When it comes to raising children, specifics aside, parents often have the same goal: to raise responsible children that will grow to be independent and self-sufficient adults. Parenting styles vary in the process of trying to achieve this goal. For a 9-year-old Mia Lauchengco her parents nurtured an entrepreneurial spirit, putting up the capital for her to start her polvoron business so that she could save up for a bike. This was the beginning of her life’s different ventures.
“Straight out of college I opened an art gallery. That was 1997. I gave it up in 2005 to help my husband (artist, Raymond Lauchengco)–I managed him for a while. Then in 2007 I had a baby,” shares Mia.
While having a baby is life changing for every woman, for Mia it led to a business full of passion and purpose. It started with the discovery that her daughter had very sensitive skin, and 12 years ago Castile soap (pure olive oil soap) was difficult to come by in the Philippines. So she started making her own. Soon, moms began asking if they could buy soap from her. “I had the time to make soap, but not all moms did,” she says. “But all moms want to care for their babies’ skin.”
In 2011, a year after the birth of her second child, Mia started So True Naturals, an artisan soap making company that focused on the creation of Castille soap. A year later, in 2012, she joined a Mommy Mundo event where she met other mompreneurs. “It was nice to have a network of strong smart women who were running businesses and households,” she says.
After seven years of running a soap business and expanding her product line to include room sprays and candles, Mia began to feel that entrepreneur’s urge to start something new again. “I started teaching how to make soap,” she says. “At first I was worried because it was like I was creating my own competition, but I realised that if I did this I would be playing a part in empowering somebody else.”
“My first class was in September of 2018. I prayed to get at least two students. I thought no one would sign up. But within a couple of days it was sold out! I had six students, and it grew from there. Now I see my students and see that some of them are far more adventurous than I am, some of them are far more talented with soap designs and marketing. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel a little threatened in the beginning, but I think it’s great because I feel like it validates me as a teacher. They took what they learned and they ran away with it.”
Transitioning to a teaching role naturally prepared Mia and So True Naturals for the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Though the initial reaction to the quarantine was to shut down operations for a while, they realised they could continue their workshops online via Zoom. Luckily, being a soap business, they were considered an essential good, which meant their suppliers didn’t shut down either.
They announced their classes in the first week of April, three weeks after the beginning of the quarantine, and two weeks later they conducted their first session. “When you teach someone how to make soap, it’s a hands-on experience, and all these different personalities create an atmosphere of learning and excitement and fun. I was afraid that wouldn’t happen on screen, but surprisingly our first class went really well!”
After 10 months of successfully conducting online workshops, February saw Mia launch her Workshops On Demand on the Thinkific platform. Being an on-demand class, Mia is able to discuss soap making extensively. “Zoom classes have time constraints whereas on-demand workshops do not. I can discuss everything I want to discuss about the subject because everything is shown in the video and written down in the course material. Another plus is they allow me to free up my weekends for relaxing with family.”
Students of Mia’s class can buy their own materials (So True provides links to their suppliers), or they can choose to buy the ready soap making kit from So True. Once purchased and the first video is completed, each class grants students 30 days of access to the program. Apart from this, each class has a Facebook group for post-class support. Here, students can ask more questions and check and compare their soap projects.
Since launching, students of Mia’s on-demand workshops have been steady. “I’m very happy with the how it was received. I wasn’t sure if people were going to welcome it,” she shares.
Apart from on-demand workshops, So True Naturals is still selling soaps, balms, multi-purpose cleaners, home scents, candles, and room sprays. They have actually scaled up operations by partnering with a foundation that helps women who were victims of human trafficking. The women were trained, and now, all production is handled by the women in the foundation. The wholesale partnership program, which started in September of 2020, aims to help these women earn a living, while encouraging others to start a small business of their own by buying products wholesale and repackaging them under their own brand.
“It really boosts the confidence of these women when they see the soap they made on instagram, being posted by happy clients,” shares Mia. “I learned when I started teaching that it was great to be a part of empowering people, and now I can say it is one of the best parts of being an entrepreneur.”
Mia’s So True Favourites Include:
From L-R: Lavender Oatmeal Soap – Christmas in the Catskills Candle – Rose Room Spray
About the writer
Rachel Kelly Davis has been a published writer since the age of 14, often writing features, essays, and cover pieces. In 2016 she started writing poetry, leaving index cards of her poems all over the world and posting the photos she is sent by the people who find them. She has worked in communications for over a decade, wearing various hats ranging from digital marketing and SEO practitioner, brand strategist, and investor relations officer. Most recently she was the Associate Vice President for Customer Experience (Public Affairs) at WSP Inc., a public relations company based in the Philippines. Currently she is happily raising 5-year-old Valentina and 2-month old Levi Grey while taking charge of Mommy Mundo’s web content. Find her and more of her recipes on Instagram @arkaydee
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