# Selling soap



## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

I would like to start making milk-based soaps and sell them at next year's farmers market. Does anyone here sell their soaps and if so, is there a good market for them? Thanks!


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Yes and it depends.

In Oregon, you would probably be better off trying to sell an all vegetable oil based milk soap than a soap that contains lard or tallow. Pity, imo, my lard based soaps outsell my all veggie soaps hands down.

Is there a good market for them?? Depends on your marketing and your soap recipe. It took me 2 years of playing with different oils to develop a soap recipe that is unique for me that had all the qualities I was looking for. YMMV.

Good thing about soap ... it doesn't go bad! Even if you can't sell it, you'll have plenty for gifts.

Good Luck!


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

Hi Cyndi,
Why do you think vegetable oil based soaps would do better than lard based soaps here in Oregon? Is it the demand for them here or a regulation I'm not aware of? I don't want to make a bunch of soap and then not be able to sell them!


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

When my son sold my soaps for me at a flea market, he told me that many people prefer soap without animal fats in them. It is a pity because the inclusion of lard in the ingredients makes a wonderful bar. You could try including a couple of recipes with lard to see how it sells.


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

I wonder why that is. Did he ever say if anyone gave him a reason why? Common sense would tell you that animal fat soap would be better for your skin. Shoot, there are people injecting themselves with fat to make themselves look younger all the time but they don't want fat in their soap? Strange...


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## hiddensprings (Aug 6, 2009)

I think part of it is that people associate aminal fat with the stuff they cut off their steak or a by-product of sorts :>) I have a neighbor who raises beef cattle and sells it by the "cut". She has asked if I'd be interested in using the beef tallow for my goat's milk soap. While it would be much less expensive to use then the other oils I purchase, my customer base basically said "no way". (I surveyed the ones on my mailing list about using it) So, I figure, why mess with the good thing I've got going.


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

Well, I don't blame you for not wanting to mess with your customer base. I wonder how many people would ask me what it was made of though...


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

I think a lot of the people who buy there are vegans. They don't want any dairy products in their soap either. I always list the ingredients on the labels of the soap, so they would know the ingredients by reading the list.


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## PennyJ (Mar 31, 2008)

emeraldcowgirl said:


> Well, I don't blame you for not wanting to mess with your customer base. I wonder how many people would ask me what it was made of though...


I have many people ask what my ingredients are. LOL....people will ask all sorts of questions, some good, some really off the wall. I've been praised, criticized, told to never use certain fragrance oils because the soap smells awful, and what was funny about that, was the soap was my lavender soap which is my hands down best seller :teehee: I make goat milk soap and get asked why, what the benefits are. Potential customers have asked why they should pay what I sell my soap for as opposed to just going to walmart and buying a package of Dial or Safeguard. I give them an honest answer, tell them they certainly aren't obligated to purchase anything from me, and then I answer them honestly what the benefits of my soap are as opposed to store purchased "soap". When you research your facts, your oils, what makes them beneficial, the talking up of your soap will come naturally, and it will show when talking with people. Don't know if you want to fragrance your soap....there are many options as far as using essential oils or fragrance oils, and those can become pricey and tend to be trendy at times. There are certain fragrances that I make as my "staple" soaps, others I make according to seasons/holidays. 
Best of luck to you!


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

The pacific northwest trends towards all-vegetable soaps, as does southern CA.

When I started making soap in '99, I started with lard, then added various percentages of other oils. I created a recipe I was satisfied with, then jumped on some soaping forums and got a lot of bad information about animal oil based soaps so I switched out the lard to palm oil.

My soap testers (of all ages, skin types and skin colors) knew immediately when I switched to palm oil. Not because I told them the ingredients, but because it left most of their skin dry & ashy, especially women over 40 and women of color. My experiments with soaping recipes started over at that point. I never could get a recipe that contained palm oil as nice as the ones that contained lard.

I do have 2 soap recipes that are all vegetable in nature (100% olive oil Castile and a Neem Castile that is 85% OO and 15% Neem Oil).

Most of my customers these days are only concerned about the scent of the soap. I's say less than 10% are concerned with the ingredients. The lard I use is rendered from our own organically raised hogs. Folks that might not necessarily initially like lard in their soap are very pleased that is from our own hogs.

In my quest for _my _perfect soap recipe, I created an Excel spreadsheet that gave the percentages of the various fatty acids in the recipe. Eventually, this became the basis of SoapCalc. When Ken asked me if he could use my spreadsheet for an online lye calculator, I said yes with the stipulation that it be available for free. The rest is history. Ken has taken my simple spreadsheet and made it into the very best lye calculator on the internet.

On my soapmaking page, I have pictorials of making milk soaps, as well as recipes and suppliers.


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

Cyndi, I have always wondered who to thank for SoapCalc and now I know. Thank you so much. This is the lye/soap calculator that I depend upon.:thumb:


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

Ken is who you should thank for SoapCalc. I uploaded my Excel based lye calculator on my yahoo group Tallow_Soapers back in 2001 or 2002. Ken is a member of my group. He started with my excel sheet, but added a lot more to it. I was just a piece of the puzzle.

I wrote my Excel lye calculator so I could further examine the fatty acids in my soap recipes from 1999-2001. Dirk of MMS asked about perhaps including the FA in his calculator, but ended up not doing it. Diane came out with SoapMaker in 2002, I think. I know it was about the same time, if not a bit after my TS_Calc became public. This is why when Ken approached me about using my data and formulas on TS_Calc, I told him that it would need to be available for free.

We all got to give back, ya know?


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

Thank you so much, Cyndi!


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

emeraldcowgirl said:


> Hi Cyndi,
> Why do you think vegetable oil based soaps would do better than lard based soaps here in Oregon? Is it the demand for them here or a regulation I'm not aware of? I don't want to make a bunch of soap and then not be able to sell them!


As for making a bunch of soaps, and not being able to sell them, you probably should NOT sell your first 2 or 3 dozen batches. Good soapmaking takes time and experience. You need to come up with a recipe you like working with, then give away bars to friends, family, neighbors, & whoever else will be willing to test it for you. Be sure to get lots of feedback. Take plenty of notes. Tweek your recipe till most seem happy with it. Then make more, and let a few bars from each batch sit or 6-8 months, to see how they do over time. In the mean time, read everything you can on soapmaking, research suppliers & compare prices, come up with a catchy name & a business plan, and by next year you should be ready to sell.

Soaping is fun and addictive, but if you want to make a business of it, you need to now your product in and out, and be able to answer any questions buyers might have.


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

Thank you, Tinker. I appreciate the advice.  I'll absolutely make sure that until my recipes are perfected, I'll only use them as test batches.


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## mountainlaurel (Mar 5, 2010)

Two years ago, I took a soap class, practiced making soap all winter, gave it away to friends for feedback. My friends told me what they liked and didn't like such as I make round bars cause that's what most people liked ect.

Last summer, I sold at the farmers markets for the first time. This year, I'm there again I have my recipe but it's the scents that seem to sell it. I believe that I've only had two people walk away because I use lard. They weren't from around here. One walked because I use shea butter. I think she was allergic to it.

Go for it, it's fun and you can always use up what didn't sell:grin:


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## Jesus Saves (May 31, 2005)

My customers like vegetable based soaps also. I have quite a variety of scents so more people have something they like. I only use essential oils and natural fragrances. I market to the "naturals", simple, and rustic.

I agree with needing to know your product and be able to answer questions.


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

I'm thinking that since this is a hobby I really want to do, and I believe in using lard, I'll just make the soaps the way I want and if people buy them, then awesome. Maybe I'll make a soap just for people who don't want lard in their soaps, like a vegan-friendly soap or something.


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## Tinker (Apr 5, 2004)

It is good to offer variety. I don't care at all for Castille, but make it because I usually have people ask for it. I sell it unscented, and also do an unscented goatsmilk & oatmeal. Lots of people have sensative skin, so they look for things without color or scent. But I agree that it is the scent that sells the soap.


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## Betho (Dec 27, 2006)

MullersLaneFarm said:


> In my quest for _my _perfect soap recipe, I created an Excel spreadsheet that gave the percentages of the various fatty acids in the recipe. Eventually, this became the basis of SoapCalc. When Ken asked me if he could use my spreadsheet for an online lye calculator, I said yes with the stipulation that it be available for free. The rest is history. Ken has taken my simple spreadsheet and made it into the very best lye calculator on the internet.


How interesting! I'm so glad you let him do that... I have used soapcalc for years and was always very thankful it was there!


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

When you sell your soaps you have to have a label with ingredients. You don't have to give the recipe, just the kinds of fats you use and essential oils or fragrances. But, don't put _*lye *_in the ingredients. If you label the product as "soap" then it is known that there is lye in it. Otherwise, people think there is free lye in the soap and they will get burned.


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

Thank you, Maura! So I should put in what kind of fats and oil I used as well as what essential oils I added, right? Do I also have to put in that I used borax and glycerin? Would I have to put on the label that the soap contains "beef lard" or would simply saying "tallow" be enough?


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

I would list the oils and fats as saponified oils of etc., etc., etc. I suggest that you use the INCI names for all the ingredients and list them in the order of volume used.

http://www.oshun.bc.ca/inci.html


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## stamphappy (Jul 29, 2010)

I've purchased from some local gals at our Farmer's Market. They also have a website at www.barefootsisters.com so you can see some of their marketing aspects such as organic, fair trade, and I don't see anywhere about animal fats. 

As a purchaser, I would not mind if my soaps had animal fats or not. I thought at the Farmer's Market they sold for $3.50 each but their website says $4.50 so not sure if their prices increased or if it's an inperson price vs. online price.

Anyway, hope that helps.


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## lathermaker (May 7, 2010)

Maura said:


> When you sell your soaps you have to have a label with ingredients. You don't have to give the recipe, just the kinds of fats you use and essential oils or fragrances. But, don't put _*lye *_in the ingredients. If you label the product as "soap" then it is known that there is lye in it. Otherwise, people think there is free lye in the soap and they will get burned.


This is incorrect. If you list ingredients, even ONE,you have to list them all in descending order of weight, and that includes Lye (Sodium Hydroxide). Think of it like a cake mix. The mix contains baking powder, but once it is cooked, the baking powder turns into part of the cake.

Actually, all that you have to have on the label is what it is (soap) the weight, and your contact information. If you are calling the soap Goat Milk Soap, you have to list the ingredients because of the milk.
You can either use common names or the INCI names or a combo of both.

What's the big deal about trying to hide the lye???? IMO if you can't tell your customers the reason why it's listed on the label, you shouldn't be selling in the first place.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

In the USA, you don't _have_ to list your ingredients for Soap. But if you list one ingredient, you have to list them all.


Ooops, I see that Karla already addressed this.



Maura said:


> When you sell your soaps you have to have a label with ingredients. You don't have to give the recipe, just the kinds of fats you use and essential oils or fragrances. But, don't put _*lye *_in the ingredients. If you label the product as "soap" then it is known that there is lye in it. Otherwise, people think there is free lye in the soap and they will get burned.


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## emeraldcowgirl (May 23, 2011)

Ok, I'm starting to get it. lol Thanks!


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## Ellen West (Sep 17, 2010)

Emeraldcowgirl, just a mention here about what your customers might shy away from. Just like the BHG in milk, no proof, but BHG-free labeled products sell better. You have your vegans, animal rights folks, and even some religious feelings that slathering yourself with animal fat is dipping into the cannibal pot.

OTOH, some folks seek out things like lanolin, so I'd just check out your market.


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## Charleen (May 12, 2002)

In our area, to sell at ANY farm market you are required to have liability insurance. Our farm insurance (Farm Family Insurance) covers this but not all insurance carries will handle this. 

At the market - be prepared to answer all types of questions because you'll get all types of questions.

Soap & Cosmetic Labeling by Marie Gale is a great book! 

Because I am a label reader, I disclose ALL ingredients on my label. I'm not hiding anything and I also want to educate my buyer.


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## Maura (Jun 6, 2004)

You aren't selling lye. The lye has turned into soap. You label your product as soap. 
My labels read: Bubble Cottage/Olive Oil Soap/ with Coconut and Castor oils/Lavender & Orange e.o. This puts the highest amount first, and on down.

If I am arrested, I'll let you all know.


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## MullersLaneFarm (Jul 23, 2004)

There are different labels for different countries.

For the USA, you don't need to list all ingredients if your product is labeled as 'soap'.

However, if you list one ingredient, you must list them all in descending order.

On my soaps, my label says _"fragrance of the soap"_ followed by Milk Soap.

The individual soaps are not labeled with the ingredients, however, on my farmer's market stand is a flyer with the ingredients in my soaps.

The majority of my soaps are made using the same oils. The 'specialty soaps' are also listed on the flyer. I offer it to all customers, but most just glance at it and do not want to take a copy with them.


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## freegal (Mar 4, 2005)

I saw an ingredient list of "saponified oils of ..." which seems like a good way to put it.


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## 4nTN (Jan 28, 2005)

lathermaker said:


> You can either use common names or the INCI names or a combo of both.





What does INCI stand for?


Thanks, Sharon


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## linn (Jul 19, 2005)

International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients


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