Two. Two. Two Posts in One!

Yup - you get TWO posts today. I finally had a chance to set down and breathe a spell. It's been busy without Furry Husband around to help! I haven't written much about the bid'ness I'm trying to get started, so here goes!

Right before Furry Husband went out of town, I got a call from my most devoted customer. He ordered another six bottles of lotion. I wanted to get it made and off my plate because I knew I'd be going full speed once Furry Husband left. We made a batch of lotion Monday night. It turned out horribly wrong! That hasn't happened before with my lotion... needless to say I was disappointed cuz it meant that I'd just wasted an hour and still hadn't gotten the order "off my plate". sigh.

We scrapped it and poured the lotion down the drain because I had no earthly idea what to do to salvage it and I had no idea what we'd done wrong. I was too tired to re-do the recipie or figure out what happened that night. The next night I sat down and re-figured the lotion recipie.

AHA! I had accidentally added 10% more liquid than I should have...no wonder the lotion was so watery! My "fixed" batch was the normal texture and feel and I happily took my biggest customer his order the next day. Whew! For a second there I was worried all my previous successful lotion making had been some sort of good luck fluke and all those funny self-doubts that maybe I really shouldn't be trying this had moved in. I was happy to sweep them right back out o' my brain!

I ran out of bottles with that last order and spent some time this morning on line looking at different sizes/shapes/lids/pumps/colors of bottles. I ordered six different types - one bottle each with various types of caps and pumps to see if I like the look/design/function/feel etc. I ordered a dozen of the current bottle I've been using in case any other orders come in.

My orders right now are few and far between. That is perfectly fine since I haven't really been advertising or pushing my product because all hell broke loose with family drama/trauma. AND I hadn't met with my graphic designer yet. I don't want to do a big push to get my product out there only to have the look/label completely change. Branding equals consistancy.

I had been feeling that I should push myself more and chiding myself for not being as big of a go-getter as I think I should be and then this little light bulb went on over my head. DING!

Hey, this is MY business and I can make it as big or as little as I want. It is up to me to decide what direction I want to go and how fast or slow I want it to grow. So just back up sister and get over yourself!

It's amazing to me how mean we can be to ourselves. We are our own worst enemies! I don't think this is something I do to myself alone because an extremely talented friend of mine, starting her own food business, has the same self-doubts/critisisms. Another very smart, capable friend, beginning her own dog training business, experiences the very same thing.

I wonder if men sabatouge themselves as much as women? Somehow I doubt it.

I think I mentioned that I'm not in love with any of my bath fizzy molds. Well, I found a MINI-MEATBALLER! I would never have thought of it but saw it on some website somewhere when I was looking at bath fizzy recipies, techniques and products. The mini-meatballer is like a pair of over sized sissors but with a little 1/2 circle on each side. Scoop up your fizzies and voila! Little round shaped bath fizzies! In theory. I haven't actually tried the meatballer/fizzy maker on actual bath fizzies yet.

I also got a hold of my graphic designer this week. We made a date! I'm headed to her house on Wednesday the 23rd of this month. I'm so excited! I'll bring all my different containers, current logo/labels and we will have a fun, creative working lunch. I can't wait! I feel that once this meeting happens, I'm on the path to really formally launching my product. gulp! That means I'm gonna have to develop a sales pitch. Luckily I wake up each morning next to an amazing Super Salesman. My very own, mild mannered, Furry Husband!

I also contacted Brambleberry about my lotion this week because there is a little bit of grain to it. It rubs right in and doesn't FEEL grainy but you can see a little grain in it. None of my customers or testers have commented that it's a problem or concern. However, when I asked my stylist to critique my lotion, she looked at it with an eagle eye and noticed it right off the bat.

She is a professional and she is in the beauty industry so I'm definately going to pay attention to what she says! She felt that people might think there is something wrong with my lotion if there was that bit of grainy-ness to it. Too hand-made, country bumpkin - those kind of concerns. She thought the lotion was fabulous quality however, and told me she would definately carry it in her store.

I would prefer that the little grainy-ness issue was resolved first though. I turned to my inspiration, Brambleberry.

Well, of course, Brambleberry has SPECTACULAR product and customer service and they were able to give me some advice. Seems that I'm heating up my mango butter too fast. Next batch I make will be with a double boiler vs. microwave and I'll bring it to melting temperature much slower... see what sort of difference that will make.

I am thinking that I would prefer to do a wholesale business vs. direct selling. I like people and enjoy talking about my product, but I don't want to give up all my weekends at craft fairs. I'd rather tell people where they could go to find my lotion and have it carried by stores supporting local businesses. It is easier for me to fill orders vs. having to guess what is going to be the "hot" item in a craft show and not truly know how much I should make and of which thing.

Once my packaging is chosen, labels created and ingredients in stock, I need to do a cost analysis to see exactly how much it costs me to make each of my products, how much of a profit I want and create a wholesale pricing sheet. I know I'll take a bit of a price cut selling wholesale, but to me, the time saved from direct selling and the exposure I'd get from having my product on a shelf in well known stores is worth it.

I have friends in Grand Junction, CO and they are in touch with other small business owners. One person they know might be interested in a line of lotions they could re-sell at their fruit stand/farm. It'd be a line of fruit scented lotions mirroring what they grow/sell. I'll need to follow up with that pretty soon.

A store in Denver is interested in carrying my product once I have my packaging figured out - they actually wanted to carry it now and I asked them if I could send them a sample basket with wholesale pricing once my design was solid. So they are waiting on me.

Two different customers bought my lotion and loved it so much that they want product and brochures to take with them to two different spas and tell them about my lotion.

My extremely fun and talented girlfriend who runs her own business called Kim's Kitchen LLC wants to discuss an order as take away gifts for her clients.

I think there is potential for my little business because all of the above is happening without me doing much at all. Just think when I get out there and start knocking on doors! The worst that can happen is they say no and then I'm off and running to the next door.