# $40k for a soap/lotion business?!



## dixiedragon (Jan 28, 2015)

A guy my dad knows - "Sam" - apparently loaned his ex wife $40k to start a soap/lotion business. She became very ill and is in the hospital. So Sam comes home from his day job and makes lotion/soap every night hoping he can re-coup this loan.

I am stuck on what she spent $40K on. And that's assuming she didn't put any of her own money into it! Maybe she decided to jump right in to mass production, or she's renting a storefront or something?


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## MarisaJensen (Jan 28, 2015)

Wow, I'm not judging anyone for what they want to spend to open a business but that is a very large chunk of money. IMHO there are better and cheaper options to start off slow and make sure the company grows VS starting a company with debt. It's sad that she fell ill and is unable to continue. 

Maybe the business can be sold assuming they have invested in the right things. I wish them the very best.


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## Earthen_Step (Jan 28, 2015)

At that cost he should have some high quality equipment, and/or a TON of ingredients.  He could sell it off to re-coup some of it and just close shop if he isn't interested...  I could spend well over 40k on soap/cosmetic business, but I sure wouldn't go into that much debt for it.


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## girlishcharm2004 (Jan 28, 2015)

40K isn't unreasonable.  I mean, I could probably spend that much to have my dream equipment and ingredients.  

I hope the wife gets well.  I think that's a loving husband to spend that much on her and try to keep her venture afloat.


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## seven (Jan 28, 2015)

wow, that is a lot of money. where did it come from? from Sam's own pocket (personal loan to wife) or from the bank? i'm hoping it ain't the latter. hate to think about interests and so on.


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## The Efficacious Gentleman (Jan 29, 2015)

Do remember, Sam is the ex husband, not the husband. It goes from being a loving husband to a man trying to make sure that 40k doesn't go down the drain.


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## dixiedragon (Jan 29, 2015)

Yes, EX WIFE. And as I understand, this was money from Sam's own pocket, not a bank loan.

While I could totally spend $40k on soap and lotion making stuff, I think a lot of that would be pure indulgence. For $5k, you could get VERY nice stuff (like a bath bomb machine!), a large quantity of ingredients, etc.


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## biarine (Jan 29, 2015)

It's a big money the 40k but if you're in UK maybe you can spend the same, because European laws  stated that every lotion, soap, perfume you selling need to be tested  in the lab for everything and every recipe cost from 600 upwards.


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## The Efficacious Gentleman (Jan 29, 2015)

biarine said:


> It's a big money the 40k but if you're in UK maybe you can spend the same, because European laws  stated that every lotion, soap, perfume you selling need to be tested  in the lab for everything and every recipe cost from 600 upwards.



Then you are really looking at the wrong safety assessor - you can pay less than 200 for a recipe that includes 8 slight variations, so 1 main recipe with 8 scent/colour combos.  Plus, it's not just the UK, but the whole EU.


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## cmzaha (Jan 29, 2015)

While 40k sounds like an exorbitant amount of money in reality is really is not. She may have stocked everything she thought she would be needing as far as supplies to actually open at a business level not hobby. It takes money to start-up a business, and who know if she was advertising that is a huge expense. Honestly unless he as all receipts who knows what else it went for... 
I am not trying to say that is a smart way to spend 40k. LOL, my 40+k that went into my teeth was a much better way to spend that much


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## Aline (Jan 29, 2015)

Yes, she may have been making everything by hand and then wanted to scale her products. That needs either expensive equipment or set-up costs for contract manufacturing.....


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## Aline (Jan 29, 2015)

The Efficacious Gentleman said:


> Then you are really looking at the wrong safety assessor - you can pay less than 200 for a recipe that includes 8 slight variations, so 1 main recipe with 8 scent/colour combos.  Plus, it's not just the UK, but the whole EU.



OMG - I'm glad I left the UK! Do people sell pre-approved formulas to other people?


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## biarine (Jan 29, 2015)

The Efficacious Gentleman said:


> Then you are really looking at the wrong safety assessor - you can pay less than 200 for a recipe that includes 8 slight variations, so 1 main recipe with 8 scent/colour combos.  Plus, it's not just the UK, but the whole EU.




Really I think so because I thought it's too expensive thank you


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## biarine (Jan 29, 2015)

Aline said:


> OMG - I'm glad I left the UK! Do people sell pre-approved formulas to other people?




Yes you needed an approval with your products. You can't sell them without it.


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## Dorymae (Jan 29, 2015)

Wow I didn't realize it was that bad. I can understand wanting to insure public safety but I think someone in the EU is a bit corrupt and has created a system where they get rich even if 80 percent of the businesses fail. It also seems they are reducing competition to undue levels with the regulation costing so much that the larger the corporation the much much higher profit margin. Granted we have that here as well but not quite to that extent. 

You have given me much more respect for our Republic here in the US.


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## biarine (Jan 29, 2015)

Yes that's true, a lot of big cosmetic company is French. That's why in the nearby city where I live there's only 2 company I saw that selling soaps are the body shop and Lush cosmetics.


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## Earthen_Step (Jan 29, 2015)

Dorymae said:


> Wow I didn't realize it was that bad. I can understand wanting to insure public safety but I think someone in the EU is a bit corrupt and has created a system where they get rich even if 80 percent of the businesses fail. It also seems they are reducing competition to undue levels with the regulation costing so much that the larger the corporation the much much higher profit margin. Granted we have that here as well but not quite to that extent.
> 
> You have given me much more respect for our Republic here in the US.



It's just sad to me that government can't think of doing things on a voluntary basis.  They can only think of using their armed servants to enforce things "for our safety."  Companies would gladly pay for their government's stamp of approval without threat, if it were a service worth having.


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## Dorymae (Jan 29, 2015)

Earthen_Step said:


> It's just sad to me that government can't think of doing things on a voluntary basis.  They can only think of using their armed servants to enforce things "for our safety."  Companies would gladly pay for their government's stamp of approval without threat, if it were a service worth having.



True but unfortunately there are those that think government needs to save everyone from themselves. 

I'm against seat belt laws for adults (not children) because if someone kills themselves by not wearing one, well we really didn't need them breeding that ignorance into the next generation.


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## maya (Jan 29, 2015)

I hope your acquaintance gets better soon.


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## girlishcharm2004 (Feb 2, 2015)

The Efficacious Gentleman said:


> Do remember, Sam is the ex husband, not the husband. It goes from being a loving husband to a man trying to make sure that 40k doesn't go down the drain.



Whoops, I didn't catch that part.


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## navigator9 (Feb 2, 2015)

If I were starting a soap business, and money was not a problem, I'd head somewhere like this, http://soapequipment.com/ , put together my dream soap studio, buy oils and butters, and drums of FOs. I can imagine spending 40K on all of that. But that's not how most people start out. They start on a shoestring and see how things go. That was quite a leap of faith.


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## boyago (Feb 2, 2015)

The original business operator may have also quit her job to pursue her own business and the money could have gone to covering living costs during start up.


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