Soap Studio Tour - Our 1,500 Square Foot Space
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- Опубликовано: 31 май 2024
- We are so excited to show you around our soap studio! We moved into this space in April of 2021 and it's been integral to our growth. I'll walk you through the entire studio in detail, so you can see how we have everything set up, from our shipping station to our soap production area. We make over 50,000 bars of soap per year from this space and we have 6 people working in here on a typical day. Thanks for watching! :)
I've linked some of the things you'll see in our tour, in case you're interested:
Rollo Label Printer: amzn.to/3tNczX1
Kraft Tape Dispenser: www.uline.com/BL_7254/Uline-M...
Printer: amzn.to/46KwtRc
Soapmaking Buckets: amzn.to/46BGi3L
Soapmaking Scale: amzn.to/409ISLX
Heat Band for Drums: amzn.to/3FzO81Y
Immersion Blender: amzn.to/3tPPZx1
Coconut Milk: amzn.to/40eMKLR
Storage Shelves: www.webstaurantstore.com/rege...
Shelving Mat Overlay: www.webstaurantstore.com/rege...
Curing Racks: www.webstaurantstore.com/rege...
Trays for Curing Racks: www.webstaurantstore.com/bake...
See more supplies from this video in my Amazon shop:
www.amazon.com/shop/muddymint
Order my natural soapmaking book on Amazon here:
amzn.to/3uIOFN0
Get our original all-natural and palm oil free soap recipes here:
muddymint.com/collections/ori... 
Хобби
Sorry to hear you are closing your big soap studio. I love the size. I never have enough room. I completely understand your thinking for your decision. I've been making soap since 2005 and I just turned 70 this year. Sometimes I think why am I still doing this! My daughters and others always ask why I'm still doing it. I love doing it and don't plan to stop any time soon, even with worsening RA. I find a way to do things. I don't make soap in the volume that you do. It's just me. You'll still want to make soap I'm sure, just back to smaller volume you can keep up with. Good luck to you in your change and a great 2024!
Having room is key! I remember moving ten things around before I could even start making soap in our old studio. I love that you're still making soap and that you love it! I find it very relaxing and even therapeutic sometimes... just to get away from everything and let the soapmaking take over. I'm really looking forward to simplifying and getting back to smaller batches, more creativity, and making soap when I want! :)
I’m confused. You just shared your studio in this video and the comments seem to indicate you will no longer be there? Are you no longer in business?
@@kate4121 you responded to my comment rather than to them so she probably didn't see your comment.
ruclips.net/user/shortshqxLL62W64w?si=OW78xAjiacA7KmhT
@@kate4121 search their channel. They are closing. I discovered this video a few weeks ago and while searching for more videos saw that they are closing. I'm bummed out. This would have been a channel I would have really liked to follow.
Thank you for allowing us into your soaping studio. I learnt a lot and picked up some tips. The very next day I went into our soap studio at the bottom of our garden and reorganised everything. 😍
Aww, I love that! I hope it feels better now. Thanks for watching! 💜
Wow! This space is beautiful and so wonderfully organized. Thanks for the tip on your supplier for EO and FO. I will have to try them out.
Thank you so much! I'm glad you found some good tips in here. :)
This was so cool to see! Thanks for giving us a glimpse into your office space. Good for all of us to see who aren’t yet to this level 😅😊
Thanks for watching! :)
Beautiful!
Very cool! Thanks 😊
Thanks for sharing you space … lovely!❤
Thank you for sharing
Interesting, thank you!
Ok, I loved this tour! I make soap in my second kitchen, have scaled back down to word of mouth and family, and my happy place is my favorite place to be!
I love that you have a second kitchen! I had so much fun making soap at home for several years. Glad to hear it's your happy place!
I loved the tour. Thank you ❤❤
Thanks for watching!
Inspirational!! Thank your for the tour!!
Thank you for watching! :)
Great tour, thank you so much
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching! ❤️
Love this space! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks so much for watching! :)
Fantastic!!!
Thank you! :)
Thank you so much for the tour! It's fantastic to see the things you've done to scale up. Appreciate the behind the scenes look!
Thanks so much for watching! 😊
Loved this... thank you very much❤❤❤
Thank you for watching! :)
What a wonderful setup. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks so much for watching!
Thank you for your generous info sharing! So many things I’ve been wondering about that you answered. 😊
So glad it was helpful! ❤️
The business I worked for was busy enough to use a large storage unit, to buy in large bulk! Keep that in mind going forward!
That's a great idea! We've decided to scale back a lot, but I appreciate the input! :)
My goodness! The best studio tour! Thank you so much! Beautiful space.
Aww... thanks! :)
Love seeing your studio space! You are so organized!!!
Thank you! We try to be organized! It definitely helps with our days and getting soap made more quickly, but we could be even better. :)
Congratz on your space and great setup! Very proud of y’all and hope your business continues to grow! Hugz, Tree
So inspired by you, thank you for sharing
Thank you! ❤️
Thanl you for shating. Very enlightening tour.
Thanks for watching!
Absolutely fab set up, can't wait for your next update
Thank you! Hopefully it doesn't take us too long... :)
This is fabulous. Thank you Simi & Troy for always being so helpful. I love the shop tour and it gave me some great ideas. Can't wait for the book.
So happy to hear that! Thanks for watching. And, yes... the book! We are getting close to being done and it should come out in late May 2024. Phew! It's been quite a process, but I'm SUPER excited about it!!
Good AV got some ideas too thanks
Your soap studio is fantastic! Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for watching! :)
You guys are such an inspiration.
Aww, thanks!
Wow very nice! Goals!
Thanks!
I’ve been waiting for this vid!! 🎉 Thank you both for taking the time to share this with us. Beautiful studio inside + out! You guys are so organized! Looking forward to your book as well ❤️
Yay! Thanks for watching it! Now it's your turn. ;)
I have seen your video sooo many times . You are an inspiration Thanks
Aww, thank you! I'm so glad you find them helpful! :)
Thank you for you generosity in sharing your beautiful studio.
Thank you for watching! :)
I absolutely loved this studio tour. It’s the best I’ve ever seen. We’ll done guys!
Wow! Thank you! Really appreciate it. :)
Thank you Simi and Troy for this wonderful wonderful studio video tour. You always inspire me ❤
Thanks for watching and I'm glad you enjoyed our tour! :)
Love watching your videos! Super informational and lots of tips I can’t wait to incorporate into my own soap making!❤❤
Thank you! I'm glad you found it valuable! :)
Oh my....this is my dream place! Love it. ❤️
Thank you! It's a good reminder to remember that this was my dream place once upon a time too. :)
Thank you so much! I love your tour - and I especially love all of your awesome systems that you have in place! I'm going to try to incorporate some ! Thank you again!
Thank you for watching and I'm glad you found the tour helpful! :)
Great video! Your studio is super organized and clean!!!
Thank you so much! :)
Very cool!
Thanks!
Good luck, you place is amazing.
Thank you!! :)
Loved the tour. Working on getting bigger and appreciate the inspiration and tips. You have a great set up. ❤
Thanks for watching! I hope you found at least one valuable tip in here! :)
Congrats on your workshop; I am truly proud of you and your TEAM! Continued success! And Thanks for sharing!😊😊😊😊😊
Thank you!! :)
Hello! I watch you and is very inspirational. Thank you for let me know how it could work for me some day ❤
I started making soap 2 years ago and when I look back I feel proud of myself for what I've reached, and I keep on trying to make my little project my main economic support. So labs like yours show me it's possible. Thanks and congrats!!!
Silvana (an argentinean in Italy)
You should be proud! Starting a small business isn’t easy. Keep going and good luck to you! 😊
You can tell that you two plan and execute. Very efficient. Loved the tour!
Awww, thanks! It took us a while to get here, but it works pretty well now. :)
Lovely tour. Very informative. I aspire to be at this level next year.
Thank you and I think that's a great goal! A lot can happen in a year, especially if you set concrete goals for yourself. Good luck!
Confratulations - you are inspiration. BLESSINGS
Thank you! :)
I want my soap studio (life) to be this organized. 😍 Great tour, great vid.
Haha! There's always clutter lurking in the corners... ;) Thanks for watching!
Great video.🤗🇨🇦
You're both very inspiring! Take care and have a great 2024!
Thank you! Have a wonderful 2024 as well! :)
First viewing your chanel. Love your space and can't wait to watch more.😊
Thank you and welcome to our channel! :)
I love the relaxed, cozy feeling of this video. Getting into the professional side of a business but still being approachable and and easy to understand❤
I really appreciate that. Thank you for this kind comment!
Wowwww you have a wonderful studio. Thank you for sharing 😊
I love your style, you look calm and determined. Plus you are very beautiful.
Aww... thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed the tour! :)
Thank you for sharing your journey and your studio!! This gives me so much to look up to. This would be my limit haha
Thanks so much for watching! Yes, this is my limit too... haha! ;)
I read from your blog that you decided to move to a smaller studio, and I don't know if this youtube channel is going to continue or not, but if you do have plans on making more videos, I would like to suggest a video about packaging. Especially because you don't use plastic, it will be interesting to see how to wrap each bar, and then how you handle delivery. Thanks!
Thank you! Yes, we will be making more videos when we get back from vacation (hopefully a LOT more!) and a packaging video is a great idea. Thanks!
Thank you 😊 too much for this video
Thanks for watching! :)
love it all, and thank you for posting. We are building our workshop at the moment and this is insightful. Love that you are plastic free like us also.
Thank you! Good luck with your workshop - that sounds amazing to build something from scratch! :)
@@muddymintsoap two years and counting, but we'll get there. ❤
I am designing a soap studio, and this gave me many good ideas!
Glad to hear it! Thanks for watching and good luck with your studio! :)
We are so sad to hear your are closing as well. I recently found your soaps we moved from Colorado to build from the ground up. I'm working on building a small soap business and I am so inspired by the hard work you guys have done.
I know... it is sad in a lot of ways, but we're also really excited for what's to come (for starters - more RUclips videos!). Thank you for the kind words and for watching our channel!
Wow!!! I admire your work and your soaps. I am a small business, just started with soap making a couple of years ago. I love it. Thank you for your channel.
Thank you! I'm glad you found us and thanks for watching! :)
Just found you! How awesome!!
Yay! Welcome!
Obrigada por compartilhar sua empresa, foi muito útil pois estamos iniciando nossa saboaria Botanicaloe
Thank you for watching and good luck with your shop! :)
I really appreciate for your video sharing. You are sharing idea to help other people to start their own soap business. This sharing is really helping to build confident for other to start their own soap business. And not to be forget, thank you for Joanna the Soap Gal for her high spirit to keep sharing her experience in large scale soap making business.
Thank you! We appreciate that and thanks for watching! :)
Great job on the videos! I'm down in Walsenburg and getting with some goat ranchers from church, figuring out the process together. Recently started making my own videos as well and will plan to make some on soap making in the future. Thank you for the great tips!
Hi there! That sounds awesome to work with goat ranchers. Good luck with your soapmaking and your channel! :)
Awesome channel I just wish we got weekly videos from them considering they’re probably the best soap co channel on RUclips. ❤
Wow... really appreicate that - thank you! We are definitely going to be making more videos in 2024. You're in for a treat! ;)
Thank you for sharing. That was a fantastic tour of your soap studio. I am very small scale along with family members we do Maori art, kai and skincare in particular soap. I have been have some time out because of a big health issue. Feeling inspired by this video. 🌺🌺🌺
I love when soapmakers have a specialty product like that! I'm sorry to hear about your health issues, but glad you were a little inspired by this video.
We have a fantastic studio. Thank You so much for the tour! I would love to hear your story on how you started and built your business!!
That's a fun idea for a video! I started making soap as a hobby in March 2016 and opened an Etsy shop in August 2016. Lots of details after that, but that's how it began!
That is amazing!!! You are really an inspiration, not just to soap makers but to artisans in general. Congratulations on your success 🙌
Awesome video. Where can I get the water jacket tank?
Hi and thanks! We got our first one (the cocoa butter one) from Soap Equipment (soapequipment.com) and our second one (the shea butter one) from Discount Soap Equipment. I prefer the one from Discount Soap Equipment (discountsoapequipement.com), as it has a sturdier handle for pouring and just feels higher quality. If you look on those sites, look for oil/wax tanks and you'll find various sizes. Ours is the 20 gallon sloped bottom tank. :)
What a fantastic video! I always learn so much from you all. Very educational and thought provoking for a newbie like me. Thank you so much Simi & Troy! And I just realized I’ve seen your shop before. On Main Street right?
Yep! We're on Main right next to Dutch Brothers!
Yep I know exactly where you are. 😁
Watch a great set up you have well thought out
Thank you! :)
A M E I uau que incrível essa fábrica de soap um sonho de consumo já tô seguindo ❤🇧🇷
Thank you! ❤️
Would you be willing to make a video telling your story of why you started your business and how you grew your business into what it is today? As a soap maker I very much enjoy your videos and seeing how you have your production and shipping area set up!
Thank you so much for watching! That's also a great video idea... we have quite a few ideas for the new year and I'll add this one to the list. The why we started is easy... it was an accident! A hobby turned business, like so many others. But that's the best way, as it wasn't about money or success... it was just about making a good product for people and our growth was completely organic. More on that in upcoming videos. :)
Great video! I still use the nuture soap molds, if you ever wanted to sell these or some of these I would be interested.😊 You both are such good teacher’s! Hope you all have a wonderful day!
Thanks! We have a lot of people interested in our molds... haha! I'll let people know if/when we decide to sell them.
I did not know you can do a cutom blend thanks for informing me about that
You're welcome! As I mentioned, you do need to order a minimum of four drums at a time, if you're getting a custom blend from Soaper's Choice.
Love the tour. Thank you for sharing. Question. Do you have issues with your heat belts going out on your drums? Mine seem to burn out about every six months.
Thanks for watching! No, we've actually never had that issue! I linked the bands we used in the description. They've been great and are relatively inexpensive too. I think we have 3 of them and they've all worked well. One thing I can think of is what heat you need on your band? We set ours to about 90-100 F, since the hardest oil in our drums is coconut. If we had cocoa or shea in there, we'd probably have to set it higher and then maybe they would burn out? I"m not sure, but we've had these running non-stop for nearly 3 years without issue!
Very inspirational!!! I had no idea about mixed drums of oil, or the heating or the tanks for butters!!!
Where do you get labels from?
Thank you! Glad I could help! I want to do an entire video one day on what it takes to switch to drums, as I found the information lacking when I was doing it. Our soap labels are custom designed and printed at our local print shop. :)
Congratulations on the book, and thanks for the studio tour!! can I ask what size boxes you use for your retail small orders? having a hard time choosing the right size for shipping :)
Thank you so much! :) Our smallest box is 6x4x3 and fits up to four of our soaps exactly. We set it up that way on purpose, so I'd recommend wrapping up your soap the way you normally do for shipping and figure out what size box you need! I hope that helps!
Absolutely love your studio. Thank you for sharing it! You inspired me to get the custom oil blend from SC, they arrive tomorrow! I think it will be a huge time saver as well as $$. Can I ask what pump you use for your drums (if you like it) Thank you!
That's amazing!! Congrats! You will absolutely love it. We love our pump! It's the Blackmer AT-210A and we actually got it on Amazon. Here's a link: amzn.to/3w0De3G
@@muddymintsoap thank you!
Great tour Simi! I loved it! Wow! Yall have so much there and now knowing yall are scaling back, that will be quite a lot to get rid of and downsize and all. I can only imagine the process of all that. It is really neat to see all that though. I am still very very small and cannot even imagine having to get drums and order larger quantities of supplies, but you never know. Right now, I just do markets but am going to try online soon and am nervous about that. But like you, I don't want to get too big either. I like somewhat moderately small to medium size business. But I am really excited for you cause you are excited about going back to the smaller studio and I really hope you and Troy do more videos in the future that maybe lean more towards education and soap making and the like. You two are very good on camera! I also am looking forward to your book! I am really excited about that! You, along with Melissa at Goods Apothecary are the reason I started soap making and I am so inspired by you and just can really relate to everything, probably because I am close to your age as well. Ha! But this did give me some good ideas, like those baking racks and baking sheets, how cool is that! I like that idea for curing soaps. And, because of you, I am going to start doing the 50/50 lye solution. Thanks for this tour! I loved it! Brought a smile to my face when I saw you had another video up! Once payday hits, I plan to buy some more of your soap, if you aren't sold out by then! Looks like it's moving pretty quick! You are amazing Simi and I will always be a fan of yours! And Troy too...cannot forget about him! :)
I forgot..I actually had a question! 😅You mentioned in the video that to not put soap that is curing directly onto the metal baking sheet, to lay a piece of the wax or parchment paper on the sheet first. Why is that? Why can't soap sit on the baking sheet like that? I know there are ventilated baking sheets as well (small holes on the bottom of the sheet) and I thought maybe those would work nice.
Haha! Thanks for reminding me of how much we have to get rid of... ;) I'm kidding. It will be a big task, but all the soap will be gone and all the drums will be gone as well. We will be selling some of our larger equipment and keeping most of the smaller things, as we want to keep making soap, but in much smaller batches. The biggest things is tables. Hopefully someone wants them!
I do think going online is a great idea! It offers a lot of flexibility and in times like Covid, it was a big business saver for us. Don't worry about getting too big. If you make what you want to make and it all sells out, that's great! If you decide you want to do more, go ahead, but don't feel pressured to.
And thank you for the compliment! I also LOVE Melissa at Goods Apothecary. She's fantastic. I'm happy we could inspire you! I'm also glad you're going to try a 50/50 lye water solution. It makes things so much easier, in my opinion. I started doing it a long time ago.
Thanks again for your lovely comment!
As you probably know, lye reacts with metals like aluminum, so the main reason we don't put our soap directly on the trays is that saponification is still happening for the first 48 hours. If you place your soap directly on the trays before that time, there's a chance that the lye will react with the aluminum in the tray. If you wait 48 hours or longer to cut your soap, it'll probably be fine, as saponification should be done by then. I just prefer to use freezer paper anyway just to keep things clean and off the metal, but I know some soapmakers that use the ventilated sheets with the holes and it seems to be working for them. It's probably more environmentally friendly too. I'd personally be worried about two things: (1) the holes may leave a mark on the bottoms of the soap, but I don't know that for a fact, and it might not be a big deal even if it does (2) the scent may transfer from one batch of soap to another if you were to put a mint soap on a tray and later add a lavender soap, for example, so I'd be inclined to wash my trays which would take a long time. We also make unscented soap, so I'd definitely use paper for those as many people are sensitive to scent. That's just me thinking out loud! :)
@@muddymintsoap You can always count on me to make you feel good about how much work there is ahead! Ha! I feel ya though. I am cleaning out stuff too and oh my, you just start to think to yourself just how much there really is. When I was watching the video and knew yall were going back to the small studio in a few months, that kept going through my mind about all that equipment and such. I already ordered those jugs from Amazon (the ones you recommended) for the 50/50 lye solution and I am excited to see how that helps my process. Makes so much sense and I am with you...getting the lye ready is the thing I don't like doing the most! I dread it! Anything that makes things go smoother is a win in my book! 🤗
@@muddymintsoap Lots of good points here that I didn't even think of. I do know that lye reacts with aluminum and it didn't even process in my mind that the baking sheets are aluminum...I wasn't thinking, but now that you mentioned about the scent transfer that is something to think about. Thinking out loud is a good thing! 👍
I'd love to get to this level of production and have this much space to work with. Your shop is wonderful ❤ curious, how long did it take you to get to this scale?
Hi there and thank you! We started our business in August 2016. It was mostly a hobby at first and then we decided to really focus on the business in 2019. We moved into this space in 2021 and it felt HUGE! So, it took 5 years to be big enough to warrant needing a space of this size (we were in a 350 sq ft studio before that) and 7 years to get to the size we're at now. Moving into the space allowed us to grow much more quickly!
Wow, thank you for sharing. Hopefully, one day, I will too have a studio like this. How long have you had this studio? Did you start at home like many of us? Talk about it. I would love to hear about your experience.
Hi there! We've been in this studio since April 2021. I started making soap at home, just like everyone else, in March 2016. I started selling online on Etsy in August 2016, which is when I started my business officially! I had a brief foray into having a retail space in 2017-18, then I went back to my home studio in 2019. That's the year I decided to take my business seriously, have a main product line (instead of always running out of things!) and really ramp up. I hired my first employee in 2020 and we grew five times that year! In 2021, I hired my partner, Troy. He left his architecture job to join Muddy Mint! That was a big deal and with his help and renting a larger space, we were able to grow a lot more! Troy and I are both full time at Muddy Mint and we have a team of four part-time employees and one employee that comes in when we need extra help (like right now!). Our team handles all the shipping (I haven't touched an order in years!), cuts all the soap, and moves all the soap. Troy and I take care of everything else (finances, photography, bookkeeping, recipe formulation, soap releases, website, customer service, etc). In the new year, we'll have a lot more time to work on videos and other things, so I"m excited to share more then!
Thanks for sharing your soap space, it's defiantly inspiring. May I ask what have you used on your racks under the soap bars plz?
Oh, yes! Great question! I'm assuming you mean the cured soap shelves... there's a liner for these racks, which I will link in the description here in a minute. They fit on the shelves and are clear. On the curing trays we use freezer paper.
@@muddymintsoap Thanks, I'm in Australia so postage would cost an arm and a leg! Maybe we have something like that here, I'll have to do some research.
I bet you do! Maybe post it here if you find it, so others will know as well. Thanks!
nice video's did you ever show how you cut and wrap soap. thanks. have a good business year
Thank you! We have yet to show a cutting video... hopefully we'll get back to making RUclips videos soon and can show more of our process!
Beautiful studio? Where did you get these curing racks?
Thanks! Most are from Webstaurant and Amazon.
You are an inspiring lady many thanks for sharing this soap making educational video, the question to you is that how could I start a soap making business as a beginner please advice
Thank you for watching! A lot going into starting soap making business, but the first few steps are: (1) make sure you understand the science of making soap and have made many batches, (2) get your business name registered in your state/area, (3) get insurance - I get mine from HSCG, (4) come up with a product line - keep it simple!, (5) learn to take good photos, (6) start on a platform with a built in audience, like Etsy, to get started easily. I hope this helps! We'll be making a lot more business content in the future!
Hi Simi. Thank you for this inspirational video. May I know where did you bought your water jacketed tank?
Hi and thanks for watching! One of our tanks is from soapequipment.com and the other is from discountsoapequipment.com. I think I prefer the latter. :)
@@muddymintsoap Thank you so much. You are the sweetest 🫶🏼
Thank you so much Sami & Troy for sharing your space and everything you know.
May I ask what coconut milk to you use in your soap
Thank you! I've linked the coconut milk in the description. It's my absolute favorite coconut milk for soapmaking! It is 100% coconut milk (nothing else) and it can sit on a shelf for a while, so it's super handy!
Thank you so much 😊
Where do you purchase you fragrances and coconut milk from? This is a beautiful tour thank you for welcoming us into your space.
Hi there! Thanks for watching! As I mention in the video, we get our essential oils from New Directions Aromatics. Our coconut milk is linked in the description box. :)
What will happen to your employees when you move back to your house? Are you planning on keeping them or just planning on taking on everything yourself?
Hi Lynette! We let our employees know very early on (like at the beginning of the year!) that we'd be scaling everything down in 2024, so they've had lots of time to find new work. Thankfully, they are all staying with us until the end of the year (we seriously love them!). One of our employees just found another job but will still be with us part time until the new year. We would love to keep all our employees, but there won't be enough work for them or enough space! It'll mainly be Troy and I and if we decide to do quarterly releases, we may bring one or two on for shipping during that time. It's all still up in the air, so we'll see! :)
I just found your channel a few months ago. I am very impressed with your work. What does the commenter mean when she says you are closing your soap studio? Y'all have what amounts to a well oiled machine. Very organized Studio. I am in awe.
Thank you so much! We are indeed closing down our production space and returning to our roots. We'll be moving back into my backyard studio and I'll definitely do a tour of that space one day! If you're interested in why we're "downsizing" our business, I wrote a whole blog post about it here: muddymint.com/blogs/news/goodbye-my-love. We move out at the end of February, which should free up a lot more time for videos and education content here on RUclips and elsewhere! :)
Thank you so much for making this video. As a fellow soap maker, what are your recommendations for finding wholesalers and what kind of licenses & certifications would we need to run a soap making business? A great next video would be the background of it for those of that want to scale but don’t know where to start. Please and thank you.
Hi there! Thanks for watching! By wholesalers, do you mean wholesale supplies or wholesale accounts? I'm assuming you mean wholesale accounts. We use Faire for all our wholesale, although we started off just working directly with retailers. At minimum, you'll need a business license, a sales tax license, and insurance to start a soap business. We'll definitely be doing a LOT more videos in the new year on business and scaling, so stay tuned!
I can’t thank you enough for your response. Looking forward to many more videos.
Excellent video! May I ask which brand is the scale? I am searching for one to buy
Absolutely! I LOVE this scale and highly recommend it! I added a link in the description for you. :) My favorite thing about this scale is that you can set it to not turn off automatically (which is key in soapmaking), it has a light (yay!), and it's very sturdy and reliable. We have two and I know a lot of other soapmakers use the same one.
Awesome tour, I am amazed (I thought I work big bac
hes lol) If it is ok to ask, at your peak, what percentage of the business was wholesale and how much retail. I have never sold wholesale because I felt it was a lot of work and not much profit, do you agree with me on this? How did you get so many followers on Instagram? And one last question, do you do paid private business consulting?
Hi there and thank you! Our business is about 60% wholesale and 40% retail. I avoided wholesale for a very long time. We just started doing wholesale in June 2021 and we've done great at it, but I wouldn't recommend it for everyone. You definitely need to know your numbers. If you have a strong retail customer base and feel good about your business, I wouldn't necessarily recommend diving into wholesale. Instagram is all about persistence and finding your community, in my opinion. You want it to be fun and have it help your business, far beyond just follower counts. I've been on there since 2016 and have been posting pretty much every day, so that's how the numbers got higher. And, finally, yes! I plan to do business consulting in the new year! You can reach out via email if you're interested at muddymintsoap at gmail.com. Thanks!
May i ask do you packers who pack the orders put the individual labels on or do you do it before hand? Also may i ask what the walls are made of? is it cool room panelling? I am looking at lining the workshop with a material that is moisture resistant. Thank you
Hi there! Our shipping team adds the labels to the bars of soap while they get the order ready. The reason we do it this way is because the labels get loose as the bars continue to cure, so we like to add them right as they're going out the door. If we used boxes, we'd box them up ahead of time. The walls in our studio are just normal drywall. We are fortunate to be in Colorado which is very dry, so there's no issue with moisture. We do have a fan blowing air out of our space continuously to help with the scent that tends to build up in there. I hope that helps!
@@muddymintsoap amazing! Thank you so much! Yes I completely concur with the labels so was wondering when you wrapped them. Great to confirm that . I am in Australia and while it is dry here, from time to time the precipitation increases such that the air is very wet. Thanks again. Love all you do.❤
Why not use a silicon mold instead of freezer paper?
Good question! We used Nurture Soap molds for a long time, which have a silicone liner and they are great. For these slab molds, Troy made them himself, so they don't have a silicone liner, however you can purchase many slab molds that have a silicone liner. One issue we found with silicone liners was that no matter how much we washed the liners, the scent often transferred to our unscented soaps which was an issue for some of our customers that are very sensitive to scent.
wow great video , i love your tissue paper, where can i buy in bulk? thanks
Hi! We get our tissue paper from Nashville Wraps. :)
LOVE IT@@muddymintsoap
Another question. Blotter strips you mentioned for testing the ess oils. Why you do that? Can some amount of ess oil(s) damage the skin?
You're not supposed to put essential oils directly on your skin, unless you dilute them with oil first. Make sure to use gloves when handling pure essential oils (and I often wear goggles, as things like clove can really sting!). Also, putting essential oils on your skin changes the scent! It's really interesting! So, a blotter strip or just using a glass container is the best way to test your blends. I hope that helps!
Following
What multi-bar soap cutter would you suggest for a beginner? Also, what do you suggest for label making?
Hi there! My first soap cutter was from Bud's Woodshop on Etsy and it worked great! I started with a single bar cutter and later moved to a multi-bar cutter. I still use the single bar cutter all the time, so I'd recommend starting with one of those first. That way, you can cut the bar whatever size you want and it works great for creating samples, etc. For labels, I used kraft paper when I first started and printed my own. I used double-sided tape to attach the label in the back. We actually still just use paper labels, but we now get them printed and cut by our local print shop. I hope this helps!
@@muddymintsoap thank you! This is very helpful!!!
Looks great, love it. Did you use essential oils or fragrance oils? Essential oils often evaporate, right? At what temperature should the oil be mixed with the caustic soda solution?
There are those who say essential oil and mean fragrance oils?
Hi! We use only pure essential oils. We don't use fragrances of any kind, natural or synthetic. Essential oils are trickier to use in soap, but definitely not impossible! We've been selling essential oil soaps for seven years without any issues or complaints! They will lose scent over time, so you do want to be cautious of making sure your soap is always "fresh". We recommend customers use our soap within 6-8 months for the best experience, as the scent will begin to fade after that. Sometimes the scent fades from the outside of the bar, but there's still some goodness locked inside that comes out! I really love how essential oils don't just have one main scent.. they ebb and flow and tell a story. That's how I like to think of it anyway. Haha! We soap cool (85-95 degrees F), so we add our essential oils directly to our oils at that point (before adding the lye-water). Hope that helps!
Yeah, I know what you mean. We actually mean essential oils. :)
Do you add any type of wax to your soap, such as beeswax?
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