# How long did it take you...



## jimandpj (Mar 11, 2008)

How long dd it take you to sell your first 500 bars of soap? 

1 month? 6 months? 1 year? still haven't gotten there yet?

Since I've decided to start selling soap, I'm trying to set some goals. I understand that we all go after selling soap differently. I'm not trying to get a formula or anything. I'm just curious how long it has taken others to get going.

Thanks for the input!
PJ


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## Guest (Jun 25, 2008)

PJ, I think I only sold a little over 850 bars my first year. I did four shows and had two small stores. At that time I only made four fragrances, 4oz bars in organza bags for $5/ea.

Christy


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## Becky-DixieDoesAlpines (Oct 26, 2007)

Six months for me. I keep revamping my goals. I just upped my goal to try to get an additional $500 each month in gross income. Now to see if I can meet it
Becky


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## Kalne (Oct 25, 2007)

Sometime during my first year. But I have not sold much this year at all. Spring shows were dismal and the weather has kept me from half the market days. Add that to trying to sell the house/move and I haven't been trying to sell much anyway.


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## jimandpj (Mar 11, 2008)

Thanks for the replies.

I decided to start selling soap mid April. Since then I have made 683 bars of soap. (I think it's having a large family - I always do things supersized. ) 

So far I've sold 48, given away 6, and have another 20 bars going on the shleves in two small stores this week. That leaves me with 615 bars of soap in inventory (410 are still curing). I've got my first show this weekend - I've got 205 bars to take with me.

Now that I've got some inventory, I need to stop making and get busy marketing.I'm just having so much fun making this stuff! And that has nothing to do with the fact that the children are not allowed to bother Mommy while she's soaping. 

So - time to set some hard number goals! I was thinking 500 bars by Christmas - but didn't know if I was just setting myself up for disappointment.

PJ


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

I never thought of it in those terms and still don't. If you are going to do shows, than how many shows can you do, can you get into the shows, do you have a nice enough setup to sell compared to what others are doing? Can you do a couple shows a month? If 10% of the people who come to the show buy one bar of soap can you live with that income? I think those who do shows don't have any idea how much time they are not being paid for sitting at shows, paying for all the setup and fees....it was never an attractive idea for me.

My goals were always about getting into stores, I just had no idea that they would all be in other states, I do have some in Texas. But what it taught me was to not consign and to not stock stores, everybody gets their orders sent USPS. So my goals are always the same, to be able to soap everday during the week, to keep enough soap to have that 100 bars per scent buffer so that I can add another store, and still keep that buffer. But it also means being able to stock all the stores and still have soap for all the gals who rewrap my unwrapped soap for sales before christmas, and then by the 2nd week of January to be able to restock all my stores, have soap for Valentines, Easter, Mothers Day and Fathers Day with minimal soaping days because of kidding season, folks picking up kids, trips to the airport and at least 1 or 2 goat shows. I hit a wall in April this year and will have to soap bigger batches all summer when usually I didn't start soaping big until August or so, have more soap put away both wrapped and unwrapped. 

Last October I had 10, 36 bar boxes of each of my 30 scents (20 boxes of my best sellers)....this year I want 20 boxes of all scents, using the ones that don't sell out Christmas to be used for the other 4 Holidays. With 350 bars at least of OMH, I had one bar left the day after christmas and was soaping the next day...I remember telling Sara "can you believe I only have one bar, one bar!". Welcome to our madness. Vicki


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## jimandpj (Mar 11, 2008)

That was a great reply, Vicki. Thanks for the insights.

No - with eight young children, shows are definitely not reasonable for me on a regular basis. The main purpose of this one is to get out there with all my different scents to see which ones sell well. I'm still trying to determine which scents to offer.

You've given me lots to think about...

PJ


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## Becky-DixieDoesAlpines (Oct 26, 2007)

PJ, you are starting by making soap then selling. I fell into selling because I gave some soap away and they asked to buy more and the entire time I have been soaping I have been trying to catch up!
I am always running low or even out of scents as my sales keep increasing ( which I am very thankful for, not complaining!).
So you are doing this smart.
I SHOULD be thinking about and making fall scents now but I'm still soaping summer scents because I am low on lots of them. 
I probbaly will not make any fall soaps till after I get home from nationals.
Becky


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## sunnygrl_ks (Oct 30, 2007)

I agree, I never really thought about how much soap I made or how fast I achieved a certain amount. I think the first time I really thought "hey I'm selling soap!" was when I counted up last spring and realized that I had made 800 lbs. of soap for the fall / christmas season, and was out and needed to rush and get more made for the spring.


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