Darnell1

AudreyDarnell
Dr.AnnieKnepler
UNST108G
2/17/15
PortlandsArtisanSoapIndustry:GettingUpCloseandPersonalwithyourSoap
OneofthebestChristmasgiftsIwasevergivenasachildwasadecorativecardboard
boxthatwaslinedwithgoldentissuepaperandfilledtothebrimwithdifferentkindsof
handmadesoaps.Althoughsoapmayseemliketheequivalentofgettingcoalinonesstocking,
Irememberlovingeverythingaboutmyboxofprettysoaps.Iremembertheboringgreenbars
ofhandsoapthatmyparentskeptaroundthehouseandhowbeautifulmyhandmadesoaps
lookedincomparison.Oftentimes,Iwouldnteventakethemoutoftheboxforfearthatthey
wouldtarnishwithuse.TheywerethefirstcosmeticIeverused,andIgrewattachedtocertain
soapsandtheirscents,colors,shapes,andtexturesjustlikeIwouldbecomeattachedtoafavorite
perfumeorshadeoflipsticklaterinlife.
Fourteenyearslater,IaminsideBellaMiSoapCompanysshopinNortheastPortland
browsingthroughawhimsicalarrayofhandmadebarsoaps,bodyscrubs,bathbombs,andtheir
infamoussoaptrufflesleftoversoapthathasbeenshapedintotiny,bonbonshapedpieces.As
Iwalkthroughthedoor,Iamimmediatelydrawntothesightandsmellofthecolorful,fragrant
soapsarrangedartfullybeforeme.Justlikemysoapcollectionasayounggirl,itisclearthat
eachsoaphasitsowndistinctqualitiesthatseparatethemfromtheregular,massproducedsoap
usuallyseenintheaislesofdrugstoresandsupermarkets.ItisnotuntilIhaveaconversation

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withthetwoownersofthecompanythatIrealizethatthetruebeautyofartisansoapgoes
beyonditsappearanceandfragrance.Itistheproductofpersonalthoughtandcreativity,effort,
andmindfulnesswhichdifferentiatesitfromitsmainstreamcounterpartsandmakesitavaluable
contributiontoPortlandsartisaneconomyasawhole.
Likemostartisanindustries,theartisansoapindustryispoweredbyastrongworkethic
andeffortputforthbypeopleratherthanaseriesofmachines.AtBellaMiSoapCompany,the
conceptofhandmadeisembracedbyownersandonlyemployees,LaurieWhiteandSonya
BohmerwhomakealltheirproductsinthebackoftheirsmallshoponthecornerofNE.
WilliamsandFremontstreet.Beginningwithabaseoflye,butters,andoils,Sonya,whoisin
chargeofthesoapmakingprocessmixesthemwithaliquidofeithertea,juiceorwater.After
cooling,thelyeundergoesasaponificationprocesswhereitismixedwithotheroilsandbutters
beforebeingcookedoutofthesoapinanoven.AccordingtoWhite,thisovenprocessing
techniqueiswhatgivestheirsoapitscharacteristicvibrantcolor,distinguishingitfromboth
massproducedandsometypesofartisansoapwhicharecoldprocessed,givingthemaduller
hue.Unlikestandardbarsoapmanufacturingwhichemploysthehelpofhightechmixers,mills,
andploddersforhomogenizingandrefiningthesoap(
Cleaninginstitute.org
),LaurieandSonya
havefoundthatstandardkitchenappliancessuchascrockpots(forwarmingbuttersandoilsput
inthesoap)andovens(forcookinglyeoutofthesoap)workjustaswelltoproducehighquality
barsoap.Itsveryhardworkbecause[in]soapmakingyouhavetodoalotoflifting,alotof
mixingsoitcanbelaborintensive[which]canbeagoodthingorabadthing,saysBohmer
(personalcommunication,Feb.6th,2015).Thefactthatsheisputtingherowntimeandeffort

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intosuchatimeconsumingprocessnotonlyembodiestheideathatmostartisanscontinueto
workbecausetheycantstopdoingit(Heying,266),butlendsBellaMissoapsapersonal
touchthatIbelievecanonlybeachievedthroughsuchalaborintensiveprocess.
Whilelaborintensive,thereisnodoubtthatthesoapmakingprocessLaurieandSonya
followisbothpracticalandmindful.FollowingHeyingstheorythatPortlandartisans
demonstratecomplexsystemsthinkingaboutwork,waste,anduse(267),theownerstakegreat
careinmakingsurethattheextrasoaptheymakeisputtogooduse.Wedontliketowaste
anythingandwebelieveinrecyclingandliketoknowwhereourproductscomefrom.This
mindsethascontributedtothegrowthoftheirproductlineup,particularlythecreationoftheir
infamoussoaptruffleswhicharemadefromleftoversoapmixture.Theireffortstoconserve
alsocarryintotheirpackagingchoices,whichWhitesayshasalwaysbeenapriorityforthe
companysincedayone.KathyBachman,originalownerofthecompanyandclosefriendtoboth
BohmerandWhitewasalwaysveryecoconsciousandpartofthereasonwhytheyuserecycled
paperandplasticfortheirpackagingandlabelingtoday,accordingtoWhite.Thisaspectoftheir
companyillustratesthemindfulnessbehindtheircompanyandmarketingoftheirproduct.
ThissenseofmindfulnessisalsoreflectedintheingredientsthatareusedtomakeBella
Missoaps.Whilemostbarsoapsweusetodayareformulatedforgettingthejobdonein
termsofscrubbingawaygermsandimpurities,artisansoapoftenservesbeyondthispurposeby
offeringavarietyofaddedskinbenefitstoconsumers.Accordingtoa2001articlebyKaryn
SeigelMaier,commercialsoaps,asweknowthemtoday,maycontainavarietyofother
chemicalsthatarenotneutralizedinthemanufacturingprocessandthatarebeingappliedtoyour

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skineveryday.AmongtheseisTriclosan,amajorantibacterialagentwhichhasrecentlycome
underscrutinyforpotentiallycausingmoreharmthangoodtopeopleshealthbykillingofftoo
muchnormalbacteriaandmakingthemmoresusceptibletoresistantbacteria(
jstor.org
).
WhilethesoapsoldatBellaMiSoapCompanymaynothavethesamebacteriafighting
powersasyourstandardbarsoap,theydocontainstapleingredientsthatappeartobebeneficial
totheskininthelongrun.Coconut,palm,andoliveoilsareusedasabaseforallofBellaMis
soaps,givingthembothcleansingandmoisturizingpropertiesontopoftheaddedoilsand
buttersthatBohmeandWhiteliketoexperimentwith.Thethingthatwehavetobecautiousof
[is]wecannotmakemedicalclaimsandwecannotmakecosmeticclaims.Becausethats
regulatedbytheFDA.Butwedoknowthattherearecertainbuttersandoilsthatarebeneficial
toyourskinandsowedoresearchonthose.Jojoba,sweetalmond,hemp,andcastoroilsall
rankhighontheirlistofpersonalandcustomerfavorites.Allfourgivebacktoyourskinby
drawingmoistureinandsome,likesweetalmondandhempoilsprovideskinwithanextradose
ofnourishingOmega6andOmega3linoleicacids(
Soapqueen.com
).Byinvestinginthese
kindsofingredients,theartisansoapindustryhasnotonlycultivatedamindfulnessofthe
producttheyreselling,butamindfulnessofhowthatproductisimpactingthehealthand
wellbeingoftheircustomers.
Thismindfulnessontheartisanspartalsoextendstoanawarenessontheconsumers
partofwhatweareandwhatwewanttobeputtingintoourbodiesthroughthecosmeticswe
choosetopurchase.Thisinvolvesathoughtfulnessthatconsumersmustputintotheirpurchasing
decisions,aconsiderationthatextendsbeyondthehealthrisks/benefitsofwhattheyareselling

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orconsumingintotheirpreferencesforanethicalproductasawhole.AccordingtoUnpacking
theEthicalProduct,anarticlewrittenbyAndrewCrane,surveyevidenceregularlyshowsthat
significantproportionsofconsumersarefullywillingtoincorporateethicalconsiderationsinto
theirproductpurchasedecisionsandthattheyareseekingtopurchasemoreethicalproducts.
Thisissupportedby2007researchconductedbyIntellitrendMarketResearcherinwhich93%of
Americanparticipantsaskedsaidtheywouldeitherdefinitelyormaybechooseecofriendly
productsoverregularones(
Ecofirms.org
).
Ironically,withinthesameyear,theveganmovementstartedtobecomeprevalentin
Portlandandtherestofthecountry,accordingtoLaurieWhite.Thispromptedtheoriginal
ownerofBellaMiSoapCompany,KathyBachmantoconvertheranimalbasedlineofsoaps
intoanallveganline.Thisriseinveganismcouldalsocontributetoconsumersconcernswith
theingredientsandpackagingoftheircosmeticsandhowtheyareaffectingtheenvironmentas
wellastheirownhealth.Whensurveyedbya20092010veganpledgequestionnaire,34%of
participantsoptingtotryveganismforamonthsaidtheirdecisionwasbasedonhealth,while
19%gaveanimalethicsastheirreasonand12%saidenvironmentalfactorswerebehindtheir
reasoning(
Theveganoption.org
).Whilethissurveyfocusesonthetopicofveganism,italso
illustratesabroaderinterestoftheU.S.populationinbothethicsandhealth.
MyconversationwithSonyaandLauriehasleadmetobelievethattheartisansoap
industrycaterstothisinterestaswellasthegeneralcomfortoftheircustomers,exhibiting
genuineconcernfortheiropinionsassoonastheywalkthroughthedoor.Thisismostlyobvious
inthewaythattheyfragrancetheirproductswhenwalkingintotheirshop,Iwasimmediately

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greetedbyadelightfulmedleyofcitrus,spiced,andfloralscentsthatwelcomedmeinside.This
wasapleasantsurpriseforme,asIamusedtothepowerful,headacheinducingfragrancethat
oftenwaftsoutthedoorsofchaincompanieslikeLushandBathandBodyWorks.Wearevery
consciousofthefragrancesthatweuseandthetypesoffragrancesthatweusewedontwant
ittobeoverwhelmingwhenyouwalkin.Wewantittobewelcoming,wewantittobe
enticing.Asanartisancompany,WhiteandBohmerhavetheadvantageofbeingabletomake
theirsoapsonsite,takingawaytheneedtooverfragrancetheirproducts,whichbothowners
believemaybethecasewithsomeoftheirmainstreamcounterparts.Theyprobably
overfragranceitbecauseithastobeshippedandstored,saysBohmer.Wedonotknowthat
forsurebutthatsaguess.Becausetherearefragrancesthatfade,forinstancewatermelon.Itll
stayfor6or8monthsandthenitfades.
Whilelargercorporationsalsoobviouslyvaluetheircustomersopinions,Iwould
speculatethattheyhaveadifferentkindofconcernforthem,onethatismotivatedmorebythe
goalofsellingtheirproduct.Inareflectionontheuseofscentsinmarketingandtheethicsof
influencingconsumersopinionswithscents,KevinBradfordandDebraDesrochersexaminethe
ideaofmarketerstakingadvantageofourvulnerabilitytodifferentscentsinordertoencourage
andincreasesales.Fromamarketersperspective,smellhasaninstantaneousgoodorbadeffect
onouremotionalstatewhich,assomeresearchhasshown,ultimatelyaffectsourshoppingand
spendingbehavior.SpeakingfrommyownpersonalexperienceandotherfriendswhoIve
spokenwith,IbelievethatthestrongfragranceswhichemanatefromcertainstoreslikeLushcan
eitherpushconsumersawayorpromptthemtoimmediatelypurchasewhateverproducttheyare

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smelling.Althoughthereisstillemotioninvolvedinthiskindofmarketing,itseemstobetied
moretothemarketersgoalsthanthefeelingsoftheactualcustomer.WhenIwasbrowsing
BellaMiscollectionofbarsoaps,IfeltasthoughIcouldtakemytimetosmelleachandevery
one.NosinglesoapwassooverpoweringthatIfeltIcouldntbrowsethroughallofthemor
neededtomakeadecisionrightaway.Ihadthefreedomtopickouttheperfectcolorand
fragranceformeoralovedone,drawingmoreofapersonalconnectionbetweenmeandthe
soapIwaspurchasing.
EvenifreceivingaboxofhandmadesoapsforChristmasstillsoundslikeaboringgift
(afterall,itisonlyrecentlythatpeoplehavebeguncaringaboutprettysoapsthatwork,
accordingtoWhite),Istilltrulybelievethatconsumersandartisansalikecanformpersonal
attachmentstotheirsoapbasedonamindfulnessofwhatisgoinginsidetheirsoapand
eventuallyintotheirbodies,andthepersonalthought,creativityandconsiderationthatgoesinto
makingit.Inotherwords,theartisansoapindustrycaterstothemindfulnessofandpersonal
connectionwecanhavetooursoap.Whilethisisoftenoverlookedorcompletelyignored
altogetherinourfastpacedsocietywheresupplyingourbathroomswithayearssupplyofsoap,
andfast,isusuallythemainpriorityofconsumers,myhopeisthattheartisansoapindustryin
Portlandandbeyondwillcontinuetogrowandgiveconsumersareasontobeconsciousnotonly
oftheproductstheyarepurchasingbutoftheirownhealthandthehealthoftheenvironmentand
worldaroundthem.Andinthelongrun,Ihopewewillallbeabletounderstandtheimportance
ofgettingupcloseandpersonalwithoursoap(evenmorethanusual.)