OMG, Have you seen the prices for Fragrance oils at BB?

[math ace]

Seriously, someone get the smelling salts! I think I just passed out after seeing the prices BB is charging for fragrance oils!

I just went to their site to put together an order for some my old favorites and I just can't believe it!
Apple Sage is going for $6 for less than 2 ounces! Lordy, they are now more expensive than WSP. At least with WSP, my shipping is only $6 (for the handling charge),

OMG! That is all I can say!

Somebody recommended the Fresh Mango, BUT it is $5.38 for 1.5 ounces.

 

[Kosmerta]

Sadely I just bought 4 fragrances from BB because they sounded so delicious smelling. Wayy expensive!

 

[TheGecko]

I don’t know, their prices don’t bother me.

 

[Primrose]

I have to admit my nose is a snob and prefers BB. I happily pay the extra.as I feel they are premium FOs

 

[KiwiMoose]

You probably don't want to move to NZ then - that's about what we pay all the time for any FO. However, our shipping charges are pretty cheap compared to yours I suppose.

 

[Nona'sFarm]

Most of the time I use EOs, but they've been increasing in price, too. I wonder if it has anything to do with the tariffs?

 

[math ace]

Most of the time I use EOs, but they've been increasing in price, too. I wonder if it has anything to do with the tariffs?

I don't think so because it would be effecting everyone's prices. I haven't noticed anyone else's prices jumping up so much.

I did a check on their shipping rates and they seem to of come down a bit. In the past, all my orders would have a $15 - $20 shipping rate at a min. This time my shipping would of been only $8.

So maybe the increase in prices in a way to balance the decrease in shipping charges....

 

[Saponificarian]

I love BB FOs. I would not use any other FO in B&B products. For soap, I use Aztec, fragrance Buddy , soapingsupply, Theflaming candles. They all ship to Canada. The brokerage fees though They give me palpitations but I don’t think the FOs I have bought here are not worth the money. So with joy in my heart, I pay BB prices though I am forever looking for discount codes.

 

[Kosmerta]

Most of the time I use EOs, but they've been increasing in price, too. I wonder if it has anything to do with the tariffs?

If not tariffs it may have to do with the rising popularity of EO multi level marketing companies. Increased demand will mean higher prices

 

[Cellador]

IMHO, BB FO's really are high quality and worth the extra cost. For the most part, they really stick in soap and (again, my opinion) are almost always enjoyable & true FOs. I rarely get something from BB that I don't like.
The only downside is that I am on the opposite side of the country from them & it takes forever for me to my supplies.

 

[cmzaha]

I purchase very few FO's from B&B but they do carry quality like The Sage, who I prefer. Quality FO's are expensive to have made. Granted they purchase volume but even purchasing high volume it is expensive to have fragrances manufactured, without buying by the drum which they probably do for some of the popular fragrances. Companies selling the lower-priced fo's are not purchasing from the higher end manufacturers and run on lower profit margins. Many times you do get what you pay for. I know one fragrance I had duped a few years ago was a big price difference between 2 manufacturers and a large min difference. My friend had the company with the lower now duping the fo and I will not use it and cannot afford to meet the min to have it duped from the original company that first duped it for me. It would cost me over $1500 for 75 lbs of the fo if the min stayed the same as the last time I had my DB made. So there is a big difference if quality.

 

[TheGecko]

Something I wanted to add...you get what you pay for.

I have FOs sitting on my desk from four different companies...Brambleberry, BeSented, Rustic Escentuals and NurtureSoap. Of the four, BB is the only company that packages their scents in glass bottles and glass is more expensive than plastic and provides a better barrier. Both BB and NS packages their scents in brown bottles and the darker colored containers protect the contents better (ever notice all your meds come in dark containers). RE uses a clear plastic bottle while BS uses a slightly opaque one.

Additionally the smaller the quantity, the higher the price...it's that way with anything you buy; whether its a single pair of socks or a 6-pack of socks...1lb of flour or 5 lbs. And I know from having used BB's Apple Sage, you don't need a lot of it; I used their Trial Size bottle in 33 oz of oils and it blew my socks off and chased my husband and cats to seal themselves in our bedroom until I could get the house aired out. To date, it remains the strongest scent I have ever used.

I have also started ordering the same scents from different companies to compare them because not all scents are created equal. I have 'Vanilla Bean' from two different companies on my desk and even my dumb nose can smell a difference right out of the bottle, but the proof will be in the soap making (I had a FO that I really dislike in the bottle, but made a wonderful soap).

What is comes down to is sales.

 

[Arimara]

You should consider signing up for BB's emails, if you haven't. I only order when I have the money and they offer free/reduced shipping. BB is expensive but you get good product.

 

[lucycat]

I have become disappointed with BB. They were my favorite supplier for sweeter type scents as well as floral scents. It seems to me they are shifting their business model to less a wholesaler for me to a Hobby Lobby for hobbyists. I am amazed at how many kits I see with small bottles of everything at high prices.

It seems to me that if I am going to pay their current prices I should expect a company to test their scents for longevity. I have tested newer fragrances that were nice at 6 weeks and faded away at 4 months. Their OMH was my favorite and the reformulation in 2018 caused my sales to decrease. It is still nice just not outstanding and I need to fragrance at a higher rate.

Many of the newer scents have very high usage rates in their calculator for a strong scent which makes the price issue even more extreme. So, it seems I am doing my testing for new scents with other companies and keeping BB for fragrances that I have really liked and order by the pound. At a per pound pricing many of their scents are still ok.

 

[TheGecko]

I have become disappointed with BB. They were my favorite supplier for sweeter type scents as well as floral scents. It seems to me they are shifting their business model to less a wholesaler for me to a Hobby Lobby for hobbyists. I am amazed at how many kits I see with small bottles of everything at high prices.

You have obviously never bought soaping supplies at Hobby Lobby. With that said, it's BECAUSE of the Beginner's Cold Process Soap Kit that I got into making soap. Despite months research, thousands of hours of video, and collecting tons of recipes, I was still at a loss when it came time to walk the talk and was very grateful that such a kit existed. Not to mention that even though I was enthusiastic about making my own soap, I wasn't sure if it was something I would enjoy doing (says the woman who six months after receiving that kit, has a dedicated rolling kitchen island for soap making and just built a shelf above it for all her micas, clays, and oxides and it's almost filled).

Using a pre-made kit allowed me to stick my toe in the water WITHOUT spending a lot of money on stuff that I could potentially never use again. And while that kit only came with a Trial Size bottle of FO, it came with enough other ingredients to make a SECOND batch of soap and it came with a regular size bottle of lye. And when my youngest daughter wanted to try her hand at making Bath Salts...I bought the kit, which included 1 OZ JARS of five different Mica and a 1 OZ JAR of EcoGlitter AND a 2 OZ of FO. It could be argued that the amounts of Micas, Glitter and FO were overkill, but then again, my daughter wants to make more Bath Salts.

They AREN'T shifting their business model from wholesaler to hobby supplier, they are simply taking what they already have on the shelf and boxing it into 'kits'. And that's a smart business move because there has been a huge resurgence in 'homemade' over the last seven years, but so many kits are either cheap toys or folks are simply overwhelmed on where to get started.

And since you mentioned 'prices'...I priced out the Beginner's Cold Process Soap Kit. The kit sells for $59.99 with free shipping; everything is off the shelf except for the Castor Oil and Sodium Lactate which is packaged in smaller bottles. To buy the kit completely off the shelf...$55.25 PLUS $10.79 for shipping for a total of $$66.04. The cost with the smaller bottles...$50.16

 

[lucycat]

I am sorry I offended you with my comments. As a soap seller I used to could count on BB scents being around 6 months to a year. That is important to me because customers will not use everything they purchase immediately. Today I can't count on that and their comments on-line is they test for a a six-week cure. To sell that scent I need to know if it lasts much longer than 6 weeks.

No, I have never purchased from Hobby Lobby for soap but what I know is that they provide lots of items for hobbyists in lots of crafts and that they aren't a good supplier for a customer looking for a wholesaler for their business.

 

[TheGecko]

I am sorry I offended you with my comments. As a soap seller I used to could count on BB scents being around 6 months to a year. That is important to me because customers will not use everything they purchase immediately. Today I can't count on that and their comments on-line is they test for a a six-week cure. To sell that scent I need to know if it lasts much longer than 6 weeks.

I'm not offended, but I think you're being too hard on them when they are most likely in the same boat. While BB is your supplier, Company C is BB's supplier, and Company C is supplied by Company B who in turn is supplied by Company A.

No, I have never purchased from Hobby Lobby for soap but what I know is that they provide lots of items for hobbyists in lots of crafts and that they aren't a good supplier for a customer looking for a wholesaler for their business.

My suggestion is to go visit your local Hobby Lobby and then maybe you will understand why BB sells 'kits'. Folks who only make soap for friends and family (hobbyist) have just as much a right to quality ingredients as folks who sell soap. That is not to say that everything that Hobby Lobby sells is crap...they carry brands beyond their own and a lot of them are quality brands depending on the craft your are in.

 

[Dawni]

I have to admit my nose is a snob and prefers BB. I happily pay the extra.as I feel they are premium FOs

There are soapmakers here who import from BB way over there. For those who've been selling long time I get how they can cover costs including shipping - their soap is about quadruple what I charge for mine. So yes, BB stuff is premium, even here.

But I've seen newbies also, so maybe they just have that extra cash on hand, unlike me lol.

That being said, if I could find a reputable FO supplier locally I'd use em. But the ones available are limited and questionable, with not a lot of info available unlike what you'd see on BB's site. I am always envious when I read about you guys gushing over scents haha.

As far as EOs go, the local supplier I use is more or less great, at least for my needs. They import mostly from India is what they tell me. I've checked prices from directly in India and they're way cheaper so I'm trying to figure out how to get SO to bring me home tons haha.

I can't say if quality is up to par with the stuff from BB though as I have no way to compare bottles.

 

[Lin19687]

@TheGecko Some of us DO NOT shop at Hobby Lobby, some because they don't have them local or like me, Don't because of their views (like Chic a Flick or what ever it is called ).

I don't shop at BB either for a variety of reasons I will not post on here.
They sell Kits because that is how they get 'Hobby soap makers' and There is were they make money.

 

[shunt2011]

I too quit shopping with BB primarily because their shipping was just too slow. I only ever used a couple scents from there but did order 6 of their molds years ago.