My Life in Numbers

Co-founder and Director, Thankbox

Tsvetelina Hinova CA transferred from her native Bulgaria to Dundee to complete her studies. After qualifying, she went into industry, where the idea for an online greeting card service with a difference was born

1990

I was born in 1990 and raised in the town of Veliko Tarnovo, in central Bulgaria. My parents still live there, so I spend a fair amount of my summers back home. The weather is much better over there!

3

When I was younger I practised Latin dancing – everything from the cha-cha-cha to ballroom. I got to a level where I was leading the class and running the lessons three times a week. I still love dancing whenever I get the chance.

50

There was a leadership camp held in the mountains close to my town, and every year 50 American students would be invited. I was selected to take part one year, and the next year I became one of the camp leaders. It meant I could practise my English whenever I was talking to the students.

15

From the age of 15, I would work summers in the accounting team at a local energy company, looking after things like invoices and cashflow. I really enjoyed it. That made me look into accountancy courses – and one of the best ones was at Sofia University, so that’s where I went.

4

My husband went to Scotland to study computer gaming. I got rejections from a lot of Scottish universities, but Abertay University in Dundee allowed me to transfer for my fourth year without having to repeat the other three. It was difficult because my English still wasn’t that good, but I threw myself into every challenge to become a better student.

3 Before finishing my degree, I looked into what would be the best option [for accounting]. International recognition was particularly important to me and ICAS was the one that stood out. I didn’t appreciate at the time just how difficult those three years of study and training would be.

2016

I became a CA in 2016. I got off a plane in Paris, opened up my laptop and went online to check my exam results. When I realised I’d passed and was now qualified I started jumping around the airport!

4

I loved my time at PwC, where I did my training. I worked with a lot of different businesses, but I felt as an auditor you can’t get into the nitty-gritty of each. So I moved to tyre retailer blackcircles.com, which was a great opportunity to understand a company from the inside out. I spent four years there.

2019

Five years ago I was chatting with my husband about signing birthday or leaving cards at work, and how you often don’t have space to write anything meaningful. That’s where the idea for Thankbox, an online group card and gift collection service, came about. Showing appreciation to your colleagues has become even more important now with so many people working from home.

2020

We started Thankbox the following year. We were both in employment and raising a small child, so going full-time would have been a big step. Thankfully, we struck a profit-sharing agreement with the friend who built our website, which meant we could put everything into Thankbox.

£5

The feeling I got when we sold our first product was so special. It was only £5, but it was £5 for something that we had created. We have continued to grow ever since but I always come back to that moment.

13,000

We plant a tree for every 10 Thankboxes that we sell. So far that adds up to 13,000 trees planted.

2024

Last month we started running adverts in the US. We have really good international partners, so we operate in different regions, but it’s about finding the right marketing channels.

4

I live close to the Pentland Hills and I love being outside, so I tend to go for long walks around the hills about four times a week to clear my head.

This month is our fourth birthday. To celebrate – and to mark Mental Health Week – we are pledging to donate 20% of every Thankbox sale this month to Mental Health UK. I also hope Thankbox can help to create a more inclusive and fun culture in organisations, so that people feel they are not just a resource.