Vanua Soap : A Growing business
April 3, 2021 2:47 am | Posted in Business News | Share now TwitterFacebook
By Josepheen Tarianga
Vanua Soap is an innovative business that could not have come into development at a better time, a business relevant to this age.
With COVID came the call of strict hygiene measures that required everyone to wash their hands upon entering and exiting every building, institution and work place. As everyone stocked up on hygienic products and shops started to run low on stock. Vanua soap provided a timely solution.
Joelle Kamata is the mastermind behind this fairly recently established business.
Based in Santo, Vanua soap handcrafts soap with original formulas totally unique to the business. All products are made with local resources Coconut oil, Tamanu oil, Nangai oil, Cocoa butter, Turmeric, Moringa, Cocoa powder And soon ginger powder.
The business currently produces between8.000 to 10.000 soaps a day with Retail prices that range from 40 to 100 vatu and currently employs 8 permanent workers and 3 temporary workers.
There are 6 different soaps made with different raw elements. In the coming month more varieties will be unveiled on the company’s Facebook page Vanua soap.
Vanua soap has grown through challenges to exist as it does presently. The entirety of 2019 was dedicated to preparing the soap factory in Santo for production and its Grand opening in 2020.
In April of the same year opening Tropical Cyclone Harold had swept across Santo severely damaging the goods produced as well as the raw materials. This proved a huge challenge as the business had to begin again from scratch.
Despite it all, in July of 2020 the Department of Industry invited the resilient business to take part in a trade show in Port-Vila where Vanua soap made a name for itself promoting its products and the company while establishing professional network.
Vanua soap has worked with several other institutions at this time.
It has produced soap for World Vision, sold their products at shops in Santo such as New look, Shops in Port-Vila such as Pandanus and Organic and Paradise.
Currently the company is working with Cellovilla to produce liquid soap and amenities for hotels.
Joelle reveals some future plans for the business as she states;
“Nowadays, we hope to increase the number of customers and afterward, open a branch in Port-Vila to ease the distribution of our products.”
There are big things in store for this business but according to the owner she wants to focus on assuring that the staff of her business in Santo are well trained before advancing onto bigger things.
