With cleanliness, hygiene and pollution being the hot topics of the 21st century, home-made soap making is a trendy industry to work in. Big corporations, like Unilever, are facing huge competition from small-scale homemade soaps because of their organic ingredients, low prices, personal variations and simplistic approach.
So, here is a step-by-step guide to help you venture into the soap making business at home.
1) Target Audience
As a home soap maker, it is very important to know the people who you are going to sell your soap to. It can be your neighbors, your colleagues at work or your relatives as a start. Understanding their needs and financial standing is very important before choosing what to manufacture.
2) Know Your Product
After knowing the audience, it is vital to choose your product.Soaps, in general, can be categorized as-
a) Beauty soaps – Soaps like Lux, Dove focus on personal use and vary for various skin types.
b) Cleaning soaps – Soaps like Vim focus on laundry or kitchen cleaning.
c) Herbal Soaps – These organic and mostly ayurvedic can be beauty or cleaning based.
d) Pet use soaps – Soaps manufactured for use by pet owners.
These main categories acquire the Indian market. The first two categories are used in almost every household might be a good option to start with. However, it is suggested, to begin with only one category.
3) Procure raw materials
After deciding the type of soap, various raw materials like chemicals, oils and dye along with types of equipment for mixing and shaping are required. Further materials for packaging like paper, cardboard and paints are needed.
4) Practise The Art
Before taking orders or sending out samples, it is necessary for an owner to set his/her hands right. Practice the process, use the equipment to test sustainability and try the product at home to check quality.
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5) Packaging and Branding
Once the product is ready for use, a huge amount of attention has to be placed on its name and packaging. It has to be attractive and eye-catching. Also, biodegradable packing materials, usually cheaper, can be used!
6) Future Prospects
Once the business is earning profits then one can think of expansion. You can venture into other types of soaps, join e-commerce websites like Amazon as a seller or even start your own website!
So if you’re a housewife getting bored during the day or if you are a teenage looking for extra money, try giving this a thought. Remember, all you need is a little bit of hard work and patience.
