# The "get rich quick" item



## jimandpj (Mar 11, 2008)

In the short amount of time we've been doing shows (3 years), it seems to me that there is always the latest "get rich quick" booth setup. A couple of years ago it was jewelry. Everybody and their brother thought they could make their fortune stringing beads together and selling them at craft shows.

In our area (Indiana) it seems to me that has switched over to soap. Everybody is making soap and trying to sell it. It hasn't hurt our business, but I'm curious if people are seeing that in other areas of the country too? I've been told by several people (including one who copied my soap and plagiarized my website) that I made it look so easy they wanted to make and sell goat milk soap too. Ummm... thanks? LOL

What about you? Are you seeing more people getting into soapmaking trying to get rich quick?

PJ


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## adillenal (Feb 6, 2009)

Yes, it is the same here. Course there are still one zillion jewelry booths at every show.
BUT at a small show where I have been the only soap seller for the past five years, it hurts my sales when 3 more soapers pop up for the busy season. Every bar or bottle of lotion they sell is coming from sales I would have made. But I figure I will continue on. I am doing alright, not hurting too bad but they won't be around when my February cshow circuit starts. 
And customers are fickle. They buy soap from the first booth they come to here. Then when they get to me, they go "Oh I didn't know you would be here." I am always here. I always know there are other soapers even if I don't get around to check cause I hear comments, "More soap." as they walk on by.


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## Guest (Dec 3, 2011)

Here too, but most of them don't stay in business long.. one because they don't get rich, two because they find out it's hard work to stay in business... I have had so many people say to me that they want to be just like me... they have no idea how much they don't sometimes LOL.. 
I know of three others just in the last six months that shut down... Oh they even wanted their own goats... 
I had a guy I worked with tell me that I must be making a fortune for what I was selling a bar of soap for.. he told me he wanted to become a partner in my business and my response to him was sure this is what we will do
1. Need you to show up at my place a 5 am to milk the goats (need the milk for the soap)
2 After you are done, you clean the barn ( they don't produce well if wormy and live in bad conditions) need the milk
3. If you are lucky we can have some coffee now and lunch
4. Need you to trim all hooves, worm goats and clean buck barn
5. Now maybe we can get in the house make a batch of soap and wrap three hundred bars... that will take a few hrs and of course there is cleanup after
6.Before we do that I need some capitol from you to pay the bills, goat feed, bedding and that bill for soap supplies for a few hundred dollars too.. I mean if you want to be my partner, you have to shuck out some money like I did....
7. Oops, its time to go milk again, fill the grain bin and go to hardware store (something broke in the barn) and need you to go pick up 500 lbs of grain and carry it in the grain room in the barn..
8. Now its time to sit down and plan for the next soap show and get to bed because its past midnight..and do taxes... 
Can we say get up and do this again.. tomorrow..And this was a slow day, just wait until kidding season... and work calls because you have to go in the do overtime..So you get behind in soaping and barn chores..
He looked at me and said no thanks.. I know I just make a ton of money...Laughing.. they have no idea..
They want to be just like you....


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## carlidoe (Jul 30, 2010)

I'm not seeing any soap in my area, but still tons of jewelry. I was by Austin not long ago and there were two other soapers there. One was CP Vegan soaps and the other was MP, kid type soaps. People in my area still think I'm a nut for milking goats, so even though my soap has caught on, it will be a while before anyone around here will buy their own goats and make soap.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Husband and I have been doing mini vacations all year, although I don't go to farmers markets to see what is going on at venues like that, I can tell you that even in health food stores, privately owned, we rarely see goatmilk soap in a retail setting. We will be going to San Antonio for this reason before Christmas...and North Carolina, or is it South in Feburary before the kids are born.

We do see 'grandmas lye soap' which is sort of a novelty soap that when asked has few sales "we maybe get a new box once a year right before Christmas" it's not repeat sales as though someone is actually using it to bathe.

So like all of those I have tried to help learn how to do this, soap classes, marketing and getting their products out there, at least for where we travel and have gotten stores, most are using the internet and farmers markets as the only way of selling their products. So there is still a huge market in wholesale and I am only to happy to fill that need


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## jimandpj (Mar 11, 2008)

Vicki - I agree. It's still wide open. Canus is the only big one out there that I've seen and I'm not impressed with the quality.

Barb - I LOVE people like that. We get them all the time. Your response was perfect! It's one of our frustrations that people perceive us to be "rich" based on the fact that we sell soap. They have no idea of the expenses and labor involved. None whatsoever.

I've actually had so many requests for people wanting "to sell soap just like you do" that I've instituted a consulting policy. So far, nobody has taken me up on it. That shows me how serious they are and that it is just "get rich quick" and they're not serious about building a business.

LaNell - that's not good. Are you doing anything to try to encourage repeat sales? A newsletter or anything?

PJ

PJ


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## adillenal (Feb 6, 2009)

PJ-
I have repeat sales from a lot of customers. BUT for some reason there seems to be a lot of people around here that think goat milk soap all comes from one place so they buy the first one they see. I have even had someone pull a label out of her purse so she could get the same scent. Only problem was it was not my label. She just knew she had bought it from me since it was goat milk soap and my sign said goat milk soap. Oh the uneducated. 
I have been selling at the same shows for five years. You would think they would recognize my huge banners with Chloe the goat's picture. Remember I do this on the side. I have a fulltime job so do not have much extra time to do much of anything. Oh, for retirement to get here. Getting closer. Then I can hit the venues I am building up to do.I have a plan.


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## nightskyfarm (Sep 7, 2009)

Right now, there is very high unemployment and small-time businesses are popping up out of the woodwork. 4 new cheese-makers are coming online in my area very soon as told to me by my inspector and cheese-making in this state has very expensive start-up costs that can cripple a new business; I know how hard it is. When once area cheese-makers would talk to each other about the next season's market plans, that is no longer happening. I am shadowed at every venue when once I was not, just makes it that much harder for all of us to earn a living. My soap sales are steady and there are less soap-makers than cheese-makers and many, that do both as I do. The economic climate will weed out the ones that can not make their businesses work for many reasons, but it will take a bit of time. If you can weather the storm you will come out just fine, in fact in better shape than before. It is for these reasons that I diversified my farm offerings to include excess garden harvests, cheese of course, bath and body items made using our own soap and milk, milk-fed pork and pastured chickens. You need to hang on to the customers you have and bring in new ones any way you can.


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## jdranch (Jan 31, 2010)

jewelry  and lots of it. I did a small show today and was between 2 jewelry people. Started looking around and every other booth had jewelry. Not kidding or stretching the truth. 

I will tell ya though, 2 times this year I have been near booths that sell premade mixes (soups, cookies, dips, etc). They are bringing in $$$. Both were two of the busiest booths at each of the shows.


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## Faye Farms (Sep 14, 2009)

Same here. I used to be the only soaper around. Now there are a few others. At least for the time being I have an awesome farmers market and manager. She won't let in any other soapers. The only other soaper that I see that could be any sort of competition actually took over selling at the small farmers market that I dropped this summer. She is driving 40-50 miles to get to it. I haven't really noticed they are taking away any business from me though. My biggest peeve...."oh, what a lovely hobby you have". GRRRR! Bills depend on getting paid because of my lovely hobby.


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## Whitney (Oct 27, 2007)

Yes, I'm noticing lots of new soapers in our area (I'm not too far from PJ so likely we are seeing some of the same ones). It's not hurting my business....I'm selling soap almost faster than I can keep it stocked and that is with minimal marketing. I'm not doing any shows this year. My wholesale accounts and repeat customers are keeping my inventory moving. 

I have new molds on order and soon will be able to greatly increase production. I can't wait for that.


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## hsmomof4 (Oct 31, 2008)

> She just knew she had bought it from me since it was goat milk soap and my sign said goat milk soap. Oh the uneducated.


I had one like that today, except that she originally bought her soap in FLORIDA. You'll see that I live in Kansas....but hey, it's practically the same place. (I was thrown off at first, though, because my BIL and family live in FL, and my SIL looooooves my soap, so I thought maybe they had somehow gotten some from her.)

I haven't seen any new soapers here (and depending on your perspective, I'm the "new" soaper) but oh, a ton of jewelry at the craft shows. A ton.

On the bright side, a buyer from a grocery store chain here inquired about our products today and is going to give my card to the buyer for the appropriate department. They have two different chains, actually, one higher-end with 11 stores and another with 49 stores. He said, "We already carry Zum, but we are always looking for something new." (Zum is local here, being from KC, MO.)


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## Trysta (Apr 5, 2011)

:rofl :rofl :rofl Getting RICH _quick_ with soap making or any other farm related business? :rofl :rofl :rofl 
I am still working on that (been doing that for the last 24 years) and I'll let you know when I have figured it out!


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## Jenny M (Nov 21, 2009)

I see a new soaper once in a while but they don't seem to stick with it. There are only two within 150 miles of me that I even know of. One just does it as a hobby & she stops by the market to talk soap with me once in a while. Then there are the sister wives from Colorado City but I'm not sure how wide their market can ever be since they are limited by what they can do & everyone has such an aversion to the whole Warren Jeffs mess over there.

The "here today, gone tomorrow" soapers seem to lose interest as soon as they find out you have to actually work at it. They usually show up with a few fancy wrapped bars & nice biz cards. Expect to just set up a website & fill orders. They didn't sign up for all the grunt work.

I love to walk into an event & see all those jewelry & home decor booths. And fine art? Yay! No one has money for that stuff these days. People come to those shows wanting to buy something. My soap & shea cream fit in their budget & it's something they can use.

Yes, I'm in this for the income & it is a big part of our income. I make a good product & have a great customer base. It gives me some flexability in my schedule so that I can deal with my DH's many health problems when I have to. I work some part of every day on one aspect or another. And schlep product to shows, markets, wholesale accounts. Whatever it takes. But getting rich? I must have missed soap class that day.


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## jimandpj (Mar 11, 2008)

I have come across so many people who think, "oh, it costs me $1 to make a bar of soap and I can sell it for $5. So all I have to do is sell 5,000 bars of soap and I can make $20,000."

I just have to laugh and wish them luck. They have no idea the costs involved with making and selling 5,000 bars of soap. let alone the work!!

Ultimately, I just take it as a compliment that I have made it look so easy and I keep on doing what I was doing. 

PJ


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## LynninTX (Oct 25, 2007)

way more jewelry and baked goods than soapers still in my area....

I was the only one at market with soap yesterday... and there were 5 I think with jewelry.... and there were 5 I saw with baked goods. We have been the only ones too with fiber arts until last week... and she's only here until Christmas and our items are very different. 

There are 2 with pottery... at least 2 with metal work... at least 2 with glass work...


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## hsmomof4 (Oct 31, 2008)

Oh, I forgot about the bows!! I was at a very small Christmas market today and I think that there were three different bow vendors. You know, the ones to clip in your little girl's hair. Bows and ribbons, ribbons and bows. Everywhere. But there were even more jewelry vendors.


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## LynninTX (Oct 25, 2007)

no bows or anything like that... interesting... I think I might expect them.


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## Kalne (Oct 25, 2007)

I have seen a few come and go. At my main market there is one other who has gm soap and hers is just a side item to selling cheese. She's been at it longer than me I think. Another lady has all soap, eos only, very different from mine and she only goes through the 4th of July. Says it's too hot after that. LOL And she's been around for a long time and is in the local health food stores that I can't get into. One other has soap as a side item that she just started putting out this year (main item is plants).

Most of the shows I do might have one or two other soap tables. Always someone different each year though.

I have to say that I love all the jewelry vendors!!! LOL And I like to shop with every one of them! Each usually has very different styles and it's nice to have such a selection to choose from.


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## LynninTX (Oct 25, 2007)

I prefer the winery to the jewelry vendors... LOL


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## [email protected] (Sep 18, 2008)

Not here. Well, except for SherrieC, but we just don't do the same shows.  There is one lady at Farmer's Market that has goat milk soap, she's been doing it longer than me, but it's a very, very small part of her sales. She mainly does veges, plants, apples/cider in the fall--LOTS of apples and cider. Her bars of soap are very small--2oz, and up until this year they were unwrapped, in small totes with the scent written on the front of the tote. This year she started wrapping and labeling them. ??? She only charges about 1.50 each, so with the added expense wrapping them, I don't know how she even comes out ahead.
My mom sells at a large market in Ft Meyers, FL, and says there are always 2 or 3 other soap vendors there, but they aren't goat milk and not nearly as professional with no other products (lotion, candles, etc). 
With trying to do this full time and not knowing when or IF I'll get my unemployment, I'm working on expanding my product line and doing more shows, bizares, festivals, (I HATE selling. :/ I'm doing a show this week-end and next and will be lucky to make back what I paid them. Half the vendors pulled out today.) I need to get some wholesale accounts, but with the economy no one is wanting to invest in *new* inventory. 
Definitely haven't figured out the 'get-rich-quick' part of this. LOL


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