Rob Daniels didn’t set out to make custom mailboxes, but his unexpected passion for the work has turned Mailbox Mayhem into a thriving business. Daniels, 56, now has mailboxes in nine states, although most of his business comes from Nebraskans.
Daniels has created over 2,200 custom mailboxes since launching his business in June 2020. These creative receptacles include designs like bears, barns, telephones, fish, and many more. The boxes are made out of treated lumber and cedar, a wood that “loves to be outside.”
“I’ve averaged one [mailbox] a day since I began,” Daniels said. “There’re some days that I’ll put four or five in the ground.”
Mailbox Mayhem began “when the world came to a screeching halt because of COVID,” and Daniels was sitting at home, getting fidgety. He ended up building himself a mailbox, while also unsuspectingly building a small business. “We were trapped at home, staring at things we took for granted,” he reflected. “We’re always so busy. We never saw [the mailboxes].” That changed during lockdown, when “we were staring at the ugliness and realizing we should do something.”
Daniels' neighbors liked what they saw in front of his home, and soon he had built seven mailboxes on his street. On June 1 of the same year, he launched a Facebook page for his newly minted company, Mailbox Mayhem. Facebook, along with other social media platforms, remains the predominant connection point between Daniels and his customers, who receive not only quality mailboxes, but also amazing service. Daniels recalls a couple who were visiting from Tacoma, Washington, who wanted a custom mailbox to take home. “I went in [to my shop] late at night and got it done for them overnight, so they could take it with them the next day,” Daniels said.
Repeat customer Bob Kassmeier co-owns EBK Logistics, a local delivery company for a large national retailer founded in 2018. The company’s 150 delivery drivers run about 60 delivery routes a day. Whenever a driver clips a mailbox or knocks it over, Kassmeier texts Daniels, who typically replaces the mailbox that day or the next.
Kassmeier has referred Mailbox Mayhem to friends, neighbors, and fellow delivery service providers. For instance, when Kassmeier’s neighbors experienced mail theft, Kassmeier recommended Daniels, who installed lockable mailboxes for them.
“I don’t see a lot of other people specializing in [wood] mailboxes,” Kassmeier said. “He just does that and does it very well.”
Two years ago, Daniels offered his services to Habitat for Humanity of Omaha at a steep discount so he could give back to the community, according to Habitat senior project manager Kyler Goodwin.
Previously, Goodwin said, “we were buying stock [mailboxes] off the shelf and putting them on our houses.” Now, Daniels has installed close to 50 mailboxes for Habitat homes. Most of his work has been concentrated in northeast Omaha, including the Bluestem Prairie affordable housing development near 52nd and Sorensen streets.
Each mailbox matches its house’s color scheme and style. It may seem like a small thing, Goodwin said, but homeowners interact with their mailboxes daily. A unique mailbox helps them “take pride in their homes.”
A “one-man show,” Daniels declined to franchise Mailbox Mayhem because “I want to build and install [every mailbox] like it’s for me,” he said. “If I get too big, then I’ll lose that touch.”
Running Mailbox Mayhem, while an enjoyable business for Daniels, has its challenges. “I chose to go into business for myself so I can pick which 80 hours a week I want to work,” he quipped.
Still, he loves driving through Omaha and spotting one of his mailboxes. “Very rarely is there a neighborhood that doesn’t have one of mine,” Daniels shared.
“I proved to myself that it doesn’t matter what stage you are at in life,” Daniel said. “You just have to have the passion.”
To learn more and see Rob Daniels' work, follow Mailbox Mayhem on Facebook and on Instagram @omahamailboxmayhem.
This article originally appeared in the September 2024 issue of Omaha Home Magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.
