Cntry Bunny Bath Sold 600,000 Lotion Bars

[Cami]

I read an interview last night that stated the owner of this company which is now called Jordan Essentials Bath has sold 600,000 solid lotion bars in the last 6 years. It has been her #1 selling product..

So I've been thinking and working on a recipe and was curious - how many do you sell in a year???? I know for some it is their best selling product as well... I think this is a nice addition to any bath line, I'm surprised the big boys haven't picked up on them yet.. I certainly hope they don't - because they will blow them out if they start selling these wonderful treats... and it seems more exclusive to those who make handmade items....

Without being too personal, do you generate a substantial amount of your sales or money selling these bars????

Something to think about... I will definately be adding these to our line as soon as I can..

Thanks for your input and sharing of ideas, it helps everyone here as well...:smiley2:

[ValhallaGal]

The first few years that I was soaping which would have been 1998 & 1999 I sold a ton of these at the farmers market. They were packaged in the deodorant type containers. Then the third year sales started tapering off and by the forth year there were not enough sales to make it worth my while to make them. I personally am not and never have been a fan of them, so I just quit making them all together. It might be something however that I need to revisit.

[ChrisR]

They sell great in the summer with my bug buster EO blend. They never sold well as just lotion bars, customers rather buy lotion or body butters.

[MsDammit]

customers rather buy lotion or body butters.

Yup that's me, I really TRIED to make myself use/like lotion bars but it just didn't work.

[Ruina]

I don't sell but I made a bunch for xmas gifts as a Heel Butter & everyone seemed to like them. Maybe you can try something like that?

[Crafty1]

i use to see them and in the beginning they did okay. i have found that my customers prefer lotions, whipped body butters, etc.

[blazerina]

Just putting in my in regards to preference.

I don't really like them either. I think mostly I just don't really understand them, lol. They should be called Balm Bars instead of Lotion Bars. A lotion goes all over the body in large areas. A Lotion Bar is WAY too much of a pain to try to do this with. They are great for spot treatments though.

And I think if you gave it an 'added benefit' somehow like... for itch releif, or as Chris mentioned- bug bites, super duper healer for dry cracked elbows etc, they would make more sense to customers.

I do have ONE customer who gets itchy legs but since he works with his hands he can't use lotions because it will make his hands soft and they get nicked and banged easier he says. So he is the perfect candidate for this kind of 'hands free' application. And then there are those who might want to apply it at work and don't want to go back to the keyboard or other tools of the trade all moisturized/greased up and dropping things just because they wanted to apply some to their knees or elbows or something. These instances though are few. But if you market it in a way that gears buyers up for a specific use they might take to them really well. For instance, I'd be more likely to buy it as a 'portable solution' to heavy bottles of lotion.

Not only am I the type that needs to read everything on the package so I feel confident I'm using it right, I also need to be conviced that I REALLY need it in the first place, lol.

[thesoapbox]

First off you have to remember that JE is a direct sales company like Mary Kay so that is why they have the huge numbers of those being sold .

Their lotion bars are being sold at home parties where a rep can teach customers how to use them, what they are for, what their benefits are for and the customers can try them out before buying them. Something we may have a hard time doing especially if you simply sell off of a website.

Now, I love the idea of calling them Balm Bars and I may just steal that from you lol! I know when I gave my lotion bars in a swap practically everyone loved it. The downside of lotion bars is how long the dern things last lol! One bar practically lasts me a year, however I go through normal lotions at least every 3-4 weeks so I have to purchase more lol.

Another one I am wanting to do is a lotion bar that softens up a bit more than my normal lotion bars and can be used for after-sun care or even as a massage balm bar. That is on my drawing board to start experimenting with to see if I can make my current lotion bar become softer when hitting warm skin . Any ideas?

Angi

[elle110]

Ok, these are my specialty...I sold close to 2,000 of these last year (2007), mainly just doing my 8 shows and the little bit of time I have been my store. They are one of my hottest items and they get hotter by the day. I have been selling them for 5 years.

Mine are in tins, they are 1 oz. and I have over 30 fragrances.

The #1 challenge with the lotion bars is educating the consumer on how to use them, that is why I have not done a lot of wholesaling with these because if they get into the hands of a shop owner that just sticks them on the shelf and never talks about them they will not sell, and, unfornately most shops are like this because the owner may not be there and has not trained staff to promote the product. I have one account that sells them like hot cakes and she gives every person that enters her store one to sample...

The other thing about them is that in most circumstances they do not sell in the deodorant tubes or push up tubes...I don't know why but any soapers that have them in the tubes at shows I do usually don't sell any

Another thing that sells them is to offer them in fragrances not just EO and promote them as the long lasting product they are and charge more for them because they last as long as several bottles of lotion. I sell mine for $7.50 and no one blinks an eye

Every person that comes to my booth is handed the lotion bar and given the famous "lotion bar speel" sp? I have developed over the last several years, I most definitely know that I sell them better than anyone who works for me because of my confindence in promoting them but I have several people who work the shows now who are getting pretty good:)

I offer a "3 for" deal and a majority of people buy the 3 packs to give as gifts, heck at Christmas time peoeple buy 6, 9 or more.

I just opened a store in August and I have people now coming from over 45 miles to get them, they may see someone at work with one etc. They are definitely a conversation piece. Besides my soap, they are my best-seller, I will never stop making them.

Some areas do sell better than others, and usually the first time they are introduced, say to a new show, they may not sell that great but usually by the next year they start really catching on

Funny thing, I was a CB rep for about 3 months a long time ago (b4 I started my own gig) and I hate their lotion bars, the texture that is, they are way to sticky. On the other hand, their are several fragrances that I really love of theirs. Unfortunately direct sales are not my cup of tea so I quickly got out of that.

They are definitely something to consider and are great sellers if marketed well

[elle110]

Angie, why can't you just pull back on the beeswax a little and up the oils. BTW, CB has massage bars as well and if i remember right the recipe is no different than their lotion bars

Elle

First off you have to remember that JE is a direct sales company like Mary Kay so that is why they have the huge numbers of those being sold .

Their lotion bars are being sold at home parties where a rep can teach customers how to use them, what they are for, what their benefits are for and the customers can try them out before buying them. Something we may have a hard time doing especially if you simply sell off of a website.

Now, I love the idea of calling them Balm Bars and I may just steal that from you lol! I know when I gave my lotion bars in a swap practically everyone loved it. The downside of lotion bars is how long the dern things last lol! One bar practically lasts me a year, however I go through normal lotions at least every 3-4 weeks so I have to purchase more lol.

Another one I am wanting to do is a lotion bar that softens up a bit more than my normal lotion bars and can be used for after-sun care or even as a massage balm bar. That is on my drawing board to start experimenting with to see if I can make my current lotion bar become softer when hitting warm skin . Any ideas?

Angi

[blazerina]

Very inpresive Elle!

Thank you for your expert input. I for one bow to you!

[elle110]

Most of my customers actually take the bars out of the tin and use them on their entire body, I make sure they know that it can be used every where regular lotion is used. And I have directions on the bottom of the tin with directions on use, because so many are given as gifts etc. also promote them with the added benefit of being able to use the entire product, unlike traditional lotion that never seems to empty out. Another great thing about lotion bars is that they are Airline appoved, they don't fall under the 1 oz guide line for traveling so they can be carried on with no restrictions. I have a ton of Airline customers and overseas customers who travel because of this The marketing on these is endlesss, nurses, postal workers etc.

Just putting in my in regards to preference.

I don't really like them either. I think mostly I just don't really understand them, lol. They should be called Balm Bars instead of Lotion Bars. A lotion goes all over the body in large areas. A Lotion Bar is WAY too much of a pain to try to do this with. They are great for spot treatments though.

And I think if you gave it an 'added benefit' somehow like... for itch releif, or as Chris mentioned- bug bites, super duper healer for dry cracked elbows etc, they would make more sense to customers.

I do have ONE customer who gets itchy legs but since he works with his hands he can't use lotions because it will make his hands soft and they get nicked and banged easier he says. So he is the perfect candidate for this kind of 'hands free' application. And then there are those who might want to apply it at work and don't want to go back to the keyboard or other tools of the trade all moisturized/greased up and dropping things just because they wanted to apply some to their knees or elbows or something. These instances though are few. But if you market it in a way that gears buyers up for a specific use they might take to them really well. For instance, I'd be more likely to buy it as a 'portable solution' to heavy bottles of lotion.

Not only am I the type that needs to read everything on the package so I feel confident I'm using it right, I also need to be conviced that I REALLY need it in the first place, lol.

[thesoapbox]

Mine are in tins as well. I am thinking for the massage ones and after sun ones I am going to do as suggested on the beeswax and eliminate the cocoa butter and use that aloe/shea mix of butter to see how well that works.

I never cared for the JE lotion bars as well because of the stickiness. I tweaked the recipe for the non-sticky lotion bar here on the board and have come up with a nice one thanks for that recipe!!

ANgi