How to Start Handmade Soap Making Business

Soap making is a hobby that many people really enjoy. If you’re one of these then you might want to find out how you can turn it into a fantastic business.

Image Credit: cdwinsby at Photobucket

Starting a soap making business is a great way to make some extra money relatively easily and by doing something that you enjoy.

The first thing that you will need to do is give your product line some thought. Think about what types and smells of soap that you would like to sell.

Don’t simply stick to the basic soaps that everyone else sells; also sell other more interesting fragrances. Develop your own unique blends of fragrances to make everything more unique.

Make sure that you get the best packaging you can afford so that your products look much more professional.

Product Line

Before you can start your soap making business you will first need to give some thought to the products that you will sell. You will also need to decide what shape you want to make the soaps into. For this you will need a set of interesting moulds. There are various moulds available on the internet or alternatively you can make your own mould.

Try to choose a niche market which will make competition much easier and less of an issue.

Children Soaps

One option is to create children’s soaps. A great way to do this is to customise them for different names of children. You could also put a small toy inside the clear soaps so that children can see it. This will also encourage them to actually use the soap.

If you are making soaps for children ensure that the ingredients are gentle and you will find fruit scents are the best.

Men’s Soaps

For men you should try to create a product which is appealing to them, use a more masculine colour for example green or brown. Also rely on scents which smell masculine like cedar and sandalwood.

Another option would be to design a soap which is specifically for shaving. Include skin moisturisers in these soaps because the modern man really does care about their appearance.

Liquid Soap

A moisturising hand was soap will be very popular for use in the bathroom; this could be packaged in a foaming bathroom pump.

You could also use a similar mix to create a bubble bath or similar products.

Making Gift Soap

Soap also makes a fantastic gift, to make this more marketable you should design it with seasonal scents and shapes. You might also like to create a mixture of different scented soaps in small bars.

Collectable soaps are also popular; making 3D penguin soap for example could be very popular with some people.

Special Soaps

There are also a wide range of speciality soaps that you can produce, these may include:

-          Moisturizing soap

-          Exfoliating soap

-          Anti itch Soap

-          Dog Soap

-          Environmentally friendly soaps

When you have managed to create your own product line you will then need to produce some marketing materials so that you can introduce people to your business. Print up a price list, brochure and business cards. Make sure everything ties well together as this will help to create a strong brand image.

You should check with your local state department of revenue to find out whether or not you will be expected to collect sales tax when selling soap to the public or other businesses.

If you are selling to retailers then the products will often be cheaper, however the increased quantities should make up for the lower price.

Local Gift Shops

Another idea is selling your handmade soaps to local gift shops. These are popular with any tourists visiting the area. You could also sell them to your local church or school fundraiser.

If you are trying to sell to other businesses then you should book appointments with managers so that the people know you are coming. This will allow them to schedule an appointment when they aren’t busy. Bring some products with you as samples to show and demonstrate.

Even if you don’t make a sale you shouldn’t let it put you off, after a while you should be able to start making lots of orders. Over time your soap empire should grow and balloon into a huge bubble! Time and determination are all that you really need!

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Posted by Vikrant on Feb 15 2010. Filed under Craft Business Ideas. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry