If you currently keep bees and sell honey, you likely focus on one specific type of customer – those looking to use or distribute jars of fresh, high-quality honey for use as a natural sweetener. Knowing how to sell honey to this market is a valuable skill, but it’s only scratching the surface of what could be accomplished in your business.
Did you know that honey also plays a vital role in the cosmetics industry? Expanding your operation in this direction could lead to impressive growth if you adapt your honey marketing strategies to reach this new market segment. Let’s dive into this exciting topic below.
Honey and Cosmetics Are a Perfect Pairing
All the well-deserved attention that honey gets as a sweetener in food shouldn’t take away from its power as a cosmetic additive. Honey is impressively moisturizing and has antibacterial properties that have made it an excellent choice for a variety of cosmetic applications for centuries across many different cultures.
Not only does honey do a great job of helping improve the quality of the skin, but it also fits nicely into the trend of taking cosmetics in a more natural direction. Consumers are increasingly looking for skincare products that deliver great results without using too many chemicals or other undesirable additions. Buyers who value natural cosmetics will automatically be drawn to products with honey and other pure elements they can feel good about using.
We also can’t ignore another great feature that honey delivers – versatility. With some creativity, honey can be included in many different varieties of products, allowing a business like yours to diversify and enter the cosmetics market from several angles. Even if you don’t find success with each of your efforts, hitting on just one winner could make this endeavor more than worth it in the end.
The List of Potential Cosmetics Products Goes On and On
If you venture into the cosmetics arena, you may decide to pursue a single product line or enter a few different areas to see which get traction before moving forward and investing further. Just some of the many possibilities include:
- Moisturizers. Adding honey to a moisturizer or lotion can help nourish the skin with antioxidants and provide deep, lasting hydration.
- Lip balms. These are popular cosmetic products that tend to be relatively simple to produce. Including honey not only boosts the performance of the lip balm but also lends a pleasant taste.
- Body scrubs. Honey is an excellent addition to body scrubs due to its gentle and natural exfoliation and antibacterial benefits, leaving the skin soft, smooth, and radiant.
- Face masks. The skin on the face is often the target of most treatments, and honey does its part by adding anti-inflammatory properties, providing hydration, and addressing acne concerns.
Ready to Get Started? First, a Few Considerations
The first step for your honey-infused cosmetic journey is simply developing viable products. There will be some trial and error involved until you come up with something you are proud of and want to present to customers. Be patient with this process and consider it a side project until you start to see results.
Once you decide which products you will be producing, it’s critical to your business to study relevant regulations. Requirements like listing all of the ingredients on the product’s label, following rules that govern production and sale, and how cosmetics can be marketed are all factors to consider. Consider hiring a consultant to help you navigate this landscape or reviewing information from groups such as the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics to ensure your practices are safe and compliant from the beginning.
Branching out into a new market segment also presents many advertising and promotional opportunities. Those who currently buy your honey for consumption probably aren’t the same as those who will be interested in buying your cosmetics, so you’ll need to explore and test various marketing tactics. Once you find out what works, you can devote more time and resources to these efforts to increase sales.
Put Your Supply Chain in Place
Expanding into the cosmetic market presents an excellent opportunity to elevate your honey business, but it’s crucial to establish a solid foundation with the right materials and supplies. Whether you’re seeking raw materials like oils, vitamins, and colorants, or packaging essentials such as bottles, jars, labels, and dispensing systems, each component requires careful consideration. Factors like sustainability, allergens/sensitivities, shelf life, and cost all must be analyzed to ensure the development of a profitable and safe product that aligns with your company values.
When it comes to packaging, at Glassnow, we offer a range of high-quality cosmetic containers – along with their accessories – to make branding and delivering your new products a breeze. Like the Cylindra for moisturizers, or the Calypso for Bath Salts & Scrubs to name just a few. Take a moment today to explore our inventory or contact our team directly if you need assistance.
Don’t wait any longer to jump into this exciting space!
