Today we’d like to introduce you to Krista.
Hi Krista, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Hi there! We’re Eric and Krista of Helix Soap Co, a small family-run company in the hills of San Diego County. We’re high school sweethearts that met and grew up in Lake Havasu, AZ. We have three boys at home (ages 3, 5 and 8) and use a lot of soap! We grew tired of the single-use plastic containers and unpronounceable ingredients and wanted something we trusted to use with our family.
All of our website and product photos were taken by us, from our gardens and using local ingredients; we’re kinda proud of that.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
With this new adventure, there have been many obstacles and learning curves. Putting ourselves out into the world with something we created was at first a new and anxious task, one we’re getting used to. We have professional careers in Education and Engineering, a far reach from marketing, sales and product manufacturing.
Finding sustainable, plastic-free packaging and designing/printing labels was something completely new to us. Marketing and sales were also whole new arenas with so much to learn. Eric taught himself Adobe Illustrator to design our own packaging and Krista read every marketing book she could get her hands on. We weren’t previously very active on social media, in general, and have learned so much, including using Instagram for the first time (don’t laugh).
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
We’re avid gardeners with a passion to eat locally, sustainable and clean. We grow many of our own fruits and vegetables, and that passion expanded to our natural soap-making products and ingredients. Many recipes are garden-inspired (our first passion) and use ingredients from our own backyard, including mint, calendula, lavender, luffa, yarrow, turmeric, honey and beeswax from our beehives.
Any big plans?
Our future plans include a never-ending effort to use local ingredients, including growing our own. We’re also excited about our collaborations with other local entrepreneurs, including our most recent with Helix Brewing Co., to create locally sourced beer soap and with Coral Strong at Garden Kitchen as apart of her ‘Locavore Farm Box’ highlighting local growers and artisans. We hope to continually connect and grow with others in the community and have fun doing it.
Lastly, we look for more and more ways to involve our children in the process, to open up their perspectives in life and teach them about hard work, money and creating something they believe in.
Pricing:
- $9.50
Contact Info:
- Email: Helixsoapco@gmail.com
- Website: Helixsoap.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/helixsoapco
Image Credits
Beach photo by Arianna Brookshire, Brookshire Creative. All other photos, by Eric of Helix Soap Co.
