Today we’d like to introduce you to Candacé Thomas
Candacé, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I have always enjoyed creating things, especially personal care products (i.e., relaxing bath soaks, moisturizing body butters, scrubs, detoxing clay masks, etc.) to address my dry skin and rough heels. I look for the finest ingredients and materials, then add my special touch to it. I love sharing my creations with others. On countless occasions, I have been told that I have healing hands. December 2018, we found out my baby sister’s breast cancer had returned as metastatic (cancer had spread to distant parts of her body). While supporting her through that time, I would create various spa treatments (clay masks, body butters, etc.) to keep her spirits up and help her skin recover from the side effects of the chemo and radiation treatments. I understand the role personal appearance plays on a person’s self-esteem and overall mental health. Though I could not heal her body, I did my best to help bring a smile to her face. And, at times, that was tough. After she passed away in September 2019, I began thinking about what was truly important to me. I realized that I was most fulfilled when I was building up others, encouraging people to self-love, and creating things. Honestly, some of my happiest moments involve gifting friends and family with my home remedies, skincare, and body products. Soft and Simple Body is the creation that I got to share with my little sister, my baby. Now, I get to share my passion for self-love through self care with you!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’s been a challenge for sure. I launched Soft and Simple Body at the end of 2019. The first speed bump I had to navigate around was marketing. I struggled to win customers. Like most startup businesses, I had to quickly self evaluate. I narrowed it down to two issues I could immediately affect. 1-Differentiate my products from similar ones offered by competitors. And 2, I had to change my marketing strategy. Okay, issues were identified and solved just in time to have Soft and Simple Body under a couple of Christmas Trees and to hang in a few people’s stockings. Then 2020 comes. The year begins with billions of locusts swarming East Africa where my star ingredient, shea nilotica, is grown and harvested. As a result, prices went through the roof, and shipping time was delayed. Luckily I had orders in route, but too many large orders would have wiped out my inventory. By March, Covid-19 was a global pandemic, and the pop up shops, vendor opportunities, all of my in-person events were canceled. Like every other small business, I was sheltering in place. That’s when I had to pivot and focus more effort towards online sales.
As you know, we’re big fans of Soft And Simple Body, LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about the brand?
Soft and Simple Body is a Personal Care, Dual Line Conditioning System for people who suffer from dry skin issues. Soft and Simple Body is all about clean, trustworthy beauty surrounded by luxury. We combine only the best natural and organic ingredients. Using the complete Soft and Simple Body Conditioning System, you’re able to achieve optimal results. Our Dual Conditioning System gives you the option to use the Non-Fragranced Daytime Conditioning System or the Fragranced After Hours Conditioning System. Each system contains (in the order in which they should be used/applied) our bath/shower salt to detox the body, our bath/shower bomb for mental cleansing, our body scrub for exfoliation, our multi-purpose body oil as a nourishing treatment, our multi-purpose body butter to create a seal and lock in moisture and lastly, the application of our gel-infused socks and moisturizing gloves to work synergistically reinforcing maximum hydration. We highly recommend the complete system; however, if you are simply in need of a hydrating skin booster, we suggest starting off with either one of our body oils or our body butters. Our fantastic customer service team is available via the “Contact Us” portion of our webpage if you have trouble deciding which to choose. A healthy skincare routine is proven to have a positive impact on your overall mental health. Good grooming habits contribute to our social-emotional needs. Soft & Simple Body is not meant to only take up shelf-space. It is there to help empower you to take up space in this world. With that being said, we are pleased to announce we will be launching our Face Skin Care Line Late Spring 2021. Subscribe to our newsletter for more information about new products. www.softandsimplebody.com Like/Share/Follow us on FaceBook and Instagram @softandsimplebody
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
A few of my favorite books are Born Bright by C Nicole Mason, The Junctions of Time by Pastor Mark Amoateng, MD, and Never Close Your Heart by Monica F. Anderson. My go-to apps are Design Home, Pinterest, and Canva. And a few of my favorite podcasts are Straight Shot, No Chaser with Tezlyn Figaro and J.ill The Podcast presented by Jill Scott.
Pricing:
- Variety of reuseable a la carte items starting at $6.00
Contact Info:
- Email: care@softandsimplebody.com
- Website: www.softandsimplebody.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/softandsimplebody
- Facebook: facebook.com/softandsimplebody
Image Credits:
Saida Carter
