Hi everyone! Sorry we've been a little lazy on the blogging front. Life has been nothing short of nutty for both Laura and myself. And AnnaKate Soaps has been very, very busy!! Lots has happened since our last entry, including our latest retail location, a lovely gift shop and cafe in Elkhart, Indiana called b on the River.
I was lucky enough to be able to stop into b on the River a couple weekends ago and check it out. It's a fresh, upscale, sophisticated yet funky little store that has everything from soaps to bedding to kitchen accessories. There is also a bakery and cafe attached that serves beautiful and tasty treats like paninis and croissants.
I was in Chicago for the week and decided to make the trip to Elkhart to see our newest retail customer. From downtown Chicago it was only about a 2-hour trip (the weather was gross and rainy but the traffic was pretty good). If you're ever in the area I strongly encourage you to visit b on the River. It's a fresh breath of air in an adorable downtown area in northern Indiana. I'd never been to Indiana before but had heard (from my judgmental husband) that it wasn't anything to get excited about. However, downtown Elkhart was quite charming and b on the River adds much charm to the area. Stop in to b on the River, check out the selection on AnnaKate Soaps (oh, and all the other cool stuff, too), have a bite to eat and enjoy the views of the river. I think you'll like it. :)
As the leaves change, kids are back in school, and cool winds blow, AnnaKate Soaps is thinking about our new fall line of products! We're excited to introduce four new products -- three soaps and a mud mask! You can purchase any of these products by e-mailing your order to annakatesoaps@gmail.com or visiting our Etsy store by clicking here.
This weekend Laura and I drove out to Casselton, ND, to visit with Greg from Maple River Winery. We talked for a while about a new co-op in North Dakota that we're thinking about joining, and we also asked him about his experience as a small business owner. Check out this video for Greg's story and his advice to other small business owners.
As a young woman who works a full time job, is in the car for about two hours each day, volunteers as a mentor at church and one of the local colleges, AND has a growing bath and body business, I'm always looking for good bits of information that I can absorb quickly and get on with the rest of my day. Like most entrepreneurs (especially those who are working full time and trying to grow a business on the side) I rarely have enough spare time to devote to expanding my knowledge of business, marketing, industry trends, etc. That's why I love blogs so much. Blogs provide little nuggets of information from knowledgeable (and entertaining) professionals, entrepreneurs, and people who are like me in many ways.
Today I stumbled upon The Work at Home Woman blog by Holly Reisem Hanna. Today she posted the 50 Best Blogs by Women that I think every woman -- whether she works for herself, for someone else, or for her family -- should read. The blogs are organized on this list by topic, which I love! It makes it easy to browse through the blogs you're interested in and skip over the ones you're not. Time saver!!!
Many thanks go out to Holly Reisem Hanna for compiling this list and to the 50 women who are featured bloggers on the list. Take a look at the list here and enjoy all the quick nuggets of information shared by each of these authors!
You know those stories that are so inspiring they give you the chills?
Bella Lucce is one of those stories - from products taking over her house (AnnaKate can relate to that!) to world traveler and international business woman, Lela Barker, from Bella Lucce is truly an inspiration not only to fellow soapmakers, but anyone who aspires to own their own business!
It's stories about individuals who take charge of their life, business and fate that make a difference for other small businesses and provide the inspiration to become great!
Check out the Bella Lucce facebook page at www.facebook.com/bellalucce to view Lela's photo journey to success!
If you follow us on Facebook or follow Jen on Twitter (@JenniferSondag), you've probably noticed that we've been talking a lot about newly proposed legislation that we're not too fond of. On July 20, H.R. 5786 was introduced to Congress (also called the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010). It's being backed by numerous organizations, coalitions, companies, and Fran Drescher (yes, as in "The Nanny").
We can all agree that safe beauty and cosmetic products are a must. We would never sell or promote any product that we didn't believe was 100% safe for our customers. Laura and I use the products we make and sell every day, and we wouldn't use anything (our product or someone else's) that wasn't safe. We are FOR safe cosmetics but we OPPOSE this bill as it is written for the following reasons:
1. Too much red tape will make it too expensive for us to stay in business. The reporting and testing requirements would be more strict and extensive than current food requirements. We would also have to tell "big brother" when we hire someone, when we change suppliers/vendors, what all of our ingredient formulations are, and who are distributors are. There is no guarantee than any of all of this information would be kept confidential.
2. New labeling requirements would force us to invest in a new labeling system, which would raise prices. More importantly, is it not pragmatic to list all trace elements on a label. This is how we would have to list olive oil under the new regulations:
3. The cosmetics industry is already safe and gives consumers a wide variety of choices. It is already illegal to not list all ingredients on cosmetics packaging. AnnaKate Soaps has been educated on how to properly label our products, and we do our absolute best to follow all the requirements.
4. This bill and the push behind it is based on bad science and propaganda full of scare tactics. There is a video floating around the Internet called "The Story of Cosmetics" in which the narrator (Annie Leonard) repeatedly talks about toxic babies, bodies full of lead, and the idea that none of us have any control (except to support this bill). If you've seen the video (or even if you haven't), I'd strongly suggest watching this rebuttal video. It's a little long (about 16 minutes) but it goes through the original video and discusses all the claims made by Ms. Leonard. Some claims are rebutted while others are just further explained or explained from a different point of view.
Our biggest concern with this bill (as written) is that it would put us and thousands of other small cosmetic businesses out of business. There is still time to rewrite it in a manner that would protect small businesses AND ensure safe cosmetics. However, the way it was introduced to Congress would hurt, not help. Read the bill for yourself here.
You can help us by signing the petition against H.R. 5786 here and by writing your representatives to urge them not to support and/or co-sponsor this bill. Laura and I each wrote to our representatives (Collin Peterson in Minnesota for me and Earl Pomeroy for Laura) voicing our concerns. Thanks for all your support!
The Fargo Street Fair was a huge success thanks to all of our great customers. We received some great feedback and will be adjusting our line to fit your needs! In honor of the Fargo Street Fair, we created an I Love Fargo Soap, it received a fantastic response! What do you think of it?
Our top three sellers were Breakfast Bar, Clay Savon and Escape to the Sea. To celebrate our first street fair we are extending a special offer to you. Through July 31st when you purchase all three of our top sellers, you will receive your 4th soap 1/2 off! Just email your selection to annakatesoaps@gmail.com!
We're Jen and Laura, the creative minds behind AnnaKate Soaps. We hope you enjoy the ideas, tutorials and other content on our blog! Please feel free to comment if you have any questions, ideas or stories.
