Teach Soap

I was doing the math tonight on how much my ingredients cost me per bar of soap. I arrived at two figures: one recipe without an EO and the same recipe with an EO. The difference in price is crazy! WITH an EO more than doubles my cost per bar of soap.

So, all of you out there who sell your soap: do you charge less for a naked soap than an EO/FO soap? Also, can someone talk about the profit margin when using EO's. From a PURELY business standpoint it doesn't even seem cost-effective to use EO's at the prices I see people selling their soap. But this obviously can't be as there are many successful soaping shops and businesses. I'd just like to dialogue with someone who has experience!

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Soapmaiden (Natalie)

Hi Natalie! I just started selling my soap and I understand what you are talking about. I haven't been using EOs for that reason. Even some FO's are pretty pricey! I'm currently selling all of my soap for one price (about 3x what it cost me to make). The ones that are unscented or that have less expensive FOs will make up the difference for the soap with the more expensive scents. At this point I'm not trying to make a bundle of money - I just want my sales to cover my costs. I live in an area where no one will buy a $6 bar of soap, so it would be ridiculous for me to even ask that much.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

I hear ya. I'm thinking I would like to do the same thing at first when I start selling -- not use EO's until I've made a bit more profit and can handle it. There are plenty of ways to color and maybe slightly scent soap with powdered botanicals and infusions that I think make very attractive soap. I also can't see my soap going for $6.00 a bar. Sound like you have a good (and smart) start.

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Soapmaiden (Natalie)

I purchased most of my colorants (oxides, ultramarines, etc.) when they were on special or being clearanced. I also buy many of my FOs when on sale/clearance. I've had a few that were odd (one that smelled like maple syrup OOB and ended up smelling like cinnamon apples in the soap), but most of the scents I bought this way have been very nice.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

I sell some of my unscented for .50 to a 1.00 less depends on what in them. I sometimes use nicer oils or organic pumpkin, carrot or butters that drive the price back up, but if not I cut the cost. I sell most of my bars for 4.50 unless I have special oils like hemp as it is expensive, than the price is 5.00 per bar. It cost me on average approx a 1.00 per bar.

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Four Seasons Fine Handcrafted Soaps
& Specialties, Inc.
Laugh, Love, Live!

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I soap therefore I am.

Karri I offer discounts for holiday bags of 3 full size bars and a small molded one in gift bags. I really do not sell much off my website, most of my business is word of mouth and home parties. I like to keep it personal and like the interaction with my peeps I stink at math but wish I enjoyed it like you.

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Four Seasons Fine Handcrafted Soaps
& Specialties, Inc.
Laugh, Love, Live!

Karri, I've been throwing in a free bar (my choice) if someone buys 5 or more bars. I don't advertise that, I just do it. Kinda like BB's free samples.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

i give samples too. not a full bar, but my samples are pretty beefy. i can't tell you how many people have written to me to thank me for the sample. people love samples.

to get my prices, i use soapmaker software to figure out the cost ( i still hope i get everthing) of my recipe. then i plug that info into a spread sheet where i add a small amount i calculated for overhead, then multiply that by 3.5 for retail and 2 for wholesale. since i have to collect sales tax for my state, i also have another column to figure that out.

now my way of doing it is waaaay convoluted. not sure if i even do it right, so if anyone has any other suggestions, please let me know.

i do use EOs and FOs and i agree with Karri. people will buy poop on a shingle if it's presented correctly.

never sell yourself short or think your product isn't "worth" being sold for a certain price. speaking from experience, that thought will flow through to your customers and then they won't buy anything at any price. remember, your hard work IS worth it.

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~Shell

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I soap therefore I am.

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CP newbie who's turning into a soaping addict!

I usually buy my EO's in lb. quantities except for the very pricey ones. Then again the really pricey ones don't go in soap but leave on products like lotion.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Yeah I've only used cinnamon/clove at very low concentrations so far and they still seem to come through in the soap. And definitely full strength on the citrus! I've been making soaps since around May and none of them have lost their scent but like you say, it's all "R&D" right now. LOL. I keep "checking on" my older soaps to see how they're holding up!

But you have me rethinking my use of middle notes because they are the most common (I buy more) and maybe I've been using them at unnecessarily high concentrations. i.e. Does lavender really need to be full strength?

I've got a 1/2 oz of cardamom from NDA I'm dying to use in a milk and honey soap or something warm like that but I'm struggling to justify it! So much money for that teeny bottle and how much soap can I reasonably scent with it? It's a dilemma! I'll of course blend it with something else (cinn/clove maybe) but I'm stuck ... use it in soap or make a nice body butter or??

Karri

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I soap therefore I am.

Even though Lavender is considered a middle note, I use it at full strength as it can fade.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

Thanks Irena! I've been using it full strength but was worried it would knock people over because to me it smells really strong.

Do you guys find that you can smell your soaps in a way others cannot? i.e. to me the scent is very strong in almost all of them (just EOs) but I find lots of other people have to really inhale the soap to notice the scent as much. Of course when the soap is lathered in water the scent seems to come through more too. But it's interesting to me how NOT sensitive most people's noses are. I can smell EVERYTHING ... stuff people can't smell at all sometimes. (Pregnancy appears to have made my sniffer incredibly sensitive!)

Karri

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I soap therefore I am.