Newbie B & B'ers selling

[Genny]

A couple times a month people come to the forum and tell us about the soap, lotion, candles, etc they just made and are selling it at a craft fair, farmers market, online, etc. I find it disturbing as I'm sure many other people do.
Well, recently at another forum, a newbie told their story of what they made and where they're selling it. After being scolded, the newbie explained that they thought it was okay since the supplier she got the supplies from sells all you need in a kit and tells you how much to sell them for. She even signed up for their forum and there are many newbies there who sell their products.

After she told me the supplier name, I checked out their kits and saw
"Whether you are a seasoned crafter or a novice, these kits will save you time and money and ensure you get the right materials to make the best product possible."
Then the actual kit section tells you how much to sell the things for. If I were new to the whole thing, this would sound like encouragement to sell what I was making.

Also, on the forum for this supplier I don't think I have ever seen the owner discourage a newbie from selling. In fact right now there is a discussion on that forum where someone said they just ordered they're stuff for their first ever candle making. They then went on to ask about pricing for selling. People were responding with actual prices, even the owner.

Do a lot of suppliers do it this way?

 

[Hazel]

I don't know if a lot of suppliers do this but it sounds irresponsible. But you can't stop people from doing it. In one way, I understand the desire to make something and sell it quickly to increase your income. I'd love to bring in some extra money especially through a home based business. I'm glad that I was encouraged to wait before attempting to sell. (I still don't sell.) I'm embarrassed by the way I foisted my soaps off on friends and family thinking they were so wonderful. :roll: It was over a year after I started CP that I realized how much better my soaps had become through experimenting and tweaking recipes.

I'm sure one of the reasons suppliers promote it like this is because it increases their sales.

 

[Dragonkaz]

I've never heard of this before and it sounds very irresponsible.

Unfortunately not everyone things about what could happen if their soap isn't made correctly. If they did they would know they need to practice, practice, practice ... trial, trial, trial.

I'm pleased this forum has many members that explain clearer to anyone who 'mentions selling before trialling for at least a year', why this is dangerous. Sometimes it may sound mean ... but if it prevents one person from being hurt due to poorly made soap, then it's worth it.

 

[VanessaP]

I wish more people had common sense. I know *I* wouldn't like buying something from someone, get it home and it go bad in less than 2 weeks, or find out it was only made a week ago. Even just a tiny difference in the formula (as in oops, spilled half my preservative, oh well, I'll just go on) can make things unusable.

I dabble in lip balm, sugar scrubs, bath salts (fizzing or not, mostly because I can't mold a bath bomb to save my life). But we all learn and tweak constantly until we are satisfied with the results. We are all learning what it takes to make something correctly. I'm not saying kits are bad, but to encourage someone to sell their very first items they've ever made, even from a kit, seems irresponsible to me.

Yes, I'm a total newb when it comes to working with lye. I will be making my first CP batch sometime the first full weekend of April (due to being out of town from the 27th until the 4th), so I obviously don't have a lot of experience when it comes to soaps, but I DO have common sense.

I am well aware that I will need to hold onto my soap, even after it has gone through its cure time, to see if DOS shows, if my oils go rancid after a period of time, etc. I will be sharing with some friends and family after the curing period is over, so they can tell me their opinions but I will also keep some in reserve to observe quality over time.

I am not even thinking of opening shop until next spring, when we get our next tax return so I can get all my ducks in a row, including deciding on product names, and exactly the items I want to carry other than various soaps.

 

[Genny]

I'm not saying kits are bad, but to encourage someone to sell their very first items they've ever made, even from a kit, seems irresponsible to me.

Yeah, I like kits and I think they can be a great way to get someone interested in different things. The only thing I was surprised by, was the encouragement to sell from them.

I'm glad I'm not the only one that thinks it's irresponsible.

 

[Cuckoo Bananas]

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