Selling Bath Bombs: Here Is How to Start

People love taking hot baths after a long day with a bath bomb that will help them feel relaxed and calm. Bath bombs can be not only a great gift but also a way to unleash your creative side. 

You can also have a successful bath bomb business if you’re passionate about DIY bath bombs and creating something on your own. The only question is where do you need to start if you want to grow your bath bomb business.

Starting a bath bomb business does not require investing a lot of money when you are starting out. There are some aspects to know before starting a business in the cosmetic industry. However, aside from those aspects, to start selling bath bombs, you just need a passion for creating and few basic ingredients to make a bath bomb.

If you want to turn your passion into a business, and wonder what it takes to start a bath bomb business, in this article we will cover all the important aspects to get you started. 

Is selling bath bombs profitable?

Selling bath bombs can be quite profitable, however, there are many factors that influence the success of your business in this industry. Bath bombs are easy products to create from scratch, with no experience. 

The bath bomb business requires a low initial investment, and their relatively high price point affords great profit margins. This makes it very appealing for aspiring entrepreneurs. This also affects the competition on the market, which is very high. This means that your product really needs to stand out from others in order to gain some profits. 

Small entrepreneurs usually start by creating batches of bath bombs and if they see that they’re getting more clients, then they transition into manufacturing or dropshipping. This transition helps businesses to grow. 

You can start out your bath bomb business as a hobby. This will help you to gain some clients, learn more about the market and the industry along the way and prepare your business for scaling up and using advanced marketing tools. 

When it comes to successful companies that produce high-quality bath bombs, Lush is the first company that comes to mind. Actually, Lush invented the well-known bath bombs in 1989. 

They created this product, which became extremely popular worldwide and they continue to successfully sell bath bombs as well as their other body and hair products. Annually they are selling millions of bath bombs around the world, which brings them millions in profit.

You also need to understand that if you want to build a successful business, you have to try scaling up by introducing associated products, such as soaps, bath salts, shower gels, etc. This will be a great option for those who have proved themselves to be good sellers of bath bombs.

To make your business profitable, you also need to consider how much it costs to make one bath bomb and how much it should be sold for.

The general retail price of a bath bomb on the market is from $3 and up to $10. The price depends on the size, ingredients, brand, etc. Some bath bombs can even contain little gifts, like toys or jewelry, which can also determine the price.

To start your own bath bomb business, you don’t need a huge production, like Lush. A small well-organized room will be great to start from. Make enough space for your materials, store your ingredients in the right way and you’re all set.

As your business grows and profits increase, you can then consider how to scale up sales by moving into wholesale, or maybe building a brand to be sold in the local stores. Your business can become very profitable if you keep improving your products and build trust and love among your clients.

Do you need a license to sell homemade bath bombs?

If you are selling some of your homemade bombs to your friends and family, then there is no need for a specific license. However, if you take your bath bomb business seriously, then you need to have a business license. This is essential if you want your business to be safe and prevent your idea from getting stolen by someone else. 

Also, if you want to sell nationally or internationally, then you need to check the needed license depending on your location. It is important to know that bath bombs are considered cosmetics, which falls under regulations. 

These regulations are aimed to protect the consumers. If you are just selling bath bombs to your family and friends, then you won’t be regulated. However, if you want to scale up your business, you need to keep in mind that there are some regulations to follow in order to avoid fines.

When you operate any business, you need to have personal liability insurance. It’s definitely a must, as it protects your business from some disasters that may happen. Also, try to contact your local authorities and check licensing info to avoid any trouble for your business.

Where can you sell bath bombs?

There are many different ways you can sell your bath bombs. You can open a pop-up store, take part in different fairs, where you can sell products, etc. But the best way to promote and sell your bath bombs is via the internet and social media. This will give you a lot of freedom and you will not be dependent on a certain place or time schedule. 

You can create a website so that your audience can see the products and order them. There are also many marketplaces, where you can get more sales as they already have certain traffic on their websites—for example, Amazon or Etsy. When you reach wider audiences there is a better chance you can get more sales. 

Another great option is using eCommerce platforms like Shopify to build your online store. And to get traffic to your online store you can use different digital marketing channels. You can use Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, Snapchat, etc. There you can present your products, make beautiful visual content, build an audience and engage with your potential clients.

You can also use Instagram shoppable tools or sell your bath bombs through Facebook groups. There are so many different ways you can build the online presence of your brand through social media. 

You can also use influencer marketing and reach out to people with a bigger audience to promote your products. There are many beauty influencers, who would show your products to their audience, driving traction to your social media pages and online store.

There are many channels to help you get started and build a loyal following. Aside from selling your bath bombs online, you can also consider selling them offline. Market booths and pop-up stores let different small businesses show their work and have a temporary retail location without rent commitment.

Selling products offline can help you interact with your customers, hear direct feedback from them, answer their questions. You can also address some of their concerns and that will give you valuable insights on what you need to improve in your products or how you run your business. 

During fairs or markets, you can also experiment with merchandising, the way your products are displayed, and the customer experience in general. If you do it creatively and uniquely show your brand, then you get more attention from people attending the fair.

Doing market booths can also work as an opportunity to introduce your business to different retailers, who usually attend different fairs to find new products for their stores. This will help you to connect for wholesale deals, especially when you are just starting out as a small beauty merchant.

You can do some networking during these fairs and meet other merchants. This can also help you build social media following. And interacting with other business owners will help you build your network.

Of course, selling bath bombs online sounds easier and better, while selling offline seems a bit intimidating, both ways are great to build a successful bath bomb business.

How to decide the price for your bath bombs?

When you want to calculate the price for your bath bomb, you can use this simple formula: Bath bomb price = the cost of materials used + (time spent making one bath bomb + your expertise).

When you price your handmade products, it can get a little bit tricky. There are many factors you need to consider, such as time, uniqueness of your work, value, etc. That’s why you need to follow general pricing for bath bombs, but make sure you don’t devalue your work and talent.

When you make, for example, a batch of bath bombs, for example, 10, in order to determine the cost of materials used for one bomb, just divide the general cost for bath bombs by 10. At the cost of your time and expertise, you have to determine yourself. You should also add packaging costs for each bath bomb.

Also, you need to make sure you include the cost of special ingredients and additional toys or jewelry that the bath bomb may contain. 

How much does it cost to make one bath bomb?

The cost of making one bath bomb is around $0.25, but this depends on the recipe, the number of ingredients, and their quality. You can even get your price below $0.25, which happens when you buy all of your ingredients in bulk. $0.30 is the cost of making a bath bomb for a small business, which makes batches of bath bombs for wholesale or local sale.

How to make bath bombs at home?

Making bath bombs is quite easy. You don’t need any fancy tools or complicated materials for that. Anyone can start selling their own bath bombs, no matter how much experience they have. Bath bombs are sold at a very good price point. This makes it easy to reinvest the money from the sold bath bombs to scale up quickly. 

You can get the majority of bath bomb ingredients in any local grocery shop. It’s recommended to find a good source of materials in bulk if you’re planning to build a bath bomb business. There are many online stores, where you can buy in larger quantities for a lower price. This makes the cost price of making a bath bomb cheaper and profits from it larger.

Here are all ingredients that you will need to make a bath bomb:

• Baking Soda
• Citric Acid
• Mineral Salts (Epsom Salts)
• Water/Witch Hazel
• Cornstarch 
• Essential oils or fragrance
• Color
• Decorations

You also need molds to shape the bath bombs, which you can buy at craft stores. The amount of ingredients depends on how big you want your bath bomb to be and what shape you want it to be. The bath bombs can be made in 5 easy steps:

1. Put together all of the dry ingredients in a bowl, then whisk them. The mixture should be relatively smooth.
2. After that mix all of the wet ingredients in a jar. Then shake it.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the bowl with the dry ingredients. Use the whisk when you add the wet ingredients, and if you see that your mix starts to foam, then you should slow down.
4. Immediately pack the mixture into the molds. Act quickly once everything is mixed.
5. Lastly, leave the mixture in the molds for several minutes, then take them out. And your bath bomb is done!

These are just the basic steps to make a bath bomb. Of course, the steps may vary depending on what kind of bath bomb you’re trying to make. You can find hundreds of different bath bomb recipes online or try to create your own recipe. Everything depends solely on you and your creativity. 

When you’re just starting out, your bath bombs may not be that great. It is okay, and you should not give up after some bad bath bombs. That’s why it is recommended to buy all ingredients for bath bombs in semi-bulk from Amazon to save up some money.

Of course, with the time you will get better at making bath bombs and then you can think of getting more expensive ingredients for making more complex-looking bath bombs. You can also change the color of your bath bombs by changing food coloring. You can even create a multi-layered bath bomb with several different colors.

But make sure you choose the right dye. Don’t use deep and bright colors in bath bombs because there is a chance that this dye will stain a bathtub, which is not what any customer wants. Sometimes, the stains can stay on the bathtub permanently and nothing will remove these stains entirely.

In order to help the dye or even an essential oil dissolve into the bathwater instead of leaving stains on the tube after draining the water, you should add an emulsifier to your bath bomb. 

It’s recommended to use Polysorbate 80 and start with 0.1 oz per cup of the dry bath bomb mixture. This will eliminate the risk of staining and prevent the color pooling on the top of the bathwater.

You can get your inspiration from Pinterest, some tutorials on Youtube, craft blogs, etc. Trying different shapes and forms for your bath bombs can also be very fun. You can purchase molds in a variety of shapes, sizes, and designs. 

The most commonly used molds are silicone molds. They offer more choices, hold up well during the production process and it’s very easy to clean them. There are also silicone trays that help to create multiple bath bombs in one batch. The silicone molds are also very inexpensive and accessible.

People are willing to pay more for bath bombs with certain therapeutic scents. You can learn more about aromatherapy to create great products, which people will love. You can also use essential oils for the aroma of your bath bombs.

But also remember that you need to keep your bath bombs as dry as possible. That’s why you need to avoid adding ingredients, like glycerin. It attracts water to your product, which reduces the bath bomb shelf life. You should avoid adding ingredients like honey, maple syrup, or milk powders as well.

And when you finally mastered all your recipes and techniques, your bath bombs will be outstanding!

How to store your bath bombs?

Storing your bath bombs correctly is also very important. Bath bombs are vulnerable to deforming on the bottom. Especially, during one hour after you get it out of the mold. If you want your bath bomb to stay perfectly round, you need to prepare some sort of support. 

But if you don’t mind your bath bombs having a flat bottom, then you can just put them on the flat tray, so they can dry out. To make sure your bath bombs are not deforming, just use the plastic molds, which will support the bath bombs. Then dry the bath bombs overnight. 

To store the bath bombs, just put them in a plastic sweater box lined with egg crate foam. Pack your bath bombs shoulder to shoulder to keep them safe. It is also recommended to store bath bombs away from direct sunlight and in a dry place. The good-quality bath bombs should last for about six months. You would also want to wrap your bath bombs in order to protect them.

Tips & tricks for selling bath bombs

Here some of the tips and tricks that will help you to run a successful bath bomb business:

1. Test your products before starting to sell them

You need to make sure your product is good, safe, and ready to be sold. You need to make sure you made some bath bombs before actually selling them. It may not be as easy to make a bath bomb as it seems at first. That’s why you need to test your bath bombs, see if they turn out the way you wanted.

Also, ask some of your friends to test your bath bombs in return for their feedback. Once you know what you need to improve and then implement some changes to your products, you can actually start selling them.

2. Make sure you have all of the needed licenses

If you want to make your hobby into a business, you will need to get a business license. As mentioned above, you need certain licenses if you take your business seriously and want it to be protected. 

Also, you need to check in with the local authorities and see if they have any licensing requirements or rules. This will help to avoid problems with your business. Bath bombs are considered to be cosmetic products, that’s why you need to remember about the regulations towards them.

3. Make your brand stand out by designing beautiful packages

The competition is big, so to be successful in this industry, you need to make sure your products and packages are visually attractive and show the uniqueness of your brand. Also, don’t forget to put a list of ingredients on your packaging.

Also, consider naming each one of your bombs with some creative name, which can get your customers interested in your product. The name can be related to the scent or shape of your bath bomb. 

You need to impress your customers with an incredible bath bomb experience. That’s why you need to spend some time thinking about little details, which impact the whole picture of your bath bomb brand.

4. Choose sales channels, which are appropriate for your business

Sale channels are very important for your business. You need to think of a platform, where people can learn more about your products and buy them—this of the design of your website, your branding, etc. You need to decide if you want to have your personal website or use eCommerce platforms like Shopify or marketplaces like Etsy. 

Also, think of how your social media should look like. The visuals, colors, design – all these things you need to take into consideration as they portray your brand to your potential clients. Your sales channels determine the success of your bath bomb business, that’s why you need to work on them carefully.

5. Make sure all your marketing tools, such as social media, websites, etc. are ready

When everything is set, before officially launching your website, eCommerce store and start selling bath bombs, check if everything is working. Just going through everything, re-reading descriptions, etc will help you to avoid little mistakes and bugs to prevent a bad customer experience.

You can also use social media as a customer support platform. If your customers want to know more about your brand or your products, you can answer them directly. This will help to engage with your audience and retain your customers for a long time. 

Another great marketing technique is doing different contests and giveaways. They don’t have to be big, but it is a great way to engage with your customers and keep them hooked on your products.

Also, it is great to use storytelling to share how you make your bath bombs and your personal journey through your shop’s blog or in marketing. You can build a great consistent brand voice to represent your bath bomb brand. 

The customers buy products from small businesses in most cases because they like the lifestyle around that particular brand and want to own a part of the values of the brand.

Through your marketing, you can highlight what makes your brand unique and outstanding among your competitors.

Prepare several posts for your social media in advance, so you have a beautiful feed to start with. Another great tip from a successful business owner Greg Macdonald of Bathorium Inc is to not get discouraged and always test your bath bombs. 

He emphasized the testing phase and the importance of it. He said that during the development of their core lineup of bath bombs, they tested each formula around 40 times. This shows a great dedication to improving the product. 

You should also test your products before selling them. This will help you to learn more about the bath experience you’re giving your customers and whether they will be satisfied with the purchased product.

6. Create a limited edition bath bombs to sell during a certain period of time

You can get really creative here. Every month there is a special holiday, so why not create bath bombs, which would be great presents for these holidays. Or just creating holiday-inspired products will also work. 

You can promote these special edition bath bombs heavily on social media prior to the holiday. Also, make only a limited number of bath bombs, so you can get people more excited to get them and not miss their chance.

If you are just getting started with your bath bomb business, try one or more of these times and adjust them to what works best for you. Now you know exactly everything you need to start and run a successful bath bomb business.