artemis
Mostly Harmless
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People with allergies will look. You'd be surprised the number of different things people are allergic to. One friend has a silk allergy. Another, cloves.
yet another label prototype
- Thread starter SeattleMartin
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People with allergies will look. You'd be surprised the number of different things people are allergic to. One friend has a silk allergy. Another, cloves.
penelopejane
Well-Known Member
^^^I agree and I think (no scientific evidence to back this up) the majority of people buying handmade soap have allergies or are looking for something pure or at least less “chemically” than commercial soap.
atiz
Well-Known Member
Yes, that's what I said 2 lines later. ("Allergies, etc., are a different matter.")
We don't have any data on this so it's hard to know how many soap-buyers it affects. I used to buy handmade soap because they smelled nice and looked pretty, and that's it. If I were allergic to something, depending on the seriousness of it, I would either ask the seller or, if it really is very serious, not buy stuff that's not made in a laboratory.
Our grocery store carries Zum bars and they only list the ingredients on their website (they don't even have labels). A lot of people buy them. So that might be another option.
If you are going to go back to Adobe CS, InDesign is still pretty boss for page layout. There’s also Affinity Designer which is relatively inexpensive. I have yet to check out the Pages program that was mentioned before. I can’t stand using PS for page layout.
Upon first glance, I find the label busy and not very well organized. The hierarchy is off and the different fonts and weights don’t blend well together. It’s not a very harmonious label. The elements just are competing too much with each other without enough white space.
Technically, your logo doesn’t even need to go on the front of the label. It takes up some valuable real estate at the size it is at and I find it to be a bit clunky awkward.
As for the specifics of the labeling, I’ve found Marie Gale’s book invaluable on the anatomy of a label. I’m a label reader. I’m also drawn to pretty packaging but the first thing I go for is ingredients, even before I made soap.
I kinda like the “love” stuff
must be my inner hippie. And I like the ampersand also but it seems odd in this useage. I’d play with that a bit. Maybe just use it one place in a clever way.
I’m constantly messing with my labels and never happy. I change my packaging look often. Good luck on your journey!
Upon first glance, I find the label busy and not very well organized. The hierarchy is off and the different fonts and weights don’t blend well together. It’s not a very harmonious label. The elements just are competing too much with each other without enough white space.
Technically, your logo doesn’t even need to go on the front of the label. It takes up some valuable real estate at the size it is at and I find it to be a bit clunky awkward.
As for the specifics of the labeling, I’ve found Marie Gale’s book invaluable on the anatomy of a label. I’m a label reader. I’m also drawn to pretty packaging but the first thing I go for is ingredients, even before I made soap.
I kinda like the “love” stuff
must be my inner hippie. And I like the ampersand also but it seems odd in this useage. I’d play with that a bit. Maybe just use it one place in a clever way.I’m constantly messing with my labels and never happy. I change my packaging look often. Good luck on your journey!
Just for the sake of clarity, PagePlus is the precursor to Affinity Designer. There is no further support for PagePlus; however, it is still available for a reduced rate (full program).
Lin19687
Well-Known Member
If there are no medical claims it does NOT have to have the ingredients on it.
Yes Scent should also be on there.
Not sure why you would need a UPC code spot. That is not necessary unless the Maker has that coding system, most do not.
have as in legally have to? i guess it does not need to be on there. The ingredients and UPC are just really helpful for selling at a store. People look at ingredients all the time on products at shows and fairs and that cuts down on the same conversation 1000 a day. People look to see if it has palm or is vegan as well as allergies. Also people want to look at ingredient lists if OP get gets the product into a gift shop or other store. Just my thoughts. It doesn't hace to be there, but probably would be a good idea.
UPC codes would be for stores but can be added later on either another sticker or a quick redesign for the space.
Lin19687
Well-Known Member
This thread is about getting labels eventually ready to sell publicly... Stores will not carry a soap without ingredients and most will not without a UPC code.
atiz
Well-Known Member
This is not true. Our grocery store sells soaps without ingredients (Zum). They just have the loaves of soap out, you can cut yourself a slice and put it in a little baggie that you measure. People buy it a lot.
Yeah I have zum up here too. the the ingredients list is right in the display. It also is a national brand.
I think ingredients are necessary...there's so much writing on that label (again, not necessary a flaw: think Dr Bronner!), and you're all about the planet and organic and plant-based....but then you don't list the ingredients. For allergies, but also just for interest's sake, I'd definitely list ingredients.
There are a few threads on perception of listing LYE vs sodium XXX-ate for label appeal so you can check that out. Also, where is Hendejm when you need him? Long gone, but he has good threads on visualizing your market demographic and labelling/selling to it.
There are a few threads on perception of listing LYE vs sodium XXX-ate for label appeal so you can check that out. Also, where is Hendejm when you need him? Long gone, but he has good threads on visualizing your market demographic and labelling/selling to it.
No, not all stores require an ingredients list and not all stores require a UPC code. Some stores even sell naked soap, a practice I have since seen my favorite health food store stop doing, thankfully.
But not all soap sellers sell in stores. Many soapers here start by selling at farmer's markets and craft fairs. I see a lot of soap for sale at those venues and rarely have I seen a UPC code on them. Not sure about abroad (I didn't really look for UPC codes when I looked at soap at a craft fair in Europe.)
But of course, I do agree that ingredients should be on the label of every individual bar or bottle of soap. Because as a consumer, I have always looked at ingredients lists on the products I buy and have always been pleased when the regulations require more information to protect the consumer.
But not all soap sellers sell in stores. Many soapers here start by selling at farmer's markets and craft fairs. I see a lot of soap for sale at those venues and rarely have I seen a UPC code on them. Not sure about abroad (I didn't really look for UPC codes when I looked at soap at a craft fair in Europe.)
But of course, I do agree that ingredients should be on the label of every individual bar or bottle of soap. Because as a consumer, I have always looked at ingredients lists on the products I buy and have always been pleased when the regulations require more information to protect the consumer.
"Ingredients: Saponified oils of..." makes lye not on the ingredient list and avoid INCI listing like 'sodium tallowate' that sounds too chemically. Even though all three are the same saponified oils seems to have better appeal.
Yes, that was the gist of one discussion, except that people didn't want to say lard or tallow on their labels but also didn't want to say lye. Guess you could say "Saponified oils of pig and cow." And someone not that long ago was going to use deer fat!
Using 'saponified oils of ...' is also controversial and not really the correct way to label soap for sale in the US. I don't know about in Canada or elsewhere, but since the OP is in the US, I thought I'd point this out.
See this link: https://www.mariegale.com/five-most-common-labeling-errors/
Marie Gale is an expert in the field of properly labeling products for sale by Artisans such as ourselves. You can look deeply into the federal regulations, which are extensive and somewhat hard to maneuver, with references back and forth to other various regulations, or you can utilize the work Marie Gale has done to compile the information into easier to understand terms and get her book or read her site online.
See this link: https://www.mariegale.com/five-most-common-labeling-errors/
Marie Gale is an expert in the field of properly labeling products for sale by Artisans such as ourselves. You can look deeply into the federal regulations, which are extensive and somewhat hard to maneuver, with references back and forth to other various regulations, or you can utilize the work Marie Gale has done to compile the information into easier to understand terms and get her book or read her site online.
my soap is olive oil based and has not palm. part of the labeling is showing off the product.
Previous commenters and the same webpage states that soap does not in fact legally have to have an ingredient list at all.
I have had store owners and customers ask endless questions about INCI labeling and lye and such. Just giving my input as a regional brand and what has worked best for me in terms of selling product. Which is the OP's end goal.
That’s not true here either. There are several stores that carry unlabeled soaps. Some are naked with nothing listed. 2 of these are all natural organic stores. There are several gift shops in tourist towns that carry unwrapped, unlabeled soaps as well.
I am honestly having quite a bit of trouble following your grammar so please forgive me if I misinterpret your comment.
I am pretty sure that the OP in the first comment mentioned selling soap to stores as an end goal. " i have something on them that will be representative of (similar enough to) a finished and final label when we go public." is pretty close to selling as a company. Selling in stores is the next obvious step.
I am well aware that stores nationwide sell bulk soap without an ingredient lit on the soap. I myself sell bulk soap with no labeling in more than one. At that point, it is up to the store how to 1) display the soap and 2) what information to display with the soap. I would argue that a start up selling NOT in the bulk section (as zum is if is by oz and cut your own) will have difficulty opening wholesale accounts with no ingredients on the labels.
Redesigning packaging gets expensive in terms of time, energy, reintroduction to customers and store managers, etc.. But hey, I am just letting you know what I myself have gone through in the last 3 years.
I just thought of Dr. Bronners liquid soap labels.......lolol....
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