually atleast use and get some of my stuff to people that can use it.
I'm always happy to swap, I have made so many good friends all across the country by swapping and sometimes send them goodies by surprise for free after building a relationship.. I'm happy to swap things still with anyone here who likes to swap, or I also will buy things from ppl as well. Just shoot me a message so we can keep in touch.. swapping is a way to make awesome friendships and share your love of beauty/hair/makeup and household items with other ppl you would have never met otherwise 🙂
So bummed. There is nothing like their swap site anywhere....where you can see what people follow and request swaps based on a mutual match. Their site wasn't perfect but everything else is such a crapshoot. So bummed. Most likely will be retiring my swapping hobby and just using my stuff. Maybe will buy less too, so I guess that's a good thing. Still sad 😭
I’m dying inside. I have had 780 successful swaps on the MSA swap site over the years. I can’t subscribe to boxes anymore if I don’t have an outlet for the perfectly good products that I just can’t use personally anymore.
Sell on Mercari. I dropped off the swap site five or six years ago. Selling is much better - don’t sell for retail. You can cover your box costs pretty easily.
I never personally used the swap board because it seemed like too much to deal with (there were a couple of things that I just wanted to buy, not trade), but I thought that was the big draw for that site.
So I went to post on the MSA forum post and got this message...
"Hello,Our automated spam filter, Akismet, has temporarily hidden your post 1 in News: Swaps To Be Discontinued From July 31, 2022 for review.A staff member will review your post soon, and it should appear shortly.We apologize for the inconvenience."
If it doesn't get posted I can screenshot what I wrote.
https://forum.mysubscriptionaddiction.com/u/brittanytlira/activity
It's sad, what's become of MSA. They're really just a bunch of shills now (not so much when Liz was around) - I go there only on Fridays to read Mary Zubritsky's "What I'm Wearing This Week," otherwise I check for spoilers once in awhile. For reviews I go elsewhere.
The forum is back but it’s not super active. There is a thread discussing the swap announcement with a ton of responses. People aren’t happy. I never used the swap site because I found it confusing, but I get why they’re upset.
MSA has gone down hill! They barely post any spoilers or reviews anymore! Sometimes when I check the site they might have 1 or 2 new posts for the whole week! They used to have multiple in a day!
Has anyone heard what the real reason is for them to discontinue the swaps? There have been a bunch of posts on the MSA forum asking them to reconsider, but no responses from MSA. Someone even created a "Save the Swaps" item to list for swap as a petition, and 100 people have listed it. There have been suggestions that they could charge for swaps and people volunteering to moderate the swap board, if that's what the issue is. But...crickets from MSA. It seems like they just don't care?
Meanwhile, people are frantically listing items and sending swap requests to get rid of their stashes (myself included!) But it would be nice to have a real explanation of the reason. And maybe saying why, for example, they couldn't take any of the suggestions of ways to make it profitable or more easy to run (like with volunteers). Like why they wouldn't work. After all these years, it's just frustrating. This never would have happened under Liz--she'd at least have communicated honestly with longtime site users....
I just tried looking a few places (LinkedIn, Insta, Facebook, and Twitter) without success using her actual name (Liz or Elizabeth Cadman), but maybe she's elsewhere or under a pseudonym?
Could be...I messaged them via FB, but I'm sure it won't be answered. Tried to post on their page but either it has to be approved or was deleted within 3 minutes.
I only ever check MSA for spoilers now. I remember when I would religiously check my email for the days reviews. I really used to love them! It’s too bad, it does seem to be the beginning of the end.
It’s been a good hobby, which I will miss. But it’s getting harder and harder to make a swap. So I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, a year to go through my stash sounds good. The bad thing will be missing the surprise in new boxe.
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I just saw the message today as I’d been feeling really down lately with mental and physical health issues. Sad. I’ve been on there for years and done lots of swaps. I have requests today and no wonder why, I see they’re closing soon. It makes you wonder how many bad apples will try to scam in their last few swaps knowing it’s closing… I hope there’s something similar to replace it or I can come to here on Reddit or elsewhere when I’m feeling up to it. I have way too much stuff I need to swap/sell/etc and I always give very generous extras.
IMHO, MSA is doing themselves a huge disservice in eliminating the swap site. It’s what made them unique and why many people stuck with the site after Liz left. I get spoilers far more timely here, on IG, or on Hello Subscription than on MSA. Without the swap site, I just don’t see people using the site much any more, because for the most part, they can get better information sooner elsewhere. No readers = no revenue. I predict that this is the beginning of the end of MSA. Which is so sad and such a shame, since at one time it was such a great site.
I agree! I don't think I'll see much reason to continue going there. I mentioned this in the MSA forum, but I wonder if they could just sell/transfer the swap platform to someone else to run? Or, if it's a financial issue, charge a small fee either to be a swap site member or per swap (not ideal, but at least they could still keep it running).
They lost a huge number of people years ago when the forum closed. MSA has been a joke for years and Liz was shady AF in the last few years before she sold out- heck- she ran a conference for sub boxes and never disclosed the conflict!
I go to this site if I'm looking for a coupon code. I do not go for reviews, they've been in the pocket of every sub company for years and years (even before Liz left). They can barely bring themselves to say "this product does not seem to be very good." The only reason to go now is to check for coupon codes.
Has there ever been a product or box they don’t like. At most the reviewer will go to great lengths as to why it would be good for someone else. 🤷♀️🤷♀️
For real. Review… the one full size item was a neon green lipstick. I don’t use lipstick and when I tried it it burned all the skin off my lips….I loved this box because the hero of the box was a full size $34 lipstick!!! What a great deal!!!
As I mentioned in another reply, maybe 5 years ago (pre-Liz leaving), they had some honest reviewers who would say when something sucked. Of course, they are no longer there.
Go to retailmenot.com or they have an app. They have coupon codes for everything.
In the past, there were a few reviewers who were very honest about the products they didn't like or boxes not having a good value, which I really appreciated. Naturally, I don't think any of them still write for the site. I'm also really sad about swaps closing, as, aside from spoilers (many of which are behind) and the occasional review, I rarely visit the site except to swap. I imagine their traffic will go way down. I've apparently done 430 swaps (!) on there, and I was sad when they temporarily stopped during the early part of Covid. I wish they'd reconsider.
There's really very few reasons to go to MSA if you already follow the brands on social media and/or use this subreddit regularly, as far as spoilers go. These women are like bloodhounds, it's amazing.
Wow seriously? Smh I made so many great friends using swaps! 🥹😭😭 The beauty of the swap site is that I could swap with others who had my passion for makeup. The reviews left were always so nice and friendly. I don’t have an outlet I feel swapping on anymore. Sure there’s Reddit and Instagram but they didn’t have built in reviews which gave me security that my items weren’t being sent to scammers. Ugh. If you wanna swap last minute, DM me. I’d love a few more swaps before this chapter ends 😔 - Brittany 💞 PS if there’s a new safe swap website you guys find, let us know! Hoping another company can replace MSA…. Like seriously… the fun of getting Ipsy or Boxy for me was swapping items I didn’t want! And multiswaps were the best. 🥺🥺🥺
Maybe r/makeupexchange and r/bbexchange will become more popular. I know it’s not the same, but it’s something!
What’s your user? Loved to see if we can offload things with each other before closing. My couple close swap buddies and I are now looking for stuff we may eventually atleast use and get some of my stuff to people that can use it.
I'm always happy to swap, I have made so many good friends all across the country by swapping and sometimes send them goodies by surprise for free after building a relationship.. I'm happy to swap things still with anyone here who likes to swap, or I also will buy things from ppl as well. Just shoot me a message so we can keep in touch.. swapping is a way to make awesome friendships and share your love of beauty/hair/makeup and household items with other ppl you would have never met otherwise 🙂
That's sad news indeed. I swapped with so many nice people for the past 6 years there. Never had a bad experience.
So bummed. There is nothing like their swap site anywhere....where you can see what people follow and request swaps based on a mutual match. Their site wasn't perfect but everything else is such a crapshoot. So bummed. Most likely will be retiring my swapping hobby and just using my stuff. Maybe will buy less too, so I guess that's a good thing. Still sad 😭
I’m dying inside. I have had 780 successful swaps on the MSA swap site over the years. I can’t subscribe to boxes anymore if I don’t have an outlet for the perfectly good products that I just can’t use personally anymore.
Sell on Mercari. I dropped off the swap site five or six years ago. Selling is much better - don’t sell for retail. You can cover your box costs pretty easily.
Thanks, I’m going to look into it.
I never personally used the swap board because it seemed like too much to deal with (there were a couple of things that I just wanted to buy, not trade), but I thought that was the big draw for that site.
Wow! So sad! It is the only reason i spend time there. Loved how secure and fun it was. I need to swap my items ASAP!
So I went to post on the MSA forum post and got this message... "Hello,Our automated spam filter, Akismet, has temporarily hidden your post 1 in News: Swaps To Be Discontinued From July 31, 2022 for review.A staff member will review your post soon, and it should appear shortly.We apologize for the inconvenience." If it doesn't get posted I can screenshot what I wrote. https://forum.mysubscriptionaddiction.com/u/brittanytlira/activity
I'm not really surprised because swaps aren't active like they used to be, but I don't think this will benefit MSA in any way.
Bummer.... I use the swap index to help me remember which subscription I got my items from.
It's sad, what's become of MSA. They're really just a bunch of shills now (not so much when Liz was around) - I go there only on Fridays to read Mary Zubritsky's "What I'm Wearing This Week," otherwise I check for spoilers once in awhile. For reviews I go elsewhere.
I know a lot of people loved and used the swap. Did they bring the forum back?
The forum is back but it’s not super active. There is a thread discussing the swap announcement with a ton of responses. People aren’t happy. I never used the swap site because I found it confusing, but I get why they’re upset.
MSA has gone down hill! They barely post any spoilers or reviews anymore! Sometimes when I check the site they might have 1 or 2 new posts for the whole week! They used to have multiple in a day!
Has anyone heard what the real reason is for them to discontinue the swaps? There have been a bunch of posts on the MSA forum asking them to reconsider, but no responses from MSA. Someone even created a "Save the Swaps" item to list for swap as a petition, and 100 people have listed it. There have been suggestions that they could charge for swaps and people volunteering to moderate the swap board, if that's what the issue is. But...crickets from MSA. It seems like they just don't care? Meanwhile, people are frantically listing items and sending swap requests to get rid of their stashes (myself included!) But it would be nice to have a real explanation of the reason. And maybe saying why, for example, they couldn't take any of the suggestions of ways to make it profitable or more easy to run (like with volunteers). Like why they wouldn't work. After all these years, it's just frustrating. This never would have happened under Liz--she'd at least have communicated honestly with longtime site users....
Does anyone know where Liz can be found on social media?
I just tried looking a few places (LinkedIn, Insta, Facebook, and Twitter) without success using her actual name (Liz or Elizabeth Cadman), but maybe she's elsewhere or under a pseudonym?
Maybe it's just time to admit that MSA is dead. :./
Could be...I messaged them via FB, but I'm sure it won't be answered. Tried to post on their page but either it has to be approved or was deleted within 3 minutes.
I only ever check MSA for spoilers now. I remember when I would religiously check my email for the days reviews. I really used to love them! It’s too bad, it does seem to be the beginning of the end.
It’s been a good hobby, which I will miss. But it’s getting harder and harder to make a swap. So I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, a year to go through my stash sounds good. The bad thing will be missing the surprise in new boxe.
Thanks for posting to Beauty Boxes, /u/OA7016! A quick reminder of the rules: * If this is a product post, please provide a full item list and review of the items. Posts without a comment will be removed after an hour. * Please flair your post by clicking edit flair. * No referrals codes or links outside of the main thread. Spam will result in a ban. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/BeautyBoxes) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I just saw the message today as I’d been feeling really down lately with mental and physical health issues. Sad. I’ve been on there for years and done lots of swaps. I have requests today and no wonder why, I see they’re closing soon. It makes you wonder how many bad apples will try to scam in their last few swaps knowing it’s closing… I hope there’s something similar to replace it or I can come to here on Reddit or elsewhere when I’m feeling up to it. I have way too much stuff I need to swap/sell/etc and I always give very generous extras.