The Indie Experience
October 8, 2007
A Publication of The Indie Beauty Network
ISSN 1530-9630 | Volume 8, Issue 40
To subscribe, click here
-- Sponsor --
1. Meet IBN's New & Renewing Members!
2. New At the Blog: What do Tori Spelling, the Small Business Administration
and 3 Butter Cream have in common? They're all at the blog
3. Today On Indie Business Radio, Interrupted
4. Indie Candy: Jann Schwarz, Round Top Natural Soap
5. Indie Live!: Taking High Quality Photos That
Translate Into Cash
6. Sponsor This Newsletter: Indie Candy connects you
with your target customer
Indie Beauty Ritual: Plum Blossom Grape Puree
1. Meet IBN's New & Renewing Members
Welcome
Renewing Members!
Earthwind Botanicals | Kristy May | Tennessee
* All natural, high quality aromatherapy products for bath, body and
home.
Luscious Natural Body Care | Julianne Lampard and
Angelina Artemoff | California
* Luscious -- a therapeutic ritual of body, mind & spirit. We
design natural body care products by indulging in the liberal use of
organic, pesticide free and wild-crafted essential oils, dried flowers,
herbs and spices. All of our products are hand-blended to perfection, all
natural, and paraben free. We hope to nurture by inspiring you to relax
& renew.
Magnolia's Natural Beauty | Susan Williamson |
Alabama
* Magnolia's Natural Beauty provides an assortment of handcrafted
lotions, creams, body butters, sea salt scrubs, lip therapy and regenerating
facial care products specializing in the area of mature and preventive skin
care needs. Our line emphasizes natural healing ingredients such as shea
butter, cold pressed sweet almond oil and aloe vera. We also use a bouquet
of the finest essential oils. owners Susan Williamson and Angie Schumaker (a
registered nurse and aromatherapist) are a mother/daughter team who share a
passion for promoting health and wellness.
Welcome New Members!
Sunchild Scentuals | Andrea Weber | Kentucky
* Apprentice Indie
Keeko's Natural Kandles | Carol Cornell | Arizona
* All natural soy and palm wax candles. All natural shea
butter/beeswax luxury lotion bars.
Bells Soy Candles | David Bell | California
* We make All Natural Soybean & Vegatable Soy Candles. We hand
pour each candle at home in our kitchen. Each candle is unique just for you.
We also have ready made candles by candle designer Dallas Haden. The ready
made candles are Isabel Fresh cuttings & they are delightful & come
in 5 different scents. Our Business Opportunity allows you to make candles
at home and & earn residual income thru the best compensation plan on
the Internet today.
Luxe Escentuals | Deniera Burks | Illinois
* Richly scented luxuries including pure soy candles, reed diffusers,
aroma crystals, bath and body luxuries and more!
Learn more about Indie members and their exciting products, services and
activities by visiting their websites through our Online
Member Directory. You can search for your favorite Indie by
state/country, business name, keyword or alphabetical listings.
2. New At the Blog: Blogs of Interest to the Indie Community
Blogs
of special interest to the Indie Beauty community:
Indies
For The Cure: Embarrassed for the cure ... but still determined!
The
SBA Wants To Honor You: Your small business could win an award
What
I Learned From Tori Spelling: I never thought I'd have anything in
common with a rich, spoiled brat
Free
Ride or Free Agent: Which do you prefer?
Win
This! No. 2: last change to win some 3 Butter Cream -- YUM!
What's
Your Hustle?: tell me what you do!
3. Today on Indie Business Radio, Interrupted
Indie Business Radio offers practical advice and workable strategies to achievement-oriented, independent entrepreneurs who are trading in the traditional corporate ladder to enjoy life and business on their own terms. Enjoy downloads and audio streams of recent shows at this link.
This
week, Robert Kiyosaki is speaking live in my new hometown. He had the nerve
the schedule his appearance during my radio show (I'm sure it was an
oversight ...) so I'm heading downtown to see what all the Rich Dad, Poor
Dad fuss is about. Ill return next week with a great show with Deborah
Balmuth!
Upcoming Shows:
October 15: Deborah Balmuth, Managing Editor at Storey
Books on how to get yourself published (confirmed)
October 29: Shannon Kilkenny, author of "The Complete Guide To
Successful Event Planning" on how to plan a holiday product party (confirmed)
-- Sponsor --
4. Indie Candy: Jann Schwarz: Round Top Natural Soap Co.
Independence, self-reliance, efficiency, cost effectiveness and creativity -- sounds like a description of a home-economics class. (Maybe we should have those resurrected!!?) But it also perfectly describes Jann Schwarz and what she and her husband have done in 7 short years to build a home-based business from scratch to a six figure venture. Here's a little about Round Top Natural Soap and the brains and muscle behind it.
How did you start your business and what was the inspiration for it?
My husband and I began Round Top Natural Soap in January 2000. I had begun making handmade soap two years before in response to our youngest son’s sensitive skin and the rashes he was continually showing up with. Someone told me that handmade soap might help. I found Susan Miller Cavitch’s Soapmaker's Companion book and tried some of the recipes. Of course, I was hooked. At the time I was an English teacher at a middle school nearby. One of our main focuses was research processes. I love research and began researching different oils and began to experiment and developed my own soap recipes. I started giving soaps to my friends for Christmas, birthdays, etc. One of my friends was the administrator of our local historical museum. She asked to sell my soaps at their gift shop.
Is this your first business?
No, it's not. After I was married and had my first two children I was a stay at home mom. I loved to sew and enjoyed hand embroidery. Along with a partner, I began a small company manufacturing hand-smocked children’s clothes. My husband and I separated and divorced a few years later. When we had that first oil crisis back in 1979-1980, my partner and I decided to close our company. I later remarried, but in the meantime, I did office work while I finished my degree in Education. After I graduated, I became an elementary school teacher. I taught for 15 years. I retired so I could spend more time with my younger children and could also spend the time to work on growing our company.
Tell me about your life as a wife and mom with a thriving company, and how manage all of that?
I have a husband and two teenage sons and it is difficult to juggle the two. We live on a working farm and raise cattle. A typical day begins at 6 am. My husband and I try to get up before the rest of the family so we can have some quiet time to prepare for the day and discuss what each of us needs to get done that day and any other issues that have popped up. The kids get up at 6:30 and get ready for school. I usually take the boys to school 20 miles away in the neighboring town. This allows me a chance to take care of early morning errands (grocery shopping, banking, visiting the printer, etc.) before going to work.
I usually get to the soap shop around 8:00-8:30 most
mornings. I begin by making whatever products need to be made to keep our inventory up. I usually make 100-200 pounds of soap 3 days a week and lotions and creams on the other 2
days, in my manufacturing shop, pictured left. Then I check email for new orders and correspondence. My assistant arrives at 9 am. She keeps track of product inventory, labels products, makes bath salts, balms and other products as necessary, packs up orders and prepares shipments. She leaves at 2pm to go to college. At 3pm I have another student who comes in and helps out with labeling products and preparing orders for the next day. She usually stays for 2-3 hours. I have a friend who comes in as needed to help make lotions and creams during our busier
seasons.
I usually leave at 3 pm to pick up the boys at school. They come back with me to do homework and practice their music (sax and euphonium) on the front porch. If they have time they usually pick up an odd job to do at the shop. They also take time to work with their horses each afternoon. We usually go home around 5:30-6 pm. My youngest son wants to be a chef so frequently he will cook the dinner while my other son and I do the clean up. While dinner is being prepared we are also working on laundry, and other household chores. We try to get to bed around 10:30.
My husband spends his day doing the regular farm work. When needed he is the one who goes into Houston, Austin or San Antonio to pick up supplies. We purchase our soap oils in 55 gallon drums and use liquid sodium hydroxide so we have found that most of the time it is more economical to pick up supplies than have them shipped.
How many products are in your line?
We have approximately 75 individual products in our line. Our soaps are by far our best selling products. I’m sure it is because they are the most inexpensive of our products and we offer so many different fragrances. Our body butter and lotions are also very popular.
Do you make everything or anything yourself?
I have formulated all of our product recipes myself and I have formulated all of our fragrance blends. I make all of our soaps and most of the lotions and creams. I do have someone who comes to help when needed.
What's the "hook" for your products, as in what distinguishes from other products making similar claims?
We use all botanical natural ingredients in our products. We make our lotions and creams in small batches frequently so that we are always selling very fresh products. We have worked hard to develop distinctive fragrance blends that will appeal to the consumer.
What are your most popular products, and why are they so loved?
Soaps! We make a large bar that due to our blend of oils is very hard, fragrant, long lasting, with great lather and moisturizing.
Here are some of the most popular bars:
Oatmeal Milk & Honey – it has a wide range of appeal from most everyone. The soap is made with Goat’s Milk and ground oats and has whole oats sprinkled on top. Everyone seems to love this one.
Fields of Lavender – This is made with pure lavender oil. We added ground oats to help anchor the scent and also to make it a good facial soap. We sprinkle ground oats and ground lavender buds on top.
Texas Bluebonnet – loved by Texan and others. We sprinkle dried flower petals on top. I’ve quizzed the guys who buy it and they tell me that it reminds them of the spring air when they are driving through the country on their Harleys (a popular weekend activity in Texas).
Our product line is divided into 5 categories::
Heirloom – our base line and is the most broad. We have 8 different soaps, 4 lotions, 4 body butters, 4 bath salts, 2 foot creams, 2 lip balms and 1 balm. We developed fragrances that have a “homey” feel.
Beau’s Best – our men’s line. Named for my husband because he
helped develop it. I used input from a lot of my longtime customers in developing the fragrances
and my husband helped develop the actual products. This line has received the most attention as there are not many handmade skincare lines just for men.
O'Lavender – this is our Lavender line. My youngest son came up with the name. We provide private label products for several lavender farms and have developed a large group of products in the process.
Garden Club – soap only, all with a garden feel.
Texas Collection – our tribute to our home state. Texans are very proud of their wildflowers. We make weekend treks to the country to view them in the spring. In this line we highlight our Texas Bluebonnet (state flower of Texas) in several different products and have 4 other flower soaps to compliment it.
Who helps make your business successful?
I get help wherever I can, husband, kids, friends and family. My husband and I made the decision to us a graphic designer and a marketing expert to help us repackage our products for wholesale marketing. We completely revamped our products into separate lines and developed new labeling and packaging to make them distinctive. I have to give credit for the graphics and labels to my graphic artist. We wanted each of the lines to have their own distinctive look, but would also continue to look good when displayed together. I think the artist did a fantastic job!
How do you market your products?
We have sold our soaps at Market in Dallas, Denver, Atlanta, and smaller shows in the northeast. We also have an online wholesale site as well as a retail online store. Locally, we provide our ends and scraps to the Bed and Breakfasts to have available for their guests. The only thing we ask is that they refer them to local stores to purchase. Since we are in an area that is a weekend getaway destination as well as a major Antique outlet this has helped us acquire new wholesale and retail customers. Also, I try to make calls to clients several times a week to help keep up the reorders. We have found that most sales groups are better at getting new accounts than at keeping up with the old ones.
What are your best tips for Indie business success?
Be ready for a lot of hard work. Make sure you have a good support system and the support from your family.
What business book have you enjoyed that has helped you in business, and why?
I
have recently enjoyed Soap & Cosmetic Labeling by Marie Gale.
(Learn
more about this book.)
What are you doing when you're not working?
I enjoy gardening, working with my boys and their horses. We have become active in our local horse rescue organization. In the summer, we go with our church on mission trips. This summer we will go to Guatemala.
Why do you love being Indie?
I love the creativity and the challenges, though finding enough time in the day to do everything that needs to be
done is a continuous challenge. In the end though, I love what I am doing. I feel it fills my need to be creative. I love to hear from customers and how they enjoy using our products.
This is Indie Candy, so if you were a brand of candy, what would
you be and why?
Dark Chocolate Peanut M & Ms. They are colorful (I love lots of color) and fun to eat.
What are your annual gross revenues?
We are well into six figures and expect to have a 40-50% increase over last years sales. This is partially due to our recent contract with a South Korean firm. We will begin exporting to them next week. They are opening up Bath shops that will spotlight our products. If the first store is successful they will be opening up 5 more in six months.
Editor's Note: Everyone can take a tip from the sleek design of the Round Top website. Just a few clicks and you can choose whichever line interests you most and see the products in each line displayed nicely in rows of 3. Also, there is an obvious method to the Round Top lines -- 5 easy to define lines and a page for gift sets. It's easy for both consumers and retailers. Take a tip from Jann and create narrowly defined lines of products that make it easy for your customers to view, like and buy! And make sure the product photos look nice! (See next week's Indie Live! for help in that regard.) If you are especially curious to learn more and Jann and how she makes her products, you can enjoy more of the story in her Soap Primer (requires Adobe Reader).
5. Indie Live!: Coming October 15: Turn Your Photos Into Cash
Mark
Your Calendar For Next Week's Indie
Live!
Indie Beauty Network member Rebecca Picard is an Indie after my own heart. Not only does she take fabulous photographs, but she's also doing it from her home studio as she raises her son. Busy as she is pointing and clicking, she graciously agreed to sit down with Indie Beauty Network members for a DIY photography session. A picture is worth thousands of dollars, and Rebecca's going to help us get the most for the least!
Join us next Monday at 3:00! Come with your camera and your list of questions and get the scoop from a pro, plus find out how Rebecca can do it for you on a budget.
In the meantime, get some tips for taking your best pictures at the blog.
| Today's Indie Live! | Topic | Presenter |
| 10/15/07, 3:00pm -4:00pm EST Dial In Number and conference code will be provided. (Member login required.) |
Your Product Photos Or Your Business: Taking high quality photos that make your products look their best. It's nice to have great products but let's face it, looks are everything!! If your products are not attractively displayed at your website or brochure, not only will they look bad, but so will you. And that translates into lost sales. Next week's Indie Live! will help you sharpen your amateur focus to take the best pictures ever. | Rebecca Picard, photographer |
6. Sponsor This Newsletter: Indie Candy connects you with your target customer! Just ask the E-Commerce Diva!
Indie
Experience reaches 6,000 opt in subscribers each Monday, and all issue are
archived at our website forever. This means that not only do our
subscribers get your message, but new and regular site visitors do too!
Jamila White, a busy Indie with an e-commerce consulting business and a growing Indie Beauty product line, consistently receives a huge return on her investment when she sponsors Indie Candy. A recent campaign to promote her popular E-Commerce Bootcamp, which sold out after Jamila's sponosrship, resulted in over $2,000 in sales -- all within a month from $150 sponsorship. Jamila says "that's money well spent!" Learn more about Jamila's products and services at j.blossom and E-Commerce Diva.
To find out more about how Indie Experience can help you reach the people who want to do business with you, contact IBN at donnamaria@indiebeauty.com or (704) 291-7280.
Best & Success!!
Donna Maria
Editor, The Indie Experience
The Indie Beauty Network | www.indiebeauty.com
Copyright (c) 2000 - 2007 by The Indie Beauty Network (IBN) and Donna Maria. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized distribution or reproduction is prohibited. IBN does not necessarily endorse any product, event or ideology featured in The Handmade Beauty Connection (HBC) or on IBN's website. All information is provided on an "as is" basis and no express or implied warranties are given. Any use of the information contained in the HBC or on IBN's web site, including recipes, is solely at your own risk. IBN and Donna Maria disclaim any liability in connection with the use of all recipes, products reviewed and other information. Except for sponsorships, HBC refuses compensation from companies to feature or mention their names or products. Opinions expressed in any Product Review are personally those of the reviewer and do not represent the views of IBN, Donna Maria (unless she is the reviewer) or any other person or company.
