ETHOS Grooming Essentials A New Line

UPDATES: 

Starting Wednesday morning I’ll be sending out the links for the Vanilla Safi in both the Limited Edition 7.5 oz Frosted glass jars and the regular 7.5 oz jars. Also for those that have the link they will also be able to get the Vanilla Bean infused Skin Food Splash. 
 
Shipping will begin as soon as the labels arrive as everything is ready to go. So you may have to wait a day or so before being able to place your order but I want to get the links out as soon as possible. 


The full release with all the brand new Vanilla Safi products will follow. I’m bringing in some new products and new formulas and some will be available at my vendors and some only available on the ETHOS website. This is an effort to keep the prices down on some items that if I had to sell to my vendors the end price would in my opinion be higher than the should be. A some vendors are looking for higher margins and on some items I’m not able to meet them and still make a reasonable profit. 

On another subject. 

I’ll assume that most of you are probably unaware of a new trend in the Shaving product industry but it growing and effecting not only prices but also putting some vendors on the verge of going out of business. What’s happened is there are now middle men that are buying much larger amounts of SKU’S from soap makers at lower margins ( I’m not naming names ) and their marking it up to the vendors. If the vendor doesn’t want to be a part of this then they loose the brand. If they do continue to carry the brand then they have to mark it up higher than it normally would sell for or keep it the same price and therefore lowering their profit margin. 

I will not be a part of this trend but I will support and supply my vendors in the manner I have but there are some products that I have to keep exclusive to the ETHOS website only. I will add there are some good artisan soap makers that are with me on this and also won’t be a part of this trend.  I wanted to make you aware of this as it’s still rather new but it going strong and I do understand the temptation to jump on this as the soap maker or in one case I know of two soap makers have joined together in buying are getting orders form these middle men for 3,4,500 I’ve even heard of a 1000 jar orders so their going with quantity. I have also learned from one of my vendors who I consider a friend as well that this trend is not just limited to soap makers but other items that they carry as well. 

As I said I’m not naming names of some of the soap makers that are involved with this particular trend but i was honestly surprised by a couple that are involved. I will however be showing my support of the soap makers that are not involved and with their approval I’ll mention their names. I’ll also note that I’ve become friends with them along the way and we all stay in our own lanes and have respect for each other. I’m hoping you’ll give them some support as some will need it.  I’m very fortunate to have a great customer base that buy direct from me but not all of them do and depend a highly on their vendors to market for their products. 


I’ll also be posting up some photos of two new scents I’ll be coming out with soon once we have finalized the label artwork. 


Lastly I’ll be having a contest as I have an idea for a new collection and I’d like to have members input and ideas on what would be a good Collection name. The winner will get a series of products from that collection. 


We that’s it for now

Kind regards 

Frank

So mass wholesalers are taking over the market?  Just as with high performance/race industry - but at least in hp/race industry they hurting the highly capitalized dealers and actually leveling the ground for the small dealers providing value added service...so far....

UPDATES: 

Starting Wednesday morning I’ll be sending out the links for the Vanilla Safi in both the Limited Edition 7.5 oz Frosted glass jars and the regular 7.5 oz jars. Also for those that have the link they will also be able to get the Vanilla Bean infused Skin Food Splash. 
 
Shipping will begin as soon as the labels arrive as everything is ready to go. So you may have to wait a day or so before being able to place your order but I want to get the links out as soon as possible. 


The full release with all the brand new Vanilla Safi products will follow. I’m bringing in some new products and new formulas and some will be available at my vendors and some only available on the ETHOS website. This is an effort to keep the prices down on some items that if I had to sell to my vendors the end price would in my opinion be higher than the should be. A some vendors are looking for higher margins and on some items I’m not able to meet them and still make a reasonable profit. 

On another subject. 

I’ll assume that most of you are probably unaware of a new trend in the Shaving product industry but it growing and effecting not only prices but also putting some vendors on the verge of going out of business. What’s happened is there are now middle men that are buying much larger amounts of SKU’S from soap makers at lower margins ( I’m not naming names ) and their marking it up to the vendors. If the vendor doesn’t want to be a part of this then they loose the brand. If they do continue to carry the brand then they have to mark it up higher than it normally would sell for or keep it the same price and therefore lowering their profit margin. 

I will not be a part of this trend but I will support and supply my vendors in the manner I have but there are some products that I have to keep exclusive to the ETHOS website only. I will add there are some good artisan soap makers that are with me on this and also won’t be a part of this trend.  I wanted to make you aware of this as it’s still rather new but it going strong and I do understand the temptation to jump on this as the soap maker or in one case I know of two soap makers have joined together in buying are getting orders form these middle men for 3,4,500 I’ve even heard of a 1000 jar orders so their going with quantity. I have also learned from one of my vendors who I consider a friend as well that this trend is not just limited to soap makers but other items that they carry as well. 

As I said I’m not naming names of some of the soap makers that are involved with this particular trend but i was honestly surprised by a couple that are involved. I will however be showing my support of the soap makers that are not involved and with their approval I’ll mention their names. I’ll also note that I’ve become friends with them along the way and we all stay in our own lanes and have respect for each other. I’m hoping you’ll give them some support as some will need it.  I’m very fortunate to have a great customer base that buy direct from me but not all of them do and depend a highly on their vendors to market for their products. 


I’ll also be posting up some photos of two new scents I’ll be coming out with soon once we have finalized the label artwork. 


Lastly I’ll be having a contest as I have an idea for a new collection and I’d like to have members input and ideas on what would be a good Collection name. The winner will get a series of products from that collection. 


We that’s it for now

Kind regards 

Frank

So mass wholesalers are taking over the market?  Just as with high performance/race industry - but at least in hp/race industry they hurting the highly capitalized dealers and actually leveling the ground for the small dealers providing value added service...so far....

Yeah this is not helping the smaller artisans and especially the vendors in the manner that is working in the high performance/race industry. 


So from a really simple perspective. The artisan who let’s say has a shave soap that normally sells for $20 through a vendor or their website the normal wholesale price to the vendor is Keystone  which is $10 per jar. So the vendor retail price and the artisan retail price is one and the same, $20.  In this new system the Artisan sells the middle man the soap at 25% which is $5 and the middle man in turn then sells it to the vendor at more than the $10 he was paying for it before, so they are forced to mark it up to a higher retail price or accept a lower profit margin. This will hurt the vendor and in some cases the customer. 

So bottom line the soap maker in this program is basing his sales on high Volume.! I’ve also noticed a difference in their marketing strategies lately. Especially on Social Media. I’m not sure if it’s the actual soap maker or the middle man who’s directing this new marketing strategy. 

Anyway this is what I was told by 2 vendors who have both been affected by this new way of doing business.

UPDATES: 

Starting Wednesday morning I’ll be sending out the links for the Vanilla Safi in both the Limited Edition 7.5 oz Frosted glass jars and the regular 7.5 oz jars. Also for those that have the link they will also be able to get the Vanilla Bean infused Skin Food Splash. 
 
Shipping will begin as soon as the labels arrive as everything is ready to go. So you may have to wait a day or so before being able to place your order but I want to get the links out as soon as possible. 


The full release with all the brand new Vanilla Safi products will follow. I’m bringing in some new products and new formulas and some will be available at my vendors and some only available on the ETHOS website. This is an effort to keep the prices down on some items that if I had to sell to my vendors the end price would in my opinion be higher than the should be. A some vendors are looking for higher margins and on some items I’m not able to meet them and still make a reasonable profit. 

On another subject. 

I’ll assume that most of you are probably unaware of a new trend in the Shaving product industry but it growing and effecting not only prices but also putting some vendors on the verge of going out of business. What’s happened is there are now middle men that are buying much larger amounts of SKU’S from soap makers at lower margins ( I’m not naming names ) and their marking it up to the vendors. If the vendor doesn’t want to be a part of this then they loose the brand. If they do continue to carry the brand then they have to mark it up higher than it normally would sell for or keep it the same price and therefore lowering their profit margin. 

I will not be a part of this trend but I will support and supply my vendors in the manner I have but there are some products that I have to keep exclusive to the ETHOS website only. I will add there are some good artisan soap makers that are with me on this and also won’t be a part of this trend.  I wanted to make you aware of this as it’s still rather new but it going strong and I do understand the temptation to jump on this as the soap maker or in one case I know of two soap makers have joined together in buying are getting orders form these middle men for 3,4,500 I’ve even heard of a 1000 jar orders so their going with quantity. I have also learned from one of my vendors who I consider a friend as well that this trend is not just limited to soap makers but other items that they carry as well. 

As I said I’m not naming names of some of the soap makers that are involved with this particular trend but i was honestly surprised by a couple that are involved. I will however be showing my support of the soap makers that are not involved and with their approval I’ll mention their names. I’ll also note that I’ve become friends with them along the way and we all stay in our own lanes and have respect for each other. I’m hoping you’ll give them some support as some will need it.  I’m very fortunate to have a great customer base that buy direct from me but not all of them do and depend a highly on their vendors to market for their products. 


I’ll also be posting up some photos of two new scents I’ll be coming out with soon once we have finalized the label artwork. 


Lastly I’ll be having a contest as I have an idea for a new collection and I’d like to have members input and ideas on what would be a good Collection name. The winner will get a series of products from that collection. 


We that’s it for now

Kind regards 

Frank

So mass wholesalers are taking over the market?  Just as with high performance/race industry - but at least in hp/race industry they hurting the highly capitalized dealers and actually leveling the ground for the small dealers providing value added service...so far....

Yeah this is not helping the smaller artisans and especially the vendors in the manner that is working in the high performance/race industry. 


So from a really simple perspective. The artisan who let’s say has a shave soap that normally sells for $20 through a vendor or their website the normal wholesale price to the vendor is Keystone  which is $10 per jar. So the vendor retail price and the artisan retail price is one and the same, $20.  In this new system the Artisan sells the middle man the soap at 25% which is $5 and the middle man in turn then sells it to the vendor at more than the $10 he was paying for it before, so they are forced to mark it up to a higher retail price or accept a lower profit margin. This will hurt the vendor and in some cases the customer. 

So bottom line the soap maker in this program is basing his sales on high Volume.! I’ve also noticed a difference in their marketing strategies lately. Especially on Social Media. I’m not sure if it’s the actual soap maker or the middle man who’s directing this new marketing strategy. 

Anyway this is what I was told by 2 vendors who have both been affected by this new way of doing business.

What a scam. Our economy is truly broken with non value added rent seeker parasitoids sucking the life out of the country

Quality first .
As long as I can always support small artisans at the cost of using my conus suite address and paying shipping and taxes for import in Italy .
Damn ! A “ cartel soaps “ ? No thanks


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

This is a real imminent danger to the product development and innovation we have been enjoying. Squeezing the producers is going to kill innovation and choice resulting in only safe homogenised mediocrity: a race to the bottom in the interest of expense minimisation. 

The remaining artisans need form an association certifying their independence on products so consumers know who to support and who to boycott. 

Imagine if economic resources were properly allocated towards productive activity instead of rent seeking non value added monopoly formation; the West might actually be developing like Asia instead of collapsing into free fall.

Quality first .
As long as I can always support small artisans at the cost of using my conus suite address and paying shipping and taxes for import in Italy .
Damn ! A “ cartel soaps “ ? No thanks


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

Have you looked into a freight forwarder from the US to Italy?  Not just for soaps, but for everything?  I know quite a few Italian citizens who use one in Delaware and swear by it.  

Here is who they use fishisfast in New Castle, Delaware.  I ship here often for them ;-)

https://www.chamberofcommerce.com/busine...fishisfast

Back to the topic - I support artisans and people who sell stuff I like.  I understand distribution but prefer to let the artisan collect my money when possible.

Quality first .
As long as I can always support small artisans at the cost of using my conus suite address and paying shipping and taxes for import in Italy .
Damn ! A “ cartel soaps “ ? No thanks


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

Have you looked into a freight forwarder from the US to Italy?  Not just for soaps, but for everything?  I know quite a few Italian citizens who use one in Delaware and swear by it.  

Here is who they use fishisfast in New Castle, Delaware.  I ship here often for them ;-)

https://www.chamberofcommerce.com/busine...fishisfast

Back to the topic - I support artisans and people who sell stuff I like.  I understand distribution but prefer to let the artisan collect my money when possible.

Many thanks for the info


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

So from a really simple perspective. The artisan who let’s say has a shave soap that normally sells for $20 through a vendor or their website the normal wholesale price to the vendor is Keystone  which is $10 per jar. So the vendor retail price and the artisan retail price is one and the same, $20.  In this new system the Artisan sells the middle man the soap at 25% which is $5 and the middle man in turn then sells it to the vendor at more than the $10 he was paying for it before, so they are forced to mark it up to a higher retail price or accept a lower profit margin. This will hurt the vendor and in some cases the customer. 

Don't forget the manufacturer loses too, Frank. Sure, he may make the same money by selling in bulk, But what about next month... and the months to come? Unless the market is booming with a shortage of products, he's going to stop getting orders as this new middleman has a backlog of products in their warehouse. Also, how will that soap, aftershave, etc age in their warehouse?

It just seems to me that everyone in the traditional supply chain loses in this scenario, and any soapmaker who partakes in this sort of new supply chain is asking for the grim fate they'll ultimately meet.

But... It's a free market economy. It's supposed to right itself when issues like this arise. Hopefully this is short term and all of those 'get quick fast' folks go the way of the dodo.

So from a really simple perspective. The artisan who let’s say has a shave soap that normally sells for $20 through a vendor or their website the normal wholesale price to the vendor is Keystone  which is $10 per jar. So the vendor retail price and the artisan retail price is one and the same, $20.  In this new system the Artisan sells the middle man the soap at 25% which is $5 and the middle man in turn then sells it to the vendor at more than the $10 he was paying for it before, so they are forced to mark it up to a higher retail price or accept a lower profit margin. This will hurt the vendor and in some cases the customer. 

Don't forget the manufacturer loses too, Frank. Sure, he may make the same money by selling in bulk, But what about next month... and the months to come? Unless the market is booming with a shortage of products, he's going to stop getting orders as this new middleman has a backlog of products in their warehouse. Also, how will that soap, aftershave, etc age in their warehouse?

It just seems to me that everyone in the traditional supply chain loses in this scenario, and any soapmaker who partakes in this sort of new supply chain is asking for the grim fate they'll ultimately meet.

But... It's a free market economy. It's supposed to right itself when issues like this arise. Hopefully this is short term and all of those 'get quick fast' folks go the way of the dodo.

I assume this is for their international business in Europe since we are talking about North American soap makers.   

If 50% of their business revenue is direct in NA they will likely be fine and possibly benefit from economy of scale in lowering their mfg cogs so they make more profit on their direct sales.  I assume they have a cash flow agreement with the distributor in Europe.  Eventually when people become overstocked with product we will see - there could be a period with low sales in the next 6-12 months for this group.  Then, the model falls apart. 

At the end of the day, how many soaps does each wet shaver need vs how many do we have?  If you don’t innovate because you are making a widget the market will slow down for you, I would bet on it.

But... It's a free market economy. It's supposed to right itself when issues like this arise.

Unfortunately bullying, strongarming, intimidating, and short-sightedness are tools in the free market toolbox.