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| One of my first soaps, Ocean Mist. I was so excited by how pretty it turned out. |
With every new year, I reflect on my business and dream of how I can take Lion and Rose to the next level. January-April are my slow months, so I have a time to replenish my soap stock, take a deep breath and contemplate what I will do next. It's a very exciting time for me. I am filled with inspiration and re-dedicate my efforts. This is when I dream big!
This year, I have been reflecting on how far I have come in the last 4 years. It all started with an interest in a potential new hobby or perhaps a creative outlet. I was the mother of a 4 year-old boy and a 1 year-old daughter. I love being a stay-at-home mom, but I was craving a creative outlet. For my birthday, my husband bought me a $50 gift card to Bramble Berry. I had been watching a constant stream of Soap Queen tutorials and reading endless blogs about soap making, so my husband thought my birthday would be the ideal chance to let me get my toes wet by allowing me the opportunity to buy some supplies of my own.
I spent countless hours reading fragrance oil descriptions, learning what I could about colorants and trying to figure out how best to spend that $50. I chose pretty well, in fact, the first fragrance I ever bought, Energy, is still in my line and is called Good Day Sunshine.Looking back, $50 is nothing! I was so frugal and thoughtful. My batches started very small and allowed me to learn my craft without too much risk.
From the start, I only used gift money and my eventual sales from my soap to fund my company. To this day, almost every dollar goes back into the company. I have never used family funds for the business and I have steadily grown about double in sales per year. I have so much pride in what I have built and am becoming more confident that a desk job will not be a part of my future. I can continue to dream big, work hard and am loving every minute of it!
