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Scaling

Writer's picture: TinaTina



As our small farm-based business grows, we must make sensible changes to streamline efficiency and simplify tasks. However, deciding what changes to make, how to best utilize our hard-earned dollars, and how to find resources to meet our needs can be challenging. Neither The Bibbed Wonder nor I are experts at scaling a business. To be perfectly transparent, we aren't experts at anything. It is a learn-as-we-go, trial-and-error; even a blind squirrel gets a nut once-in-a-while approach to business success. When deciding how to scale our business efficiently, I wish my dad and father-in-law were here to consult.


Currently, we have a situation in the soap studio. We have used a hand press to stamp our logo onto our soap for the last five years. A hand press was an upgrade six years ago. Before the hand press, we used an acrylic stamp and a rubber mallet to stamp our logo onto our soap. We refer to the process of hand stamping with a rubber mallet as the tap-tap-tap method. With the hand press, we manually place each bar on the acrylic platform, pull a lever, and use brute strength to impress the stamp upon the soap bars. It goes faster than using a rubber mallet, but it is still time-consuming and labor-intensive.


The current situation is thus, the hand press, which was on its last leg, has finally died. With her Hulk-like approach to stamping, the Bean drove the last nail into the proverbial coffin and broke off the piece holding the stamp onto the press. I jest. We knew we were on borrowed time with the hand press, and The Bean just happened to be the one using it when it finally gave way. We are back to tap-tap-tapping our logo onto our soaps. Thank goodness, The Bean is young, strong, and doesn't mind repetitive action. Again, I jest. She is salty about being the one to use the rubber mallet.


So, now, we have a dilemma: how do we improve our process? This is where a degree in scaling a business would come in handy. We feel we have outgrown the hand press. However, there doesn't seem to be any middle ground regarding scaling or equipment for a small, handmade soap company. Our choices are a slightly more improved version of a hand press or huge, industrial commercial stampers that automate the entire process and cost way more than we are willing to spend. Personally, I don't want to run a soap factory. I also don't want to use a rubber mallet and give myself tennis elbow after stamping hundreds of bars of soap weekly.


We thought we had found a solution to our stamping issue a few months ago. We found a small company in Wisconsin that creates soap equipment for handmade soap businesses. It checked all the boxes for me. It is a small, privately owned business that is American-made and uses most American-made parts for its manufacturing. The customer service is good, communication is timely, and the stamper has good reviews. However, the drawback of being a one-person show is that when you face a personal crisis, you don't have anyone to fall back on for help. The gentleman who owns the business faces a family health crisis and does not have the time to build the stamper that we feel meets our needs. This stamper has a conveyor belt that feeds the soap bars into the stamper, provides consistent pressure that we can manually set, stamps the soap using an air compressor, moves the bar forward, feeds another one, and so on. Using this stamper, we could stamp an entire batch of soap in under a half hour. That would be a huge time saver. It took a few weeks for the gentleman to admit he could not fulfill our order, and he refunded our money.


Of course, we delayed purchasing a new stamper until we could no longer ignore the problem. Now we are back to tap-tap-tapping. Sigh. Purchasing a commercial stamper is not going to happen. First, it is not economically sound. I'm not even sure it would fit into our current studio. Secondly, going commercial is not where I see this business going. I like the creativity, hands-on approach, and perfectly imperfect approach to handmade items. I think going commercial would take away what makes us unique. Maybe I am wrong, short-sighted, or not a good business person. I don't see us going the way of big, industrial processing.


I also know that another hand press is not an option. We have outgrown it and require more time for other business-related activities. Let's face it: child labor is not an ethical option, and eventually, The Bean is going to unionize. Rotten kids. The only other in-between option we can find is an upgraded version of a hand press. The press we are considering uses an air compressor to apply consistent pressure to the stamp, but we have to feed the bars into the stamper individually and remove them by hand. It's not quite as efficient as the belt-fed stamper, but it should save us a fair amount of time. However, no one will develop tennis elbow from this press, and it will happen with the push of a button. That is an improvement.


The Bean is most excited about the new press. She informed us she would take over that job once the new stamper arrived. She will want to be the sole stamper until the novelty wears off, and then she will pass the job on to someone with less experience. This happens with all soap jobs: It is fun until it is not. By far, the most hated task in the soap studio is hand-stamping bags and boxes. The Bean is pushing us to spend the extra $1.20 per bag and order them pre-stamped. The Bibbed Wonder's response is, "What else are we going to do to keep teenagers out of trouble? The more time they have, the more they get into." I believe his parents took the same approach to cutting firewood. Having Eric cut firewood by hand was an annual activity that lasted year-round until he married and moved out. Much to his chagrin, the wood-burning stove was replaced with a pelletized burning stove not a month after we married. Papa Dale told him it was the only way to keep him tired and out of trouble. We really do become our parents. God help us.


We greatly anticipate the new stamper's arrival on Friday. Before we can use it, the Bibbed Wonder must do a few things. First, we must purchase a quiet air compressor and designate a new area for stamping. The little antique table we use doesn't provide a sturdy enough base. We will be in business once our new stamping area is set up. I am sure The Bean will make the acrylic stamp and rubber mallet disappear before the weekend ends. I'm also sure a new video demonstrating our new toy will be posted before the weekend ends. Sorry for the soap nerd info.


On this overcast Wednesday, stay safe, be smart, be efficient, do your best, and keep washing your hands.



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