Today we’d like to introduce you to Murtaza.
Hi Murtaza, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
The concept of the Natural Soap Outpost as a soap refill station emerged from the changes going on around us: increased use of synthetic ingredients, inflation and price gouging, the environmental toll from single-use plastics, and “value attrition” found in expensive products designed for short lifecycles.
In natural soap, we found a wholesome product that could truly impact the well-being of our community. Soap is a timeless, recession-proof commodity needed by all humanity. We wanted to flip the value equation of natural soap on its head to make it affordable and accessible to the mass market, not just the “eco-crowd.”
After scratching our heads for a while, we realized that packaging and shipping methods, which require significant equipment, material, and labor costs were the primary driver for steep prices. We decided to eliminate that from the equation. With our soap refill station, we can offer premium quality products and great customer service to our community. Today, the containers we provide are refillable or made of glass; they are purchased for a one-time fee, and consumers are encouraged to bring them back to our shop for a refill.
In this way, we hope to play a role in recovering the damage that petrochemicals have caused to our health and our planet. We want to leave our world a better place for the children of our community, and for us, those aren’t just words anymore.
Over our first five months in business, we have found that when you conduct commerce with love and care and stay loyal to your values, loyalty follows. We are blessed to be a part of our vibrant and eclectic community and hope to earn the right to be here.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It certainly hasn’t been a smooth road, but it has been a meaningful one. A relative and I began making soap about eight years ago under the brand Sabuniq. As a young brand in a less mature market, we were excited to see customer leads growing, but life eventually happened, our families grew, and our small-scale production simply couldn’t keep up with the demand. We actually ended up recycling 5,000 empty bottles we had in stock just to clear the slate.
During that hiatus, we realized just how much people loved the product. Customers repeatedly told us they couldn’t go back to using harsh chemical surfactants after seeing how gentle and effective our soap was on their skin. That feedback kept the fire lit and we kept dreaming about establishing our own factory and retail chain.
We knew that whenever we returned, we couldn’t go back to single-use plastics. We wanted to be a different
kind of company, one that helps keep the planet safe for future generations.
Then, a unique opportunity arose. My wife’s family in Kenya was looking for a new business venture. We sat down together and hatched a plan to form a natural soap supply chain. They now manufacture the soap in Kenya and we retail it here in the USA. Within six months, the chain was running, and we received our first shipment. It’s been incredibly rewarding to support local communities in Kenya while bringing a high-quality product back to our customers here.
Today, we are still getting our ‘sea legs.’ Retail requires constant effort to stand out, but we are working hard to earn the neighborhood’s trust. The economics of retail are also very different today then they were a decade ago, with local businesses under increasing pressure from huge ecommerce platforms. But we’re not here just to sell soap; we’re working to show our community that there is a better, more sustainable way to maintain our health and well-being.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We are a small team separated by oceans and continents. Our collective aim is to provide a pure, wholesome cleansing experience that closes the gap between premium skincare, value to customers and responsibility to the planet. We specialize in an artisanal, gentle foaming soap crafted from a traditional blend of extra virgin olive oil, shea butter, coconut oil, and castor oil, infused with pure essential oils rather than synthetic fragrances. Our commitment to skin health extends to our handmade, vegan lotion, which provides deep, nourishing hydration without any animal byproducts or harsh chemicals.
What truly sets us apart is our commitment to a circular economy and our mission to bring value back to local communities and to support and rebuild local economies, at home and abroad. Through our initial refill station conveniently located inside H-E-B, a prominent community hub, we have flipped the traditional retail model on its head by eliminating single-use plastic packaging for both our soaps and lotions. By removing the costs of bottles, we make high-quality natural skincare accessible and affordable for everyone, not just the “eco-crowd”.
As a brand, we are most proud of our loyalty to these core values. We want your readers to know that choosing a sustainable lifestyle doesn’t have to be a luxury; it can be as simple as bringing a reusable dispenser to our store to receive a premium, natural product at a superb price. Whether you are soothing sensitive skin, worried about synthetic ingredients, or working to reduce your ecological footprint, we invite readers to experience products that nourish the body while helping to leave the world a better place for future generations.
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
I think the quality most important to our success is our commitment to staying anchored to old traditions and values. Soapmaking itself is a craft that goes back millennia, and we are dedicated to providing products free of harsh synthetic ingredients just as they were made long before industrialization took over. In an era of great economic disruption, we also recognize that the health of our business is inseparable from the health of our community.
In the modern commercial world, it would have been much easier to return to the market with cheap, pre-packaged plastic bottles or lesser quality ingredients to widen our margins. However, we believe that true success isn’t measured by profitability alone, but by the trust we earn from our neighbors. We intentionally chose a more difficult path: building a custom supply chain and designing a refill model that prioritizes the planet and the local economy over corporate convenience.
Ultimately, it is our belief in our product and our vision for a stronger, healthier community that keeps the fire lit. We have learned that when you conduct commerce with genuine love and care, loyalty follows. We aren’t just selling soap; we are fulfilling a promise to leave the world a better place for the children of our community. That sense of purpose is exactly what keeps us steady as we find our sea legs in this journey.
Pricing:
- 9 oz of premium natural soap under $5
- 4.8 oz cold process bar soap for $3.75 each
- 6.5 oz handmade lotion + glass dispenser $14.99
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.naturalsoapoutpost.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/naturalsoapoutpost/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/natural-soap-outpost-cypress
Image Credits
Murtaza Manaqibwala
