Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Johnson.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Michelle. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Soapy Faith, started a bit unconventional. It was founded by my two older sisters Krystal and Brittney. Krystal is my biological sister and Brittney is actually her (and my) sister-in-law, Krystal was formerly married to Brittney’s brother. To make a long story short, Krystal decided to end her marriage of 18 years, after serious marital issues, surviving breast cancer and depression. Despite the issues between Brittney’s brother and Krystal, they had developed a true sister relationship and continued to grow their relationship as a family and Brittney always supported everything Krystal went through after her marriage. After a failed relationship, Krystal knew she needed something to keep her going, but God told her she wasn’t going to do it on her own, so she and Brittney connected to create Soapy Faith. It came at a perfect time for both of them, because Brittney had just recently divorced as well and was dealing with family issues at the time too, they created Soapy Faith as a way to heal themselves, while simultaneously healing people through healthy skincare products, that encouraged its users to have faith and keep going. What most people don’t know is before Soapy Faith, over 10 years ago, Krystal and Brittney ran another bath and body company, with over 15 different products, that they ultimately dissolved, due to just simply not knowing how to run a business properly. So, when the idea of Soapy Faith came about, my sisters wanted to make sure they focused on perfecting one thing first and building a business of that; and what better way than something everyone needs… Soap!
The “idea stage” of Soapy Faith is where I came in, my sisters were creative product wise, but I’ve always been the business minded-creative, I graduated from Tuskegee University in Sales and Marketing and marketing has always come naturally to me. I would come over after work and see them making soap, it would be piled high, I’d say “OK great this soap is cool, but how are you going to get it out there to people?” I kind-of self-appointed myself, Co-Owner and Brand Manager of Soapy Faith, from there, I committed and took over the strategic plan of the business; from product development ideas to social media, branding and PR. I really had no clue what I was doing and often still don’t lol! But I would just talk to anyone I could, research and find ways to get the business out there. Together, as sisters, we found our niche in the business. Getting Soapy Faith off the ground has been so fun, but also very challenging.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Honestly, most of building Soapy Faith has been a struggle lol the smoothest part of our journey in business, is our prior experience in the skincare business, made it easier for us to quickly create quality products. So since day one, we have had supporters love the product.
One challenge was finding and creating effective methods to working together as sisters. Not everyone would run a business with their sister-in-law, after a divorce right? Also, I’m the youngest, but I’m also in charge of many of the major business decisions made in how we grow and communicate our brand. But my sisters (and business partners) are 10+ years old than me. Sometimes, when I come up with ideas, they hate me, lol! – but we know as Black women in business, it’s part of our mission to show people that families can work together, and become a team.
Our biggest challenge has really been building a brand in the midst of many storms. Yes, we’ve been successful thus far, but we literally started with nothing, Krystal cashed in what was left of her 401K and we turned Brittney’s garage into our warehouse. Both my sisters are single moms and raising children on their own, and managing their own personal family issues. On top of that, financially we were “robbing Peter to pay Paul” literally, to run Soapy Faith. We make all of our own products and self-manufacturing your own products is not easy, or cheap. But when you want something bad enough, it humbles you, you don’t care about looking stupid anymore, you push yourself to the limit, sacrifices become the norm and you have faith God will do the rest. So, our challenges are a part of our company message.
On our socials, we’re always transparent about our journey and what we’ve overcome so far, I think that contributes to the beauty of our brand, the product is so pretty and amazing, you would never know the not-so-pretty side of how it came about. We want people to know, that no matter what, don’t let anything stop you. Oh yea, and we all still work full-time jobs… so then there’s that. But every time we overcome a challenge, somehow we’re always blessed with another opportunity, so the good outweighs the bad.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Soapy Faith – what should we know?
Skincare is a billion dollar industry, and in the fast production world, many of the products we use contain harsh chemicals that are generationally hurting us. With my sister, being a Breast Cancer Survivor, we were looking to push the narrative of making healthier choices in what we put on our bodies, especially for POC, by providing healthy, affordable and simple products to use in their everyday lifestyle. Everyone’s daily routine starts with a bath or shower, so soap is our staple.
Soapy Faith is an Inspirational Natural Soap Company. For us, quality comes first, so we create products for even the most sensitive skin. All of our products are all natural, with the highest quality ingredients, containing NO parabens, sulfates or harsh irritants. In a sense, bar soap was kind of dead, we woke it up by creating products that are fun to use, fragrant and colorful. Usually when people see products that smell/look good they think, automatic irritation; NOT with us, every ingredient we use is natural and gentle, so our soaps have become ideal for those with sensitive skin, and common skin issues such as: Eczema, psoriasis, and even babies. On top of a great bathing experience, each one is packaged with an inspirational message, so every customer can feel beautiful and inspired inside as well. Soapy Faith has even been called the Beyoncé of bar soap lol. So many of our customers have switched over to solely using Soapy Faith. It’s become almost a lifestyle.
Our main collections are: Our Fruits of the Spirit Collection, which are named after each “Fruit of the Spirit” from the bible, like Love, Peace and Self-Control, the Breast Cancer Awareness Collection, and our KING ME line, which is a collaboration soap with KING ME by Pinkgrasshopper, a popular LA-based jewelry line.
Obviously, we think our soap is amazing, but we are most proud of the support and feedback we get from our customers. We receive reviews, and comments daily about our products, healing, softening and ultimately “glowing up” people’s skin! We’ve received so much support from people who’ve shared about our soap all over social media and swear by it. We even had the opportunity to be in this year’s IMDb Oscar Party celebrity gift bags, so that was big for us. I think everyone’s goal of creating a product is for it to actually work, and from our customers feedback we have done that so far. We just recently partnered with a young Black Chemist out of Tuskegee University, to make sure we’re able to continue to offer quality products that are healthy and environmentally friendly. We’re really proud of the people we serve, but even more grateful to God, so we’re constantly thinking of ways to get better.
At the end of the day, we know the beauty and personal care industry is highly saturated, so what really sets us apart, is the authentic and personal connections we make with our customers, we make it our highest priority to treat everyone who supports us with the highest attention, and gratitude. We also love to give back, to support local Bay Area and LA community initiatives, because we know what it’s like to not have. No matter how big we get our goal is to make sure our customers and community always feel connected to us as a brand.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
As a team, I believe the most important characteristics that have been critical to our success is authenticity and resilience. Technology and social media have changed how consumers make choices in what they buy, it directly effects how business owners communicate with their markets. We are real people, and we want people to feel that through our products, and brand, so we strive for every interaction we make with people to be authentic.
We share personal experiences with our customers, share real feedback, we talk to them like real people. If you know us personally, you know how real we each are – so everything we create is about loving the real you. But as a small business there’s always a point where you don’t have customers, followers, and aren’t making any money, so your reason for starting can be drowned by that disappointing period. That’s where resilience comes in, you gotta push through that. We always keep going and stay true, and that’s what’s taken us this far!
Pricing:
- • Our soap prices start at $6/Bar. Soapy Faith can be purchased online or locally in LA at Simply Wholesome at 508 W SLAUSON AVE.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.soapyfaith.etsy.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @Soapy_Faith
- Facebook: Soapy Faith
- Other: www.shop.weareonyx.com
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