Buying soaps you would usually get it at Target or somewhere like Bath and Body Works. Nowadays you can get soap anywhere even online like on Etsy. When we think of Boss Lady we think of women empowerment but also a lady pushing herself to follow her dreams which Annie Lopez the owner of Soap&Tonic is doing. Not only a soap creator but a full time analyst and full time air force wife.
Juggling all of that can be tough but the soap creator is not let that get to her. Lopez said, "Luckily enough, my 9-to-5 allows me to work from home full-time. That allows me to balance my time between being an IT consultant and soap creator. It definitely takes a lot of time management and organization." Lopez added that she has days where she is sitting in on conference calls all day and there are days when she is in her little soap work area mixing and pouring.
With her husband being in the Air Force Lopez expressed how it doesn't impact her work load too much. He doesn't go out of town often so he's able to help her with the paperwork and bookkeeping for the shop. If and when he does go out of town, she has her work, her shop, and her two dogs to keep her occupied.
The Mississippi resident truly embodies what a boss lady is. On her Instagram page for Soap&Tonic she put #womenowned and for creating her own business and being her own boss she feels very empowered. Lopez stated, " I put a lot of pride in my work and into the products I create, In away they're a reflection of myself" What she means by "they're a reflection of myself" is that she thinks the soaps reflect her personality and what she
would prefer in colors and scents. Geometric shapes are something she is obsessed with. which is seen on her Etsy store.
When it came to generating the name for her business, the soap creator was brainstorming a name that had a good ring to it that had to obviously have soap in it. "I didn't want anything tacky and "Soap and Tonic" just came to me. She was also inspired by the so called Gin&Tonic even though she does not drink whiskey.
Learning how to make the scrubs Lopez sells or the soaps she turned to YouTube and Facebook groups for soap.
Scents is important when it comes to body and bathing products. Sometimes people buy based on scent so Lopez gets her inspiration from Pinterest."I think of what’s “trending” or in season at that moment. Then i’ll just search for related items on Pinterest and go from there. I also like to browse soap supply sites and purchase various fragrance oils I think I may like", according to Lopez. The Mississippi resident will spend an hour or so smelling scents and play around with different combinations until she can find the right mix.
Like many products we use there are always benefits Lopez explained that sugar scrubs are great for a soft exfoliation. The scrubs also leave her skin feeling super moisturized from the mango butter! While the milk bar baths are perfect for moisturizing the skin. Lopez advised that soaking the skin in coconut milk powder and colloidal oats helps during the dry months and gives the skin a nice drink of “water”, or in this case, milk! Lastly soap bars are for moisturizing. The soap creator said out of all her soap bars, The one with the most benefits is the Activated Charcoal bar. "I’ve gotten so many compliments on this one. Buyers have said it’s helped with their acne, detoxed their skin, and even helped relieve itching from a mosquito bite!"
Most businesses on Etsy create customers order the same goes for Lopez. She loves custom orders because it challenges her to be more creative, to get out of her comfort zone. "One unique order I had received was for a baby shower. The special mom-to-be wanted something in pink, purple, cream, and a touch of gold! It was my first time working with gold flakes and it was definitely a fun process! It’s inspired me to create something special for Christmas", Lopez stated.
With selling soap bars, scrubs, and milk bars self care comes into play. There are so many hashtags, GIFS , and even accounts on Instagram that discuss how important self care is. For the soap creator, self -care is being unapologetically selfish.Lopez said, "For me, it’s spending time to do something that makes you a better person, something that uplifts your spirits. For me, it could be as something as small as putting on a face mask to meditating to turning off my phone for an hour for a mental break from social media."
The reason why Lopez chose her business for soaps and bath products because it’s something that people enjoy using. It’s something that makes someone feel special or feel refreshed. Creating soaps, sugar scrubs, and milk baths allows her to experiment and learn. It allows her to show my personality on a whole other platform.
Just like aspirations everyone has goals, for Lopez is to become not only a successful female-owned business but an Asian woman-owned business because as she networks and connects with many small businesses, she noticed there aren't that many. Another goal for her is to have her own shop. She loves Etsy and e it’s a well-known e-commerce platform, she then added, " But how great would it be to have my own shop and domain!"
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