1.5 years ago I started a small cosmetic company , but then there was this moment in my life I needed to step back and take care of some personal matters for the last year. Now I can move on either getting a corporate job, or restart my venture (would love doing the latter).
We make facial skin care products – face creams, well, something many companies do, so what we offer is products that have only 100% natural active ingredients and natural essential oils, we use Rosa Damascene from Bulgaria, we use Cocoa from Ghana, and others; other characteristics include: products are cruelty-free, i.e. not animal tested; in overall ingredients our products are from 80% to 90% all natural; paraben-free; Products are in the premium category with prices around the $35-$50 range.
Prior to production we have done all required laboratory tests for the products, we meet all regulatory requirements for product safety and market entrance already.
For the duration of 6-7 months we have validated the qualities of our products through direct customer testing, as we shipped products to 5 continents and 15 countries altogether, having different women from different ethnicities (i.e. different skin types) test our products as free gifts. The sample was chosen carefully from our friends’ friends, so they don’t know us directly and could give us honest feedback without emotional connection. All the responses have been wonderful, and with no exceptions, the women love the quality, feel and results of our products. We have gathered the feedback in a small database, and recently we were asked by several of those women where and when they could buy our products since they exhausted theirs. That again validates the products’ quality and validity.
We had some minor issues with the design, so I am in phase of changing the design and color of packaging at this stage.
I am worried that I could not make the proper buzz around the company and products if we decide to restart it now, and if we decide to, I am not sure how to make a proper market validation of the price segment which we target before re-launching it, and with having small budget overall.
Any advice, suggestions and experience will be so valuable!