How do ya'll pkg your soap?

[melstan775]

Bumping this one, just wondering if anyone wants to answer the questions I put forth here:

I've been looking at fun soap packaging, though I am far far far off from that. I can't help it, it's all so pretty! I love the idea of paper and cigar band packages, like this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/azursoleilorganics/7835390686/in/pool-soappackaging

or clear cellophaned in a custom soapbox. Or perhaps for a special gift, the paper wrapped soap in a nice box, like a penny box or something.

My question is, how have you determined which packaging methods work best for you in terms of attracting buyers, either at shows or if you sell on consignment in a gift shop, or have your own shop, or whatever. And do you sometimes use different packaging for the same soaps depending on the venue? If so, why?

 

[msalex28a]

My soap packaging is always changing because one I keep finding new ideas and 2 I can never make up my mind. At craft fairs I do the cigar band. I think people like to look touch and feel what they are getting. I scoped out some of the other soap vendors and there was one lady who used white tissue paper with a label. It was pretty but I want to see what I'm getting. (My opinion) As far as selling online on etsy I use brown packaging paper and wrap it up and use all different kinds of bakers twine to dress it up. All though now I just bought washi tape and might try that instead of the twine.

Ofcourse I want to change all my cigar labels now because I can't make up my mind.

 

[msalex28a]

I also saw online on a blog a woman has one soap on a dish for each fragrance and has the ones for the customers to buy in a muslin bags. Her soaps are beautiful.
http://jenorasoaps.blogspot.com/

 

[HutCar92]

I personally like the cigar style packaging. Mine are that style that I print on cardstock, then cut and wrap the bars with it using the ingredient label to seal it. I wanted to try boxes, but I do decorative soap with different tops and such and I feel this would hide my product. I thought about doing plastic boxes too but then realized those would end up in a land fill, where my paper labels would too but those break down faster. I found packaging to be the worst part about having a business. I think if I placed my soaps in a shop somewhere I would do boxes tho, because other wise the labels would get torn and the soap beat up. So I guess it really depends like someone else said about what you are doing with your soap!

 

[Body_Basics]

I am taking graphics communication at school and we have a fully functioning commercial level print shop, We can do all types of printing. I plan to make some great packaging labels and might even do a small Avon type of book for my products.

For as packaging ideals it depends on what route you want to go. Do you want it to look like walmart commercial stuff with boxes and plastic wrapping or do you want it to have the hand crafted unique look?

I guess the main thing is price, what are you willing to pay? you just said you wanted to lower your sell price to $4, with that it will be hard to add fancy packaging and still keep your bars at $4. I will try my hardest to keep my bars, Made by me or consigned from others to sell in my store at $5, $6 is a stretch but if the bar has $$$ oils in it I can try and see if my customers are willing to pay. But for the most part I think $5 is a market average.

 

[Ruthie]

Is it necessary to wrap all one's soaps basically the same? I'm thinking about having 3 main groups of soaps: 1) natural color and essential oils, non-vegan, 2) colored soaps with fragrance oils, non-vegan and 3) vegan. I was thinking about packaging them differently to make the difference more visual, but am afraid it might make my table at craft shows look "tacky." I was thinking about maybe a paper cigar band on one, 2) fabric band tied with twine on one, and maybe tissue paper on one. Any suggestions?

 

[Body_Basics]

Is it necessary to wrap all one's soaps basically the same? I'm thinking about having 3 main groups of soaps: 1) natural color and essential oils, non-vegan, 2) colored soaps with fragrance oils, non-vegan and 3) vegan. I was thinking about packaging them differently to make the difference more visual, but am afraid it might make my table at craft shows look "tacky." I was thinking about maybe a paper cigar band on one, 2) fabric band tied with twine on one, and maybe tissue paper on one. Any suggestions?

I think its ok to have them different. One thing I will not do that I see some do is There lemon berry bar soap is packaged or wrapped this way when you buy it then whenever you go and buy more there in something different. I think you should brand your products, keep the look of the soap and packing basically the same for long as you can, I know with swirls and what not its impossible but i mean like it should smell the same feel the same and please be the same color batch after batch. This make me the customer more at ease that you know what your doing, you have a recipe that your following that is tested and proven. Your not just in your kitchen slapping stuff together.

For as packaging try to keep it the same so your name, that bar, that look becomes a brand, You want to brand your self. If you keep changing it how am i going to know what to look for? I might not know what it is called but if it is branded and enough people know about it all i got to do is say or Google is " you know that yellow and red lemon bar soap, that be in that white and gold ribbon with the curls at the end? people will know what im talking about.

So don't just throw your soaps into anything, Think it out first Then stick with it for as long as you can.

 

[squigglz]

Is it necessary to wrap all one's soaps basically the same? I'm thinking about having 3 main groups of soaps: 1) natural color and essential oils, non-vegan, 2) colored soaps with fragrance oils, non-vegan and 3) vegan. I was thinking about packaging them differently to make the difference more visual, but am afraid it might make my table at craft shows look "tacky." I was thinking about maybe a paper cigar band on one, 2) fabric band tied with twine on one, and maybe tissue paper on one. Any suggestions?

I think different packaging can be just fine! Different packaging on the same types of soap can look a little haphazard (in my opinion-I was making cigar bands for a loaf of my soap and ran out of one pattern halfway through and had to switch. They still look nice, but to me it looks like they should be different somehow lol), but what you're describing could be quite nice and a good visual way to tell which soaps I'd want. If I wanted a soap with EO, you could just say 'The ones with the bands have essential oils, the vegan soaps are wrapped with that green paper, and the fragranced and colored soaps are in the blue paper' or something similar. That would make things easier for the shopper to kind of zero in on what they want instead of having to read every label ^^

 

[Paintguru]

Is it necessary to wrap all one's soaps basically the same? I'm thinking about having 3 main groups of soaps: 1) natural color and essential oils, non-vegan, 2) colored soaps with fragrance oils, non-vegan and 3) vegan. I was thinking about packaging them differently to make the difference more visual, but am afraid it might make my table at craft shows look "tacky." I was thinking about maybe a paper cigar band on one, 2) fabric band tied with twine on one, and maybe tissue paper on one. Any suggestions?

I'm no expert, but my thought to make life easier on you and to more easily communicate your different soap versions would be to do paper cigar bands on all 3, but make the paper different colors. That way, if someone asks, you say "the blue one is essential oils, the green one is vegan", instead of aving to explain the packaging details. Just a thought.

 

[melstan775]

I think slightly different is fine, as long as the whole grouping is identifiable as one brand. I might go with just cigar bands now, because they can be so pretty. I don't know, I have eons to decide. But since I'm not quite able to make my first batch yet and am excited, I am just busying myself with other aspects of soaping. I love the Jenora soaps, thanks for posting that link!