Feb. 12, 2008 - Starting a Soap Making Business

So you are thinking about starting a soap making business.  What do you need to know to be successful.  First, you need to be prepared to work hard for several months before you begin to see the money come in.  Here are a few reasons why this is so.

• You will need to gather your equipment and supplies. 
• You will need to make your soap. 
• You will need to let it cure. 
• You will need to get it packaged or get it ready for the point of sale. 
• You wll need an outlet to sell the soap.

All of these items require time.  So you need to know this up front. 

Starting a soap making business can create a lot of excitement.   If you print out business cards and brochures right away, your word of mouth may bring your first customers while your soap is still curing.  If you also make lip balms, body butter, bath salts, and such, you will have products that are "sale"able much sooner than your soap, so take that into consideration.  You can also offer a few melt and pour types of soap while your initial cold-processed soap are curing.  I really do not care for melt and pour soap (please, no offense to those of you who love it) because all too often I see the soap not looking very good after it has been transported, handled, manipulated -- the packaging tends to look dingy from the soap rubbing on it -- this doesn't happen with cold processed soap.  Also note, that if you begin with a many different soaps and other products, that your inititial investment will be higher and it will take longer for you to break even and begin making a profit.  I advise you to start small!

Please consider looking into liability insurance.  I have always carried this and I think it is a good idea "just in case."  "Just in case" someone's skin falls off after using your soap.  I NEVER had a problem, but you never know.  I did find a place with very reasonable rates (like around $10/month)

You should also get your business registered with your state so you can file your local and state sales tax.  They get pretty angry if they find out you have selling something and haven't been paying in the required sales tax (did I mention they charge a hefty penalty?).  In Wisconsin this required that I record how much soap I sold retail inside the state at my retail price.  I did not pay sales tax on anything I sold out of state or anything I sold wholesale for resale.  I had to submit my information on a form quarterly basis and then that was that -- very easy.

You will want to decide if you want to sell retail only or also sell wholesale.  If you want to sell wholesale, you will need to find shops that are wanting to sell your soap.  I had to do very little searching.  I sold to many places and most of them came from word of mouth from people who had tried my soap.  You may not be so lucky, so be prepared to take your soap everywhere you go and ask, ask, ask.  Once you begin this endeavor, it is not a time to get fearful of rejection -- people will say no (as well as yes).  Just do not take it personally -- it is business.

For your retail business,  where are you going to concentrate on selling your soap?  If you are going to go to a consignment type shop, you need to establish a booth.  If you are selling a craft shows, you will need to locate them, get registered (well in advance for most) and prepare your booth display.  If you are going to sell out of your home, you will need a corner or room where you can be organized enough to find everything you need at a moment's notice.  You'll be surprised how many customers will pop over to get another bar of soap.

These are some ideas that you will need to think about before you begin starting a soap making business.  It is by no means the complete exhaustive list, but many of the main ideas you should consider.

If you are unsure about starting a soap making business (maybe you've never made soap or made a successful batch of soap) you can check out my website at How to Make Soap.  There I offer an on-line or DVD video tutorial about soap making and I include everything you need to know to make soap successfully from the very first batch.  Dozens have learned how to make soap using this video and many are now "making real money" selling soap.  I include everything you need to know to begin a home based soap making business.