Thank you, Indie Business Blog for the tag party!
1. Making Healthy Products
Most people know that big businesses tend to cut costs when it comes to the products they make, whether it’s in the cheap synthetic fragrance that they falsely market as “aromatherapy” or in the harsh SLS surfactant that they add to their body washes that is also used to wash cars. Our company will never stoop to cutting costs when it comes to the quality of ingredients that we purchase to make our products. Our products are healthy for your body. They do not contain harsh or toxic ingredients, are dirty dozen free, and do not contain synthetic fragrance or color.
2. My Creative Freedom
I have learned over the years that I have a great deal of creative potential, just waiting to be tapped. In the past I sometimes felt taken advantage of by bosses and coworkers who wanted to access my ideas for their own gain. Now I can finally unleash some of the creativity into creating products that I believe in.
3. Being My Own Boss
I have had my share of cranky, overly demanding, neurotic, and simply unpleasant to be around bosses. Coworkers can also make corporate life a living hell. I am extremely capable, have a smart business mind, and love relying on myself to get the job done. I enjoy being accountable for my business and its successes.
4. Setting My Own Hours
I am a night owl and tend to get more done in the afternoon and night than the morning hours, so it’s wonderful that I can work when I want to. I enjoy the freedom that setting my own hours brings.
5. The Challenges
If there is something I don’t know how to do, I am forced to learn it – it is that simple. I am a one woman team and having a small business sometimes means that you can’t afford to hire people to help you with tasks like Marketing and Accounting that you’re not necessarily so excited about. So, working on Quickbooks, monthly sales tax, and weekly media pitches have become a way of life. Getting a trademark for our business was a recent challenge and I am proud that I accomplished it on my own.
6. Keeping Up with the Joneses
With learning about how to Twitter, how to blog, how to create and update our website, how to create sales and promotions, how to take product photos, and how to make new products, there’s always something to do. There’s never a dull moment!
7. Creating Perfume
I love to read and by reading great books on perfume making by authors such as Mandy Aftel and Celia Lyttelton, I have learned the building blocks of great perfume making: top, middle, and bottom notes. Experimentation is so much fun and my collection of essential oils is growing in leaps and bounds. Mind you, it is a really expensive hobby, but the final creation is definitely worth it!
8. Becoming Healthier
Researching ingredients has made me a healthier person. I know what ingredients to avoid in skin care products (like phthalates in synthetic fragrance) and what supplements (like Resveratrol) really work. I love being able to pass along the information that I have gleaned to friends/family and readers of our newsletters and blog.
9. Greening Up Personal Care
We love that we are a green company and we try to use as little packaging as possible, so there is less to throw away. Our packing peanuts are made from cornstarch, which dissolve in water. Sustainable U.S. grown soy wax is incorporated into our soy candles. We use recyclable packaging on all of our bath and body products and use recycled containers for our soy candles. In the near future, we plan on changing all of our PET recyclable containers to post-consumer recycled PET containers.
10. Networking with other Indies
As a member of the Indie Beauty Network, I am able to connect with other creative, hard-working men and women who are entrepreneurs like me. Through Live Chat, Boosters, Indie Shopping, and conference calls, the Indie Beauty Network harbors a wealth of information for Indies. Thanks Donna Maria, for all that you do!
Now it’s your turn! I’ve heard that there are only a few blogs left to tag, so I’m just tagging two:
The Herbal Thymes Natural Healthy Living Blog
I love #6! Thanks for answering our tag!!