Episode 86: What If Quitting Your Soap Business Isn’t Failure?

What if quitting your soap business isn’t failure?

What if you built something successful, served amazing customers, learned more than you ever thought you would… and eventually realized you just don’t want to do it anymore?

In this episode of The Dirty Heifers, we sit down with Sharon Reaser of Bumble and Bleat Soap, who made the difficult decision to close her handmade soap business after years of trying to figure out whether she was burned out—or genuinely done.

And that distinction matters.

Sharon talks honestly about the signs of burnout, the changes she made before deciding to close, the guilt of disappointing customers and family, the grief of deleting products she worked so hard to create, and the surprising relief that came with finally saying, “Enough is enough.”

We also get into the practical side of closing a handmade business:

• What happens to your inventory, equipment, molds, and supplies? • What do you do with your website and social media? • Should you shut down your accounts—or reinvent them? • What happens when your business has become part of your identity? • Can you be successful and still decide you’re done? • And how do you know when it’s time to stop pushing?

Sharon also shares what she would tell herself if she could go back to the beginning: slow down, listen to yourself, and remember that YOU are the most important part of the business.

Because sometimes the right answer isn't to work harder.

Sometimes it's to change the business.

Sometimes it's to take a break.

And sometimes… it's okay to close the door.