Q&A: Biggest challenge

So, I've received some requests to answer the questions I posed the other day to start the ball rolling. I swear, it's not my split personality that's asking. She's in Jamaica right now.

Question: What was the biggest challenge in starting the business?

Hands down, it was manufacturing a product that had not been made before. When I introduced the Soap Rolls at the first trade show, I had no idea what kind of response I would get so making the soaps on my kitchen stove didn't seem like a problem. With an immediate influx of orders and no real down-time in the first year, I was literally making them 24/7 (or as my Mom likes to say, "24 hours times seven days a week") When larger orders that I couldn't possibly make on my stove came in, I quickly realized that the business was extremely limited. I contacted all the soap manufacturers in the U.S. but wasn't being taken seriously. Because of the shape, no one wanted to do something different or they had minimums that were impossible to meet (or so I thought) I found one manufacturer that would do it with a minimum of just 24,000 pieces but they were so terrible that I couldn't reorder from them. The quality of the soap was sub-par and they repeatedly lied, so I had to go back to making them on my stove. I finally found a great manufacturer that had the right machinery and treated me like a human being - hallelujah! When we later took a tour of the manufacturing facilities, it was surreal to see our soap being produced right next to Dove and Dial bars. I knew I was a pipsqueak client to them, but they never treated me that way. We have manufactured over 375,000 pieces with them to date.

Tips:

• Have a method of mass production ready. Or at least know how to go about setting it in motion before you create a product. When you're in a time-crunch, it's not the best time to negotiate and you're more likely to jump at anything.
• Find an industry trade show. Like you would look for a show to sell your wares, look for a place where all your vendors would be.
• Sign a non-disclosure agreement. Put something in writing to protect yourself.
• Don't be loyal! I know this sounds bad, but keep your eyes open for new suppliers all the time. You never know when your vendor will raise your pricing or go out of business. Even if you don't switch suppliers, keep information on other options, just in case.

What were your biggest challenges? How did you overcome them?