Can I sell hand made soap that I've made as a hobbyist without insurance?

1. 73

   Farmer Rachelposted 12 years ago

   Can I sell hand made soap that I've made as a hobbyist without insurance?
   
   If I sell hand made soap that I've made as a hobbyist, do I need some kind of insurance or business license? I just want to sell some of my soap because I have so much of it. I give a lot of it away, but there's so much soap and it would be nice to off set the cost of my hobby. Thanks!

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2. 85

   ComfortBposted 12 years ago

   I sell stuff on etsy.com and I know a lot of soapmakers who sell on there too, but I don't think you need a license or insurance to sell your soap.
   
   Just make sure you are transparent as to the detailed description of the ingredients. It's up to the buyers to use discretion on whether it's safe for them or not.

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3. 86

   krillcoposted 12 years ago

   Most likely, no. It's a handcrafted item. The issue becomes: at what point in the escalating success of the home made soap biz do you need to become a LLC, hire workers, etc. Check out others on line that do the same thing.

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4. 38

   Sravanti Periposted 12 years ago

   Yes you can, I don't think you need any kind of insurance or business license.
   I have a suggestion for this : you can tell about this to your friends, neighbours, relatives etc.. It will help you in circulating your product, others will get an idea about  your product and if they like it they will buy from you.

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5. 66

   JesadaBposted 12 years ago

   I would have to agree with ComfortB, I love to make jewelry and got so tired of trying to pawn it off on people and I had heard about Etsy, so I just opened a shop on there last month and am finding out I enjoy it and do not have to worry about if I make to much stuff. Taking good pictures is a must tho...I know I am trying to get the hang of it. Look me up if you decide to try selling on Etsy. My shop is called JesadasJewels. Good Luck!

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6. 73

   Farmer Rachelposted 12 years ago

   Thanks for all the answers! I actually do have an Etsy shop where I sell plaster crafts; my concern with the soap is that someone will get some sort of rash, insist it was from my soap, and then sue me! A friend of mine mentioned that I should have insurance for this, but I hadn't heard of other hobby soap makers who occasionally sell soap going through the trouble of buying insurance. I think I'll try posting some of the soap on Etsy.

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   1. 66

      JesadaBposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Just make sure you post what all is in the soap

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7. 66

   Lee Teaposted 12 years ago

   Hi Farmer Rachel! As a tea blender, I've worried about this as well.  While I have found a great company that offers home-based business liability for businesses like ours on the cheap (google "RLI Insurance"), I make sure to comply to all FDA and USDA regulations, and I choose to include all ingredients, potential interactions and concerns on my labels. As I've called the FDA and USDA to find out how to thoroughly cover my a**, they have always advised me to follow the layout of products found in stores (some of which you don't need to do until you reach so many employees). There are great resources for specific home crafters trying to make a living, you might want to paruse soap makers groups like soapguild.org.  Get connected, and you'll find your way. Best of luck!

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   34th Bomb Groupposted 12 years ago

   Yes - but I strongly advise against it.
   One mishap and you could lose everything you've worked so hard for - like your home.

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9. 61

   sweedy15posted 12 years ago

   I have seen many handmade soaps being sold on Etsy, without insurance or license from FDA and such. As long as the ingredients used and the soap-making process is hygienic, there shouldn't be a problem. And listing down the ingredients of the soap will help users to decide, should they be allergic to any of the listed ingredients. Adding a disclaimer note should help too.

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10. 40

    ChristinSposted 12 years ago

    You can, but I wouldn't recommend it.  If one person sues you it could wipe out your business.  I used to sell soap and never had an incident - but we do live in a sue happy society in some places.  Honestly, until I got established I did sell without insurance, but after awhile I did invest in it.  It's not expensive really for basic liability insurance - I can't remember exactly what we paid, it's been awhile, but it wasn't high at all.

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11. 60

    KarlawithaKposted 12 years ago

    For the long term, a basic liability insurance would be a great protection. I am sure in the meantime you could put a disclaimer on your store page to offer you some protection. Definitely worth looking into, and good luck with your etsy shop.

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12. 66

    viveresperandoposted 12 years ago

    You can sell without license/insurance yes,  the question is whether it is legal or not to do so?  I have seen a lot of lovely things on etsy that technically would not be legal.  Does that mean someone will go after you? I don't know.  I would check you state gov website to see what the requirements are in your state, then go to county and city.  Sometimes state requires one thing, but your city might be stricter and you would need an "addition to" in order to be legal.  You might even look into an LLC business which gives some protection regarding coming after your home assets versus your business assets.  Where I live there is strict laws regarding packaging, mixing, and making homemade soaps, candles, creams, lotions, etc.  It is better to be safe and know what you need than to depend on others word of mouth.  It can take some time to look for all this information up but if you are already worried, as a suggestion I would find researching the information you need in order to alleviate your concerns would be my recommend path.   Just because someone else sells it on etsy without proper licenses, etc does it really mean that you want to take that risk?  In some areas it might cost you less than 50 dollars to get a proper business license and even an llc if you do all the paperwork yourself.  Think of also the creditability to your business that you are adding by doing all the proper paperwork.  These are just suggestions of course.  Hope I am not rambling.

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