The Time Has Come...

[Dixie]

You could take them to the homeless shelter and even the orphanages, they need all the help they can get to cut expenses.

Anyway, Best wishes to you donniej, do you already have a market for your soap?

 

[ashleyrobertson]

How'd it go?

donniej - How'd the business turn out? I was also thinking about getting some 40 gallon lye and oil heaters. Do you have these? If so, do you have any opinions about them? Do you know of any place to get them used? I was thinking about Willow Way, but they're so expensive - especially if you include the mixer. Thanks!

 

[Bigmoose]

Finally, I'm also working on liquid recipes now. This is proving challengine because the liquid soap gels *so* thick that most mixing tanks can't handle it. I'm working on a modified version that is slower to saponify but stays thinner. If that doesn't work I think I'll look for an indiustrial floor-sized standing mixer.

Keep those fingers crossed folks, I need all the luck I can get

donnie,

Try putting a little alcohol in your recipe. It will thin things down alot and also lower the cloud point of your product.

Bruce

 

[c.a.p.]

Please don't take offense; I'm just curious. From your original post you state all natural soap, but then said you'll use FO's. ???

 

[donniej]

Hi everyone!
You'll notice it's been a year and a half since I originally posted this. The learning curve has been like a brick wall and it's been a lot harder than I ever imagined. There is *so* much competition and simply having a lower price and good product doesn't seem to mean much. Don't get me wrong, my business is slowly taking off but it's been a lot of work and I've made all the mistakes. It's been so humbling that I'm back in school getting a business degree just so I can figure it all out. I don't even know where to begin so if you have a specific question, feel free to ask.

ashleyrobertson-
Sorry but I can't offer advice on where to buy stuff.... I built most of my equipment or at least bought stuff in rough shape and fixed it up. Mechanics and metal working have been a long hobby of mine so this hasn't been too hard.

Bigmoose-
I dropped the idea of the mixing tank to mix the paste. Instead I got a kettle and stir it by hand with a big whisk. It seems to work fine.

 

[Lindy]

One of the things I've learned is that if you are too low priced a couple of things happen. One - your profit margins are not enough for you to really make a profit; Two - perception is everything - if people perceive your product as not being as good as your competition they aren't likely to try it and price is sometimes an indicator of quality. Remember the old adage "You get what you pay for"? It still applies.

I'm just completing my second year in business and I still have so much to learn but I have built a solid base of loyal customers which is what allowed me to open a B&M store, that plus wholesale accounts.

A business degree would be absolutely fascinating - I look forward to learning from you as you go through your schooling.