Successful Fundraising Ideas for Groups and Clubs

Hand-Crafted Soap Making Workshop Fundraiser Idea

How to put on a successful soap bar making workshop fundraiser

Hosting a soap-making workshop, or series of workshops is a fantastic and fun fundraising idea that can work really well for small groups looking to bolster their fundraising efforts. Everyone loves hand-crafted soap, and there should be no shortage of people who would be willing to pay or donate money to your organization for the experience of learning to make soap and bringing home a couple of fragrant bars that they hand-crafted themselves. A soap-making workshop fundraiser offers a creative and unique alternative to traditional fundraising methods and provides participants with an interactive and hands-on experience while supporting your cause.

If you know nothing about soap making, don’t worry, as it’s a pretty easy process. There are hundreds of videos on YouTube that can walk you through the steps. It should also be easy to find someone in your community who knows the process and would be willing to help. Just be sure to get instructions on cold-process soap making as it is the easiest soap to make. You can even buy pre-made soap bases to make life even easier!

Planning your soap making workshop fundraiser

Decide on a date, time, and location for the workshop. Make sure the venue has adequate space for participants to work comfortably. Once you have a location established, figure out how many workshops you want to hold and how many people your room can comfortably accommodate. A typical soap-making workshop can last anywhere from 1.5 to 3 hours, depending on the complexity of the process and the number of participants, so keep that in mind when scheduling multiple workshops in the same day.

Once you have determined the number of workshops you want to hold, and estimated attendance for each workshop session, you can purchase or gather all the necessary supplies, including soap base, fragrance oils or essential oils, colorants, molds, mixing tools, safety equipment (such as gloves and goggles), and packaging materials. At this point, you should be able to determine what you want to charge for an attendance fee. Retail soap stores often host workshops and charge $60 or more. On average, your cost of materials should be around $2 per bar, depending on the process and ingredients that you choose. Plan on sending everyone home with at least 2 large bars of their own. With an average of 8 people per workshop, you should be able to bring in around $500 per workshop with cost of materials running you approximately $100, netting you a profit of around $400 per workshop (assuming you don’t have to pay to rent out the space).

Promoting your workshop

Create promotional materials such as flyers, posters, and social media graphics to advertise the workshop.
Utilize multiple channels to help spread the word about your event, including community newsletters, social media platforms, community bulletin boards, and local newspapers. Be sure to promote in local Facebook groups!
Highlight the fundraising aspect of the workshop and emphasize the fun and educational experience participants will have.
Set up a registration process where participants can sign up for the workshop in advance. Collect registration fees through online platforms, such as event registration websites or payment processors, or in-person.

Hosting your workshop

You can either choose to host each workshop yourself or recruit knowledgeable instructors or volunteers who have experience in soap making to lead the workshops. Just make sure that instructors are familiar with the soap-making process, safety precautions, and can effectively teach participants of all skill levels.

Steps

Set up workstations with all the necessary supplies and equipment for each participant.
Arrange seating and tables in a way that facilitates easy movement and interaction among participants.
Ensure that the space is well-ventilated and has access to water and cleaning facilities for easy cleanup.
Welcome participants and provide an overview of the soap-making process, including safety guidelines. You may want to offer coffee or tea.
Demonstrate each step of the soap-making process, allowing participants to follow along and ask questions.
Encourage creativity by offering a variety of fragrance oils, colorants, and molds for participants to choose from.
Provide guidance and assistance as needed, especially for participants who may be new to soap making.
Once the soap has been made and poured into molds, allow it to set for the designated time according to the instructions. Note that it can take between 24 – 48 hours (or longer) for the soap to set and cure enough to remove from the soap mold. You can end the workshop here and let participants know where they can pick up their soap bars once packaged and cured, or you can work with the participants to create custom package designs for their individual soaps.
Once the soap has hardened, unmold it and package it according to participants’ preferences.
Provide instructions for further curing and using the soap, along with any additional information about the fundraiser or future events.