# I'm in a happy panic!



## Halo-M Nubians (Oct 26, 2007)

I may have a wholesale account in the works. After much emailing the person at the other end got my samples and really likes them. She is starting a soap business in New York state..and planning to market to the big apple! This would be a private label thing and just one fragrance from me..it sounds like she's trying to get diverse products from all over.
Anyway, she wants 100 bars right away and is already talking much more and a 3 year contract! I'm a bit overwhelmed. Price is already figured out but does anyone have any thought on the contract. What should I have in there to protect me?
Also can anyone give me an idea of the type of production..I..one person can realistically do? If we do a contract I will definitely be buying some larger molds. Right now I'm using log molds that my husband made and he can easily crank out some more.


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## Guest (Aug 29, 2008)

I just wanted to congrat you Mishael! Yay your soap biz is coming along. Just wanted to smile for you . Tammy


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## Kalne (Oct 25, 2007)

Wooooo Whoooo! Good for you!


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## Carolyn (Oct 27, 2007)

How exciting!! Good for you!! Carolyn


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## Ravens Haven (Oct 26, 2007)

BRAVO!!!! That is really great news for you!


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## Sheryl (Oct 27, 2007)

:cool :cool :cool way to go girl! 

Sheryl


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

Good going!! Hope it pans out for you.


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## Belle (Oct 26, 2007)

That is great news, Congratulations!!!


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## homeacremom (Nov 6, 2007)

Great job! It is so exciting to have something turn around and start paying off!
If I had the molds and cure space I think I could handle about 35 lbs of soap every other day. At least that's what I have projected for MY life as it is right now, but I have small kiddos and most of the animal care/gardening to take care of. How much time it would take to soap depends on how many variations you do with that 35 lbs.


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## Halo-M Nubians (Oct 26, 2007)

She's even fine with having to wait for her first order since I actually sold out of the fragrace she want last weekend and have to wait for more to come

. I have a 5 year old and we are homeschooling kindergarten this year, Milking and chores, and I teach piano one day a week. But really I have plenty of time for this. Right now we're just doing 100 bars and then she want more in 8 weeks and gradually increasing the order from there. Right now just one fragrance..maybe 2-3 more in the future. Of course all this depends on her marketing ability so I really hope she's good at it! She sounds very motivated and wants her soap in 100 stores by next year!
Okay, I feel so undeserving of this. I've only been soaping 2 years...


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

Your better than she is and better than most of those who would buy , as they can't make soap.
Your soap is natural and healing so don't even think undeserving or put yourself down.


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## Guest (Aug 30, 2008)

:yeahthat If they knew how to make soap they wouldn't be buying from you. Undeserving would be like my SIL who feels its okay to sell soap she's never made, seen, or used. Thats undeserving.  Tammy


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## Sheryl (Oct 27, 2007)

You make good soap, or she wouldn't want it in the first place.! so go make it! Sell sell sell. Woo Hoo. You done good girl! Don't set yourself up for failure. You've got soaping tallent! Go for it.! 

I as soooooo happy for your success. Keep up the good work.

:newsflash your soap is good. :newsflash your customer likes it very much 

Get 'er done!!!

Congratulations
Sheryl


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Take a 3 and 1/2 gallon bucket, fill it with water, can you safely pour this in your molds without splashing or not being able to control it? Can you without help pour out of a 5 gallon bucket? This will be the cut off point of the amount of soap you want to deal with, and you want to pour into several molds, don't even think about 1 giant mold 

Are you offering up your whole line? If not than you only have to reproduce the soap she purchases time after time.

You not only have to be able to make soap that day but wrap the soap that you made 3 weeks ago, and ship soap. I had to stop soaping on Tuesdays and simply use it for reordering, packing boxes and shipping boxes, oh making shipping labels (USPS) and making my premade lye. But if you actually soap, you can easily put out big batches every 40 minutes. With my new molds I can easily put out 78 bars in 40 minutes times 4 hours, remember you have to cut and wrap each day also. Having enough cureracks (I have enough to do 5 double batches each day).

This is when a soap room becomes necessary, so you can keep all your supplies in one place and you don't have to put away your soaping instruments just to make dinner  

Good for you!!! Vicki

Also wanted to add, not sure what a contract like that would be for. Surely she cant' sell your soap if it doesn't move out of her store, and you don't want to sign a 3 year contract with her that includes a privacy aggreement (not only can you not tell anyone you sell soap to her but you usually have a certain mile radius that you can't sell soap in around her shop)...because who knows what will happen in 1 year let alone 3. Right now I have a health food store, near it is a very popular boardwalk which I will be visiting a shop there after the hurricane, was supposed to be this weekend. If I can get this tourist shop I will be dropping my health food store unless they give me some leeway with this new shop since their customers would not be visiting this place to purchase from, it's much more about tourists than locals. Vicki


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## Theresa (Oct 26, 2007)

Congrads!! That is so exciting to have someone interested in your soap. I agree with Vicki that 3 years is a long time and you never know what might happen. Be sure that if you do sign a contract that you can get out of it if you need too.
Theresa


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## Halo-M Nubians (Oct 26, 2007)

Right now she is taking it naked and only one scent. So that is a load off my mind..and thanks for the info Vicki that is helpful. I am STRONG!! But I think I'll need to upgrade to a commercial SB for sure!


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Not in a 3 1/2 gallon bucket for awhile but certainly if you move to a 5 gallon bucket. I hate the drill paddle combo that folks talk about using, they are messy and way overkill. Plus it's heavy on your hand. Nearly half my soap now is sold unwrapped, I love that because along with unwrapped it is also only sold cut and cured, not cleaned up even. Vicki


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## SherrieC (Oct 26, 2007)

Congratulations, You never know where the soap will take you. : ) 
I so need to get a commercial SB, I get all my molds clean and soap pots clean and ready to go for the next day, I usually Throw 8 quarts of milk in the sink in their baggies and start melting the solid fats. I then add the liquid fats. I have 6 large ss stock pots. I ought to move to buckets I have lots of them hmm. anyhow. I can't physically pour a double batch with my wrists out of the ss s pot. I usually make an unscented batch first then dump the melted oils from pan # 2 into the pan I just have soaped and poured and make a scent. Then I try to do the related soaps next like A batch of Lavender in pan # 3 and pour it, dump # 4oils into # 3 and do a Lavender blend, in that way I stretch my pans, and re melt fat in the still unscented clean pans. I kick out 168 bars in about 2 hrs, place my stock pans out in the laundry room to wash the next morning. wash up all other things. and done. I don't have enough molds to soap every day, I more try for 3 times a week. the other days are full of cutting soap, making lotions, shipping. etc. Soap wrapping I try real hard to do over in Elkhart at my store, the gals that work for me I show how I want it wrapped. There's way too much down time before 9am and after 2pm, and that's soap wrapping time. : ) Once in a while I call up the girls and we wrap soap at my kitchen table for around 3 hours. I have 3 girls lined up for this season. at 7 bucks an hour. well I've got to move time for church : )


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## Sheryl (Oct 27, 2007)

Wow, Sherrie. I didn't know you sold that much soap :shocked Three girls at $7 wow. You sell a lot of soap. You go girl!

Sheryl


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## SherrieC (Oct 26, 2007)

sheryl I don't sell "That" much soap I'm talking hiring the three of them for a few hours a week for wrapping in oct-dec. I do have three that work for me in the store, but mostly it's one gal thurs - fri, and a fill in when necessary. since I have to pay help, I think if I gross around 20,000 this year, I will pocket around 
$ 4000 thats crappy, but if I stop driving bus I have my business to fall back on and will pay myself then. It's part of my old homestead work from home philosophy find 10 differnt things to make a $ 1000 a year with and you'll make $10,000 off your homestead. Of course now it's outdated. More like find 10 things to make $ 3000 a year with and you can make enough money to live on maybe, if you grow your own food too. lol.


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## Sheryl (Oct 27, 2007)

Oh. I am sooo glad I don't drive a bus any more! Three years of teaching someone else's kids how to behave on a moving bus!!! Yikes!!! But at least you have a fairly good soaping business. Hopefully it will get better!!! :yeahthat

Sheryl


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Why do you clean your molds? Vicki


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## Halo-M Nubians (Oct 26, 2007)

Okay, why are red flags waving at me for some reason. Maybe I'm just jaded. Now they are trying to "deal". I have been offered $1100 (all up front) for 700 4.5oz naked bars. In other words half of that would pay for supples and shipping and the other half would be my "time". Now "they" are saying they only think they can market the 4oz bar for $3-Huh?


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## kidsngarden (Oct 28, 2007)

Run, now, run. Seriously, I am pming you. If this turns out to be who I think it is I will do what I thought I should have done and put these guys names plastered all over this board to avoid other people dealing with them


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## Halo-M Nubians (Oct 26, 2007)

Bethany!!! It is the same person...Please let me know more. If I need to sever ties with this person I need to do it ASAP!


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## SherrieC (Oct 26, 2007)

Oh no Misheal, thats a bummer. 
Vickie, I use the martha molds and sometimes they have a little soap residue in the corners or sides, I always put them in hot water and wash them. But didn't you say to not spray them I'ld ruin them? I've always used generic Pam on them. But just because you do something for 7 years doesnt' make it the Right or best way to do it ! Do you think I should Stop spraying my mm with pam and they would do better? Do they kind of "season" like a cast iron pan?


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## Kalne (Oct 25, 2007)

Ugh! I'm so sorry this has turned sour on you Mishael.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

No, you don't spray the Kelsie molds  I have to spray my MM to hold the parchment in the bottom, or to get the soap out. I don't bother with the sides. But no I don't wash my molds, I use my soap cutter to simply scrape them out. Now I would clean the mold if it was the only one left to use and had something like Dragons blood in it and I was pouring a white soap etc... But the less cleaning you have to do the better your molds get and less Pam you have to spray or lining you have to do. Clean molds even sprayed simply stick. I run a paring knife around the edges and using an unclean mold the soap will pop out, I have to parchment and spray clean molds. vicki


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## SherrieC (Oct 26, 2007)

Kay, I'll try it.


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