The Business of Soap :: The Story of After the Rayne

Thank you to Kayla Fioravanti of Essential Wholesale who put me in her Spotlight Blog.

Nikie Brown of After the Rayne started with a hobby that turned into a passion which expanded into a business that she can pass on to her children and generations to come. I first met Nikie in person at the 2009 Handcrafted Soapmakers Annual Conference in Palm Springs. Her passion for soap, her family and the community of soapers has always been easy to spot.

After The Rayne

Right after the 2010 Annual Conference in Denver this year I got an email from Nikie alerting me that one of her friends and a fellow soaper had a missing child. We immediately added her to our missing children Wordless Wednesday reports and continue to ask for your help getting the word out about missing child Ali Lowitzer.

How did you get into the soap business?
Well, it all began when I was pregnant with my daughter and my husband said, “Hey, why don’t you quit your job and stay home?”. Hmm..that didn’t take too long to figure out. At the time I was constantly going to my doctor about my itchy skin. He recommended that I use Dove or Ivory, both of which made my itching worse. Since I was now a stay at home mom, I decided to research on making my own soap. Needless to say after many trials and tribulations I made something I could use and 11 years later, I’m still here!

What aspect of the business are you passionate about?
The creating part. I love turning on the music and getting my imagination going on what blends I can create!

What makes your products unique?
They are all named after my daughter Rayne. If it weren’t for her, I would not be doing what I love to do. I have a few regular scents, but the majority of my products are my own original blends.

Who do you market to?
Mostly women and some men.

How has social media helped your business? Do you do twitter, facebook, blog, newsletters, other or all of the above?
I think Social Media has helped a lot. It really gets your name out there and my newsletters have brought in a lot of customers. I’m on Twitter, Facebook and my Blog is After the Rayne. I also have a division of my soaps called ZoZca which is strictly my essential oil line on Etsy.

How long have you been in business?
I have been making my soaps since 1998, but officially turned it into a business in 2000.

If you had it to do all over again in business what would you do differently?
I would probably start out more focused. Have a better game plan. Currently, I make soaps, lotions, creams, lip balms, conditioners, pet shampoos and more. Lately it seems it’s a bit too much and I lost the direction I wanted to go.

What organizations have been helpful to you? How have they been helpful to your business?
Handcrafted Soapmakers Guild, Indie Beauty and Go Texan. Being in these organizations help me to step back and see what I need to do. Donna Maria at Indie Beauty has smart and terrific ideas that you can implement. The HSMG has conferences in which I can constantly learn and hone my craft.

Did you have start-up capital? If not what did you do to make it work?
No. I used house money for the first year. By the second year, the business was holding its own.

Who or what inspires you?
My family. My husband is my biggest supporter and my head cheerleader. Even when times get tough, he’s never asked me stop and get a “real job”.

What do you have planned for your company for 2010?
I would like to refocus on what I originally planned for my company and get back to that. Everything looks so great and I know I can make that product, but it’s time to pull back a bit and get back to my roots.