the alternative of this is and has been....our website. Yes I have used the fair but increasingly thin excuse of being just so busy with the store, the farmers markets and Christmas markets that I have been...well......busy!
This is a lovely, wonderful problem to have in so far as the result is not so much a negative but a lack of the positive. We have customers clamouring for a website so they can order more product once they are home and each time we say "its coming"...is both truthful and misleading. The site is actually built by a great guy named Rob who works for Rocky Coast Creative and design here in Vancouver (New Westminster he's in actually) and the lag is ME....I'M the one who is to put in the content of pictures and professional knowledge hints, twists and information on our fantastic products. So as of today...the start of March we will be seeing just how well that goes in the upcoming weeks and hopefully there will be a great link to each site asap.
www.granvilleislandsoapgallery.com is the site address to date.
Ok enough personal admonishment.......what's new at the Granville Island Soap Gallery???
Well after a stellar year of sales and marketing it has become clear that our focus is changing a wee bit by bringing in a few more lines of wonderful locally made products, trying to create a bigger space with the potential of expanding the store to double its size and creating a "Soap and Cosmetic Co-op" of sorts for both our dedicated clientele and the vast number of visitors to Granville Island.
Being the busiest soap store in the lower mainland has its pros and cons..... PRO...its fantastic to be this busy....CON...its a lot of work to be this busy. " oh boo-hoo huh!"
Without giving away any trade secrets it is increasingly clear that people are wanting locally made, high quality, Canadian designed and sourced where possible products and this is where we have always focussed ourselves in the market. What I have noticed though is that there are several truly great and innovative small companies who have started up in the past five years who are creating products you just cannot GET at the local drugstore. For a variety of reasons the quality of handmade products are just far and away superior to anything one can get at the department store (without paying the exorbitant prices) or at the drugstores (because of inferior quality). Now this is not to say that you cant get good and some great products at the drugstore...you can! Its that....and this is just a secret......so ssshhhhh.... locally made products by soap makers are using the utmost in quality products, using super fine ingredients like pure carrier oils and essential oils that big manufacturers are NOT doing because the bottom line is higher profit margins while small hand crafters are focussed on higher quality.....and often much to the detriment of THEIR profit margins.
Most hand crafters never even think to add in their wages for time in the product so get 'em while you can and before people catch on!!
We make our bulk square soaps in 500lb batches so when I sell one at a farmers market for 4 bucks...yeah Ill make something..... "Suzy Soaper" who does the same in 5-25lb batches?? she's not making a thing and its probably a fantastic, rich, creamy product! oh well...good for the buyer.
So to that end we are bringing in several lines of soaps and other products like deodorants and body butters, shaving products and others to help out those who cannot create a brick and mortar store but want a knowledgeable and caring sales approach attached to their products.
Stay tuned and come by the store to see what's new as it changes almost daily.
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