Name of your website?Soaptopia.com
Your name?
Jolie Chitwood
Your Location (city, etc)
Mar Vista
Please give us a short summary of your website?
Soaptopia makes handmade natural soap and bath products in our shop on Venice Blvd. in Mar Vista California. The site describes our philosophy, our shop, wholesale information and we have an online store.
What inspired you to launch your own website?
Our brand is fun and unique so the website allows us to reach out beyond our local customers and baptize new Soaptopians.
When did you launch your first website, and what was it?
We first launched our website in 2007 and added online sales soon after.
How did you decide on a name for your website?
Soaptopia says it all. Our soap evokes proboscal transcendence -- the smell can take you into another state! We ask our customers where they feel the smell -- people experience every unique scent in a different way.
What makes your website different from other, similar offerings?
Our soaps are B.A.T.H. certified 100% junk free (Bathe in All Things Healthy). We use all natural, animal free, chemical free ingredients. We are a green business and offer all eco-frienly products.
What is your eventual goal? (To sell it, keep it for income, secure a book or other mainstream media deal?)
Our goal is to keep expanding our audience beyond Southern California. We thrive on word of mouth - once people try the products they are hooked. So we just hope to keep spreading the love!
How does your investment of time and money balance against your success?
We love what we do and make all of our decisions based on the quality of the product and fun. Of course we can't afford to lose money, but our goal is to keep making an affordable, healthy product that people can use everyday.
If your site got really big, really quickly, would you be able to keep up with the demand?
That would be a wonderful problem to have! We make all of our product fresh in our store, but we have a good process in place that we can expand as needed.
What unexpected costs and headaches have you had to deal with?
Owning a business is full of unexpected headaches. In the long run they can turn int advantages.
What has been your biggest challenge?
As a retailer, the holidays are our biggest season. So we have to deal with a lot of ups and downs.
What method has been most successful for promoting your website?
Our website does well through word of mouth.
How has running your website differed from your expectations?
The web audience is a little different from the shop customers. So offers and deals do well on the web. Still we try to create a personal fun experience on the web.
How long have you run the site already, and how long will you continue to keep it up if you don't enjoy big gains in traffic, income or popularity?
The website is a great calling card for our shop, so even though we don't do most of our business through the website, it is essential for our business.
What plans to you have for your website?
We are planning a fun promotion on the theme of Gratitude -- thanking our customers and helping them spread Gratitude. We also have some great recordings of songs about our products and hope to post them on the website soon.
What is your website address?
Soaptopia.com
