
It’s been a week since the launch of my Japanese Cleansing Cloud so it seems like a good time to tell you how it came about. When everything ground to halt earlier in the year I had time to think about about an idea that had been in my head for some time. I’ve genuinely never wanted my own product but this idea kept popping back up again and again. I asked a formulator friend if he could recommend a manufacturer who I could make some preliminary enquiries with and he forwarded details of a family run company in Yorkshire. We started initial discussions in about May time – my friend Julia runs the FB Group, Mrs Gloss & The Goss and we discussed whether it should be created for just for that particular group because built-for-community is a concept I want to explore. In the end, the timing didn’t feel quite right for that model.
I ordered samples of very basic ‘soaps’ so I would know what to add to change it to a balm bar (technically I am allowed to use that term because of the high oil content) – I had a dream list of oils that I wanted including and they literally all went in (see HERE) ! That’s the beauty of a small manufacturer – they pay attention to what you want and need and work until it’s right. Which is what happened. Some small sample cloud shapes were made – I ordered a cookie cutter to see what a stamp might look like..
I know – it looks like it’s screaming! After a lot of back and forth and testing as soon as the formula was right, I knew it, and I’ve been such a fan of Japanese beauty for so many years that I knew I wanted that influence to be at the core (although it’s not set in stone that one day there might be different influences). Bathing is such a ritual in that part of the world and skin care so effective that the two marry well together. And the cute smile? It always had to have a smile because it’s supposed to be a very happy thing at a time when smiles can be hard to find. Finding exactly the right smile wasn’t as easy as you might think…my three top options are below.
A hilarious dimension misunderstanding landed us with this (below)!
So, we ordered two new cutters at a much smaller dimension and tried them out…
Once everything was right (name check to Alex who has so kindly taken these pictures of the whole process AND hand cut a batch of clouds for testing before the cutters arrived) there was a pause – raw ingredients were hard to get and the whole country was at a standstill. In the middle of it, the manufacturers moved from Yorkshire to Wales. I momentarily lost my confidence, even though I’d sampled out rough cuts to friends for feedback which was all positive. But my pal Kelly said talk to Gill at Victoria Health. I said no straight away because I was concerned it would sound like I was asking for something and that wasn’t the case, but her experience in on-line retail is so strong and her eye for product so keen that I knew she could say whether it was worth pursuing. I bit the bullet… and here’s the thing – Gill on-the-spot ordered A LOT to sell on Victoria Health. She has personally guided me through the process in a way I know would not have happened elsewhere – I was oblivious to complexities of margins and VAT and so on so having that mentorship and open relationship has been invaluable. Just doing the costings for raw ingredients, labels, cutters, stamps, packaging and labour is really hard! So, I know I’m immensely lucky for that careful support but also for finding a manufacturing company where it feels as though the outcome matters just as much to them as to me – and for friends who know when to push and of course Thom who knows how to design labels in an emergency at 8am on a Saturday!
After all the practise runs on rough-cut bars, we finally had it right and I had to wait for my place in the production queue for the first 1000 to be made. Each one is hand cut and hand stamped, then smoothed until it’s perfect. Unbelievably, I have just placed a further order this week because they have sold so fast. I didn’t see that coming, nor other retailers emailing the very next day after they’d gone on sale for stock (it’s staying exclusive at VH for now) so the company are kindly squeezing in this new order in batches so we don’t suddenly run out.
There they are (above) on the production line being hand stamped! Going through the start to finish process has given me insights into and empathy with smaller brands who are taking such a risk. It IS a risk – even with the support I’ve had far and wide. Retailer margins are high (some more than others), distributor margins are also high – I literally don’t even have that built in because otherwise it would be a project purely for love. I used non-fancy biodegradable packaging so I could put more into high grade ingredients and I am beyond happy with the end quality. I will never drive away in a Ferrari, that is for sure, and my nerves are shredded, but I’m glad to have been through the experience – I’ve already taken so many learnings from feedback. I don’t know what is in the future – I thought I would produce one run of balm bars and that would be it. And yet, I’m on my second, and bigger-than-the-first, order just seven days after it launched. What I can (cheesily) say, after this ramble, is that I am on Cloud 9! You can find The Japanese Cleansing Cloud HERE. It’s £12.
Transparency Disclosure
All products are sent to me as samples from brands and agencies unless otherwise stated. Affiliate links may be used. Posts are not affiliate driven.
23 comments
Mine just arrived yesterday and first use țonight for bathtime!!
I have really dry skin due to high dose steroids so hoping this will help.
Can you use it to wash your face? Would it sting your eyes, that’s another side effect of my condition, crazy sore dry eyes.
Love a soap… so was straight in my VH basket.
Hi Rachel, it’s safety tested for use on the face but as with anything new, I’d patch test on a very small area first. Thanks and I hope you like it 🙂
Congratulations, Jane.
It couldn’t happen to a nicer person, I wish you all the success in the world. I always open your emails as soon as they hit my mailbox and you’re one of the few people I trust in the beauty blogging world.
Have just ordered and can’t wait for it to arrive,
Oh, thank you so much! That’s so nice to know 🙂 xx
I’ve been using mine for a week now and my skin is looking smooth and fabulous. I was worried that it would melt away to nothing quickly as it’s got those good oils in, but you only need a brief swipe across the bar to get enough for lots of lather. And it smells beautiful!
Ah, I’m so pleased to know that! Thank you so much x
I’m so pleased for you, Jane. And it’s great that you had support from Victoria Health. Two of my favourites working together – awesome! I can’t try it yet because I’m living and working overseas and we’re restricted to what we can import. But I would love to get one when I’m back in the UK on leave. Not sure when that will be but I look forward to it. It’s great to see to good people doing well x
Thank you Sarah! That’s such a kind message and really appreciated x
It’s always fascinating to know how things are made, so this post was really interesting. All the different steps, and the process of developing exactly what you want in terms of product and working partners – it’s great to get more understanding of how you bring a product to market.
I’m really chuffed it’s proving so popular. Congratulations. 🙂
I think I’ve had it remarkably easy because of those working partners actually … particularly given the circumstances.. but it’s still a massive stress with a few tweaks still needed (labels are wrong size for example) – the biggest worry is that people won’t like it. But, so far so good – thanks so much for your comment Lisa and your good wishes xx
Congratulations Jane! It is such a joyful happy product and I’m thrilled for you xx
thanks so much Sharon!
WISHING YOU EVERY SUCCESS JANE …. BRAVO … I ALWAYS SAY EVERY ONE STEPPING INTO THE COMMERCIAL OR ENTREPRENEURIAL WORLD IS LIKE A GLADIATOR … SO TO YOU.
XXX♥️♥️♥️♥️RUBY HAMMER
Ah, thank you so much Ruby :-)))
Waiting for mine to arrive, will be assessing for Christmas present possibilities.
Fingers crossed, Wendy!
Mine came the other day! One for me and another two for Christmas gifts. I can smell them through the packing. Can’t wait to try mine out! Wishing you great success Jane.
Oh great! So pleased – and thank you 🙂
This is really cute, I wished I lived nearer so I could buy and try it (All the way in Asia here)! And the first iteration isn’t so much screaming, it looks like it’s singing, but maybe because that kind of imagery is more common here than it is there, and of course the final and current version is just as cute and pleasant.
I really enjoyed reading the process, thank you so much for giving us a peek behind the scenes of the whole thing!
P.S. The dimension misunderstanding… I literally laughed out loud!
Haha – I laughed out loud as well when I saw it – my lovely idea destroyed in front of my eyes! Thank you for your kind comments 🙂
Hello Jane. I’ve been a long time lurker and I don’t usually leave comments but just wanted to say how much I’m loving the Cleansing Cloud. It’s actually the nicest bar soap I’ve ever used and I love that it doesn’t leave that squeaky-clean feeling that soap usually does. I’ve been having some skin problems due to an autoimmune condition and the Cloud hasn’t caused any issues with it at all! I’ve used it on my face too (I don’t usually use fragranced products there) and my skin has been looking a lot calmer. I’ve been wanting to switch to more sustainable beauty products and have tried so many soaps with varying degrees of success and this is the one I’ll be sticking with from now on. Anyway to cut a long comment short, it’s a truly wonderful product and not only does the cute face and lovely smell make me happy at a difficult time, it’s making my skin happy too! I don’t think I could rave enough about it and I’ll be putting one in everyone’s Christmas stocking next month 🙂
That’s wonderful – thank you so much for letting me know. We actually can’t keep up with demand which is something I never thought would happen but I’m so grateful for your feedback x
How cute!