How to Make Lip Balms?

Turning Natural Lip Care into a Home Business

The lips are vulnerable in the winters. Dry and chapped lips force most of us to use a balm in the winter months. The dryness happens due to a lack of moisture because our lips, unlike other parts of the skin, are devoid of sebaceous glands that produce natural oils to moisturise the skin. Lip balms are also helpful in the summer as protection against the sun to reduce dryness and prevent UV rays.

Why Do You Need a Lip Balm?

• For dry lips: Lips crack in winter for a lack of humidity, and in summer due to exposure to the sun.
• For chapped lips: When you leave dry lips unattended in winter, it gets chapped or flaky.
• Soft look: Using a lip balm makes the lips smoother, thereby improving the overall look.
• Colour: Lips turn glamorous using tinted lip balms and can match your requirements for specific photos.

There is a growing opinion globally favouring the use of natural products, and many homemade cosmetics are becoming increasingly popular. “How to make a lip balm” is a widely searched item on the net indicating natural homemade solutions for cosmetic use. Let us explore the process of making this natural lip care product.

How to Make Lip Balm?

We look at three popular varieties.

A. Rose Lip balm

Ingredients: Castor oil, beeswax (made from the honeycomb of bees), cocoa butter, infused rose oil, vanilla extract, powdered alkanet root

Process:

1. Melt 1 tablespoon (tbsp) of beeswax in a double boiler (a smaller pot inside a larger pot for boiling water; the ingredients in the smaller pot use the steam)
2. After some time, add castor oil (1/2 tbsp), rose oil (3 tbsp), cocoa butter (1 tbsp), and mix well.
3. Add 1 teaspoon (tsp) vanilla extract for fragrance and ¼ tsp alkanet root for colour.
4. Let the mixture cool and transfer to a container (tube, tin, or glass) and put the mixture in the refrigerator for some time for setting.
5. Your balm is ready to use.

B. Chocolate Mint Lip Balm

Ingredients: Cocoa powder, peppermint oil, almond oil, beeswax pellets

Process:

1. Melt the beeswax pellet in a stove, microwave, or boiler;
2. Stir while adding 1 tsp cocoa powder;
3. Add few drops of peppermint oil, 2 tsp almond oil, and continue to stir well;
4. Let the mixture cool for some time;
5. Pour into a suitable container and refrigerate;
6. Your lip balm is ready to use.

C. Lavender Lip balm

Ingredients:  Almond oil (or Jojoba oil), beeswax (grated), honey, lavender oil, vitamin E oil, cocoa powder, lipstick

Process:

1. Melt the beeswax in a stainless steel container;
2. Add 1 tbsp coconut oil and a few drops of honey when the beeswax is half melted;
3. Stir the mixture well and add 1tsp vitamin E oil (or by squashing two vitamin E capsules)
4. Allow the mixture to cool;
5. Pour the mixture into a container and refrigerate;
6. The lip balm is ready to use.

Homemade Lip Balm to Business from Home

The beauty industry is growing year after year and comprises luxury labels, established skincare brands, and specialised beauticians’ formulas, and homemade varieties. To start a lip balm business from home, step one is a business plan.

1. Business Plan

This typically includes product/s and raw materials, planned quantities, equipment and infrastructure needed, packaging, pricing, selling, and marketing strategies. Profitability and funds availability are the other essential components.

A plan stands by you as a reference document and is necessary for a business even if you are not approaching banks initially for funds.

2. Operational Details

• Finalising the place: It is your home—it would be best to demarcate an area for business use
• Name: Choose a name for your venture and a brand name for the product
• Registration of your business entity: You can start as a sole proprietor or a partnership venture
• PAN card: In the name of the business firm
• Bank account: Separate account in the firm’s name
• Trade license: Register your business with the local authorities
• Compliance/registration under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act: This is not mandatory to start with for a home venture, but registration gives you a marketing advantage. Compliance will elevate the status of your brand, and consumers will perceive the item as standard.
• Other certifications: BIS and quality certifications should be the next priority once you start your operations; all these certifications will help your marketing.

3. Equipment

List out the necessary equipment, heating machines, mixing tank, rollers, moulds, refrigerator, weighing scale, packaging containers, etc. Moreover, ensure to procure these from reliable sources.

4. Raw Materials

As per your production plans, work out a minimum inventory level based on production estimates and ensure to source raw materials from reputed firms. It is better to start with at least two varieties of lip balm.

5. Employees

The business of homemade items is usually self-oriented; you may work out your support staff requirement depending on the business scale.

6. Accounts

Low-cost digital account packages are the ideal solution for small businesses. You may check for products on the net.

OkCredit is a reliable fintech company offering accounting solutions to small enterprises. You may check some of their products for suitability.

7. Marketing and Sales

The critical area of your business that can lead you to success; work out market-indexed pricing, finalise the sales channels—local stores, beauty care outlets in malls, e-retailers, and online sales.

Plan to promote your product/s well—start a website; use digital tools to identify potential consumers and design a campaign with professional help. A campaign may be expensive to start with, but an effective promotion will reward you with a significant return.

Use in-shop display and other measures such as free sampling, bundled offers, and similar to market your product.

8. Financials

The estimated investment for a reasonable business scale is Rs. 5 to 6 lakhs, including the initial promotion cost. Therefore, you may expect average returns of approximately 30%.

Tips for a Home Lip Balm Business

• Standardisation: Product standardisation (quality, quantity) is necessary when you venture commercially.
• Quality: Strict control on the product is a crucial demand of business.
• Packaging: In modern marketing, packaging plays a crucial role. Customers perceive a poorly packed item as a wrong product. Therefore, use market-factored packaging.
• Distribution: In today's competitive market scenario, finding your product's right sales channel may be a challenge. Enough pre-launch planning and effort must go into finding the right channel mix, as without proper distribution, a product will fail.

Conclusion

Homemade lip care solutions are used by many families in India. Besides utility, homemade products are free from the ill-effects of some of the chemicals found in many varieties of cosmetics.

Starting a home venture with lip balm is not a difficult proposition at all. As a good entrepreneur, however, one should remember to follow the primary mandates of business as regards product quality and proper promotion.

Also Read:

1) How to start Crane and Lifting Service?
2) How to Open a Nightclub? Investment, Steps & More
3) How to start a commercial and industrial machinery rental business?
4) How to Start a Mobile Garage Service?
5) Cosmetic Manufacturer in India

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FAQs

Q. How many types of lip balms can be made at home?

Ans. Beeswax is the primary ingredient of lip balms. Essential oils, flavours are added to beeswax and made into a mixture. You can create customised varieties by changing the combination using different oils and flavours. However, the basic process of making lip balm is the same.

Q. How to effectively promote a small lip balm business from home?

Ans. No, business can grow without promotion—at the initial stage itself, you need to consider the cost of publicity as an investment.

When you turn your balm-making skills into a business, you have to be vigilant about the quality, packaging, and promotion of your product. You must exploit low-cost avenues like an in-shop display and digital tools for branding.

Even when you start on a small scale, proper use of marketing can take your product forward. Start with gifting your product to family and friends during occasions.

Try unconventional methods of promotion—use the product as a “thank you gift” to the invitees in marriages, particularly during winters, by tying up with the organising families known to you or in your locality (with a  discount offer); the gesture is sure to be appreciated by the guests.

Your brand will spread fast and generate good word of mouth (of course, quality must be decent)

Q. How big should a homemade lip balm business be planned?

Ans. Lip balm does not require a sophisticated manufacturing process. Simple mechanical mixing and refrigeration are the only requirements.

The essence of a home venture is starting on a comfortable scale. If you adopt sound business practices from the beginning in manufacturing and marketing, you will soon need to increase your production. You can then consider scaling up your business.