Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Bonnie Yang, founder of Make Nice Company, located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Make Nice Company aims to reduce the world’s consumption of single-use plastic waste with an ultra-concentrated Solid Dish Soap that replaces up to 3 bottles of traditional dish soap. All our soaps are 100% natural with vegan ingredients that are also paraben-free and palm oil-free, made in Vancouver, BC.
Tell us about yourself
I'm Bonnie, the maker behind Make Nice Company.
I started Make Nice Company when I couldn't find an alternative to dish soap in plastic bottles. My partner and I were switching out our body wash and shampoos with their zero-waste solid soap alternatives. However, I couldn't find anything for my dishes. I figured, why not try to make it?
This became a whole deep dive into learning to make soap - figuring out and testing what the best recipe would be to cut grease, and what the ideal shape would be when using it. I wanted the 100% natural ingredients to be simple, nothing you can't pronounce, and vegan. After many months of making samples and testing them with friends, I finally got to Make Nice Company's Solid Dish Soap.
Outside of soaping, I'm an apparel designer and rock climber. Hopefully, you'll enjoy following my journey, and there are more exciting things to come!
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
We're now in 65+ stores across Canada! It's been a long journey to get here, but I've built some amazing relationships with other small and larger businesses along the way. Without our retail partner's support and loyal customers, we wouldn't be where we are today.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
There are so many aspects of being a business owner, and you must wear many hats to get it done. I'm a designer by trade, so the creative parts come fairly easily, like packaging design, website building, and branding, but there's also the numbers side of things, like forecasting, accounting, and inventory management, which doesn't come so easy. There's also so much relationship building through sales and customer service - as an introvert, it is tough at times. After starting as a solopreneur for so long, you just got to do it all!
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Go for it! There's no good time or a place where you're 'finished planning.' There are so many things that might come up that are unexpected, but that's where the fun is! Just give it a shot, whether that is starting a social media account, or launching that website, just go for it!
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
If anyone has a question or just wants to chat about business building, give me a shout! I love to hear your stories :)
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://makenicecompany.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/makenicecompany/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/makenicecompany
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/makenicecompany/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
Feel inspired to start, run or grow your own subscription business? Check out subkit.com and learn how you can turn "one day" into day one.