Every year one of the greatest thrills we have is seeing many of our customers expand their love of making their own soap and body care products from a hobby to a money making enterprise. 

It will often start as a  casual endeavor - making a few extra dollars at craft fairs or  selling to friends and family.  Then within a few years they see the potential and expand their passion into a full time job, opening their own shop, creating their own web store, or manufacturing  products to wholesale into the gift, health food or food & drug stores.

At Voyageur we started on this same path 18 years ago, making candles out of our homes, selling in craft fairs, selling to friends and family, and then finally attending wholesale trade shows hiring sales reps, dealing with distributors and large big box retailers as we moved our business out of our homes and into a warehouse, then a bigger warehouse.

 We have seen our business grow and move into many diverse areas as we expanded and grew, but along the way, have experienced many trials as the economy and markets have changed, made many mistakes, and hopefully learned from those mistakes.  The key is we have maintained our love and passion for what we do, and because of that have been successful.

There are many different paths that one can take when they want to look at starting their own business.  Over the next 2 months we will try to answer to the best of  our abilities some of the questions that we often get asked by our customers, and hopefully share some of our experiences so you can avoid some of those mistakes that we made during the past.  In this email we will share some links to resources we have found helpful over the years.

In future newsletters
 we will try to answer some of the following questions we often receive from customers.

*What should I sell?

*How do I create my labels?

*How do I determine my pricing?

*What are the rules and regulations?

*At what stage do I need to register with  government authorities?

*How and where do I sell my products

*How do I start selling my products outside of my city, my province or state, or my country?

*When do I start hiring employees to help me run my growing business?

There are many, many more questions that we have been asked over the past few years, and we welcome you to send us any of your questions and we will try and answer them in an upcoming newsletter or directly by email. 

The key point in all this is that don't do it if your don't love it.  Don't try to grow too fast, or take on more than you can realistically handle.  If it becomes just another job then you won't be successful.

Bubbling Bath Bars

Fun to Make, Fun to Use.

Our Lushious Bubble Bars are found sold in popular stores at premium prices.   You can now make them yourself for fun, profit or gift giving.

Getting Started - Resources

Over the years we have discovered and made use of many excellent resources that have helped us create, grow and expand our business.

One of the first things to do before a business is started is to decide what it is you want to start, determine what the opportunities are, what your strengths are, what are you going to sell or market, to whom, and how.

That is often most effectively achieved through a business plan.  A business plan is like a blue print.  You wouldn't start building a house without a plan, nor should you start building a business.  While your initial venture might be small, then your business plan might also be small, but over time, you will adjust this plan, expand it to help your business expand, and adjust it to meet your changing needs, and the changing needs of your business.

A great resource we have used is Small Business BC a government sponsored web site to help individuals start the process of creating a business.  Most provinces and states have them, but the information they contain is fairly universal.  In it you will find great information on starting to create a business plan, as well as other information on regulations, marketing etc....

Other great sources of information on starting a business can be found from your local banks.  Either do an internet search or go into your local branch to get more information.

In Canada, another excellent resource that is often overlooked is the Government of Canada website Service Canada where you will find information and resources on government financial support programs, as well as information on taxation, exporting etc...  In the United States the US Gov't has a Similar Site that gives you information as well as links to state and local sites.

The key with all of this is to start small, but start.  Don't delay spending too much time on planning, but use your planning as a guide, a map you follow, a plan you expand and change as the situations change.

Don't try to start too large, if you already love to make products then the first step is already done.  The key now is to talk to friends and family, get the feedback from the ones who will give you honest answers about your products, and where they think the strengths, and most importantly the weaknesses of what you make are.  Market to your strengths, but start. 

If you have never sold your products, start by showing them to friends and family, this is the perfect time as everyone is looking for small gifts to give out as christmas approaches.  If you have been doing that then continue but expand it. 

Start thinking about the future, take your products into your local retailer and get their feedback.   You would be surprised how positively a local retailer will react to having their opinions being  sought out, and you may be surprised how often this results in you having a customer being the end result.

We will be sending out weekly newsletters as Christmas approaches with more information, so if you have any feedback or suggestions please email us with your questions or comments.  In the next newsletter we will focus more on labelling, how to create them, and where to get them printed, packaging options that we have found successful, as well as deciding on a pricing level that allows for profit, sales and room for expansion.