As consumers discover the potential health and wellness benefits associated with essential oils, the market is projected to expand even more rapidly. According to projections from Grandview Research, essential oils sales are expected to grow at an annual rate of 7.5% through 2027. One way to tap into this expanding market is to partner with a private label essential oils manufacturer to produce and bottle the essential oils for you.
In this post, we’ll walk you through the basics of how to start an essential oils business, including how to locate a reliable private label partner and how to package and label your essential oils. We’ll wrap up by sharing tips on how to effectively market your essential oils online.
Starting an Essential Oils Business
Learning how to sell essential oils begins with finding a trusted private label partner. A private label essential oil manufacturer handles the production and bottling process, making it possible for you to rebrand their essential oils as your own. Many private label essential oil producers offer extensive lines of both generic and custom essential oil blends.
Sourcing Essential Oils
Partnering with a quality essential oils manufacturer is very important, since your name will be on the essential oils they produce. Here are three hallmarks of a high-grade essential oils private label producer.
1. Certified manufacturing facilities
Quality essential oil producers have industry-certified manufacturing facilities. Look for International Organization for Standardization (ISO) certification or Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certifications. Knowing that the facility producing your essential oils is adhering to the high standards set by these certification entities provides added peace of mind for you and your customers.
2. Large selection of stock and custom blend essential oils
An essential oils business typically begins by offering a limited line of essential oils to test the market. But as your business grows, you’ll want to expand your product offerings. You can future-proof your business by selecting an essential oils manufacturer that offers a wide range of stock blends to choose from. Many offer custom blends, too, allowing you to craft essential oils unique to your business. Custom blends are more expensive, but add a sense of exclusivity.
3. Solid reputation for customer service
Quality products and a large selection are important, but not as important as a commitment to providing high levels of customer service. Start off by vetting potential partners online, reading about the good and bad experiences others have had working with them. Once you’ve narrowed your choices down to two or three, try them out for yourself. Call their customer support lines to ask questions and request product samples. You can learn a lot about the customer service culture of a company by experiencing it firsthand.
For even more information on finding the best essential oils private label manufacturer, see our post on the 5 Best Private Label Essential Oils Manufacturers.
Packaging and Labeling Essential Oils
There are many uses for essential oils. How they’re meant to be used and the kind of consumer you’re targeting will influence your bottling and packaging choices.
Essential Oil Packaging
Whether they’re meant to be used topically, vaporized in a diffuser, or eaten will influence your product packaging choices. Most essential oils are bottled in small, tinted glass bottles. Glass won’t leach other substances into the oils like low-quality plastic bottles will. It also won’t break down when it comes into contact with stronger, more corrosive essential oils. The tinted glass protects the oils from UV rays, which can cause them to break down more quickly. Since essential oils are usually quite concentrated, most bottles range in size from 5ml to 10ml. For essential oil blends designed for topical use, a dabber or roller bottle top makes sense. A dropper bottle with a pipette top makes it easy to dispense oils designed to be ingested or used in recipes. Learn more in our dropper bottle size guide.
Most essential oil bottles are packaged in a small paperboard box. This exterior packaging provides excellent product branding opportunities. Designing your product packaging in a way that’s appealing to your target market is very important. For ideas on how to make your product packaging stand out, read our 5 Tips for Amazing Ecommerce Packaging.
Labeling Your Essential Oils
Creating unique product labels is an important ingredient in the success of your essential oils business. Due to the popularity of essential oils, there’s plenty of competition. Memorable product labels make your products more appealing to consumers and increase the chances they’ll end up in someone’s physical or digital shopping cart. Here are three things to keep in mind as you’re designing labels for your essential oils.
1. Keep it simple. Due to the small size of essential oil bottles, the real estate you have to work with is limited. Resist the temptation to fill up all of the available space with text and graphics. Choose one easy-to-read font, and restrict the wording to the product’s name and any required product labeling information. Limit the graphics to your logo or one custom graphic.
2. Consider the conditions. You want your labels to look fresh and new, even after frequent use. That’s why choosing a label material that’s water- and oil-proof is important. Make sure the label material you select will hold up well to frequent exposure to moisture and oils.
3. Novelty sells. Another way to boost your essential oils’ consumer appeal is to use a custom label material. Black Vellum labels look great on essential oil bottles and give them a high-end, matte appearance. A metallic plastic label is perfect for creating a sleek and youthful vibe. Holographic plastic labels add an interesting, 3D appearance that literally makes your products stand out! When it comes to choosing custom label materials, the sky is truly the limit.
For a deeper dive into product label design, read our Ultimate Guide to Creating Your Own Product Label.
Marketing Your Essential Oils
Learning how to market your essential oils is important. These efforts are how you get your products into the hands (or shopping carts) of your customers. Selling essential oils both in brick-and-mortar stores and online can increase your reach, helping your business get off the ground quickly.
Selling Essential Oils Online
The internet has the potential to connect you with customers far beyond your hometown. Selling on already established platforms like Amazon and Etsy is a quick way to get started. Creating your own e-commerce site will help you avoid paying the sales commissions that other sites charge and will help provide a springboard for your marketing and sales efforts. You can use Google Adwords or Facebook Ads to drive traffic to your newly established website and help you build your customer base.
Selling Essential Oils in Retail Stores
Although selling your essential oils online has many advantages, physical retail stores should not be overlooked. Begin by visiting stores in your community that are likely to carry your essential oils. Yoga studios, gift shops, and natural food stores are good places to start.
Start Your Essential Oils Business the Right Way
Learning how to start an essential oils business is exciting, but don’t rush the process. Spend the time you need to thoroughly vet potential private label producers, settle on the right product packaging and labeling for your essential oils, and develop a comprehensive marketing plan. As you start selling essential oils, you’ll be confident knowing your business is resting on a firm foundation.
Our team serves essential oils brands of all sizes, helping them to create packaging labels that make them stand out on the shelf. We’re ready to answer your questions about labeling and help you choose the right type of carton or labels for your essential oils products.
You might also like:
- 5 Best Types of Labels for Glass Bottles and Jars
- How to Choose the Right Packaging for Your Products
- How to Start an Online Business from Product to Packaging
