Jillian Harris and The Jilly Box spread the love

For Jillian Harris, a former television personality and social media influencer who helped found two small businesses, The Jilly Box Inc. and Jillian Harris Design Inc., the secret of success comes down to one word: love.

“My parents always told me if you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life,” says Harris. “I find the same is true as an employer. When you treat your employees like you truly love and care for them, it works out to everyone’s benefit.”

Jillian Harris Design (JHD) was established in 2009 as a way for Harris to share her latest fashion finds, recipes and DIYs with her fans and followers. The Jilly Box, co-founded in 2019 by Harris and her long-time agent, Tyler Evans, launched as a subscription box company, offering a quarterly box filled with a wide array of fashion, food, home décor and other products hand-selected by Harris and her team. Both companies are based in Kelowna, B.C.

The Jilly Box continues to sell its flagship product on a quarterly basis and has also introduced a direct-to-consumer marketplace.

Through The Jilly Box, Harris and her team are committed to supporting sustainable and ethically manufactured products from local, diverse and inclusive companies, including many women-owned or family businesses.

Both JHD and The Jilly Box are focused on giving back to the community. Employees are given paid time to volunteer. As well, $2 from every subscription box is earmarked for local charities, raising more than $1 million in donations over the past five years.

In 2023, JHD and The Jilly Box received B Corp Certification, a designation recognizing businesses that exhibit high standards of social and environmental performance, as well as charitable giving.

“We think about the social impact in everything we do,” says Rachel Howarth, marketing lead for JHD. “We prioritize putting positivity and joy into the world, which is something Jillian frequently integrates into our meetings.”

Atticia Grondin, senior marketing director for The Jilly Box, concurs.

“Jillian is someone who is empathetic and caring and that is reflected in the team around her,” says Grondin. “She’s created a positive work environment and values her team’s well-being. You spend a lot of time at work, so it’s important to be with people who align with the same values and enjoy where they work. Our team members really care about the business and take pride in what they do.”

Harris says that when she became an entrepreneur she wanted to create the type of company she would like to work for. That led her to adopt policies such as paid birthdays off, personal days, bereavement and compassionate leave, additional paid time off at long weekends and a $2,500 “baby bonus” for new parents.

While she remains proud of all those initiatives, Harris says that she and her team have acted to more deeply embed the values of diversity, equity and inclusion in everything the companies do.

“For example, as a mother of two, I knew the significance of baby bonuses. But I started to wonder if that was the most equitable approach. What if someone was having difficulty getting pregnant and could use that money for IVF treatments? Or if someone needed access to gender-affirming care?”

Now, that $2,500 allocation is extended to fertility treatments, gender-affirming surgery, hormone replacement therapy, or as a non-gender-specific parental benefit.

“A lot of people are really struggling these days,” observes Harris. “If, as a business, you can invest in your employees and your community, how can that be anything but good?”

This article appeared in the magazine announcing this year's Canada's Top Small & Medium Employers winners, published April 8, 2025 in The Globe and Mail. This article was prepared with the financial support of the employer, which reviewed but did not write its contents.