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romangoat

Member
Joined
Jan 21, 2021
Messages
10
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Location
Georgia, USA
Hello all!

I have finally turned to soap making as a means of income from my goat dairy. My mom learned how to make the soap a while back, and I just started learning from her, but I am excited about all the possibilities. It seems like a great way to combine my artistic skills with the milk from my wonderful goats. My oldest two are pictured below because I love sharing them. :)

I feel like this site is going to be a great resource!

Zigzag and Zefron cuddling.jpg
 
If your mom's been a longtime soapmaker, perhaps you can commission her to make soaps to sell as small-batch handmade goat milk soaps until you learn the ropes of soap making. The knowledge you'll gain from learning to make soap and the knowledge you will gain from your failed batches will help you later down the line because people will have questions and it is best that you can answer them then and there. If people like your mom's soaps and once you come to your own, you could formulate your own recipe, test it out (which takes time) and then market it as a new recipe. But that's just my two cents.
 
I'm just here to gawk at the beautiful goats. 😍

Seriously, though, please take to heart what the others have said. We aren't trying to discourage you, but rather to encourage you to first learn how to make great soap. It takes time and experience to be ready to sell your soap, especially soap with food products in it, like goat milk. Until you let those first batches cure for a year or so, you don't know if your recipe, process, or ingredients may be prone to rancidity or other problems.

You also need to have experienced enough failures to know how to spot a lye-heavy soap that could seriously injure someone. We don't want to see you be another statistic of someone who turns the public off to hand-crafted soap bc you put out an inferior product. That happens a lot, unfortunately, because people want to jump into selling before they even know whether their soaps will become rancid or develop other problems before the consumer uses them.

Then there is the labeling process to comply with laws regarding the claims that can and cannot be made regarding your soap. Don't look at other soapers' websites as examples of what you can say. Many soapers blatantly violate the law in this area, and are in line to receive fines and other legal consequences. As a responsible soaper and manufacturer, learn from a trusted resource like MarieGale.com, or buy her book, both of which explain some of the important legal requirements.

The good news is that this forum is full of information and resources that will help you learn to make great soap, and become ready to sell it. Scour the forum threads, make a whole lot of soap, and post some pictures for us! We will be the first ones to cheer you on with your soaps pics and then your soap business -- once you really learn how to make soap, and how to label it and market it correctly.
 
Wow, what a great idea! The most successful business is the one that was originally just a hobby. It's so cool when people do something they really enjoy. The best job is a hobby that generates income. You can start developing in an area that you enjoy and then turn it into a full-time job. Of course, business is a big risk. A friend of mine was making handmade jewelry and two years later he opened his own jewelry store. He really loves his business and is willing to invest absolutely everything in it. Now he sells franchises in several countries around the world. I learned about the details of FDD, and I am starting to think about starting my own business.
 
Beautiful ladies you have there! Are they alpines? I don't have any advice for you on the business front, but I just came to say I to fellow goat owner. 👋 How many goats do you have?
 
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