Pierre and Isabel Pelletier

WHAT GOT YOU STARTED?

by Burke Campbell 

Published in the Financial Post

 Aug 18, 2008

Pierre and Isabel Pelletier founded Olivier Soaps (www.oliviersoaps.com), headquartered near Moncton , New Brunswick . Olivier Soaps specializes in handmade soaps and grooming products. Pierre Pelletier tells the Financial Post what motivated him to become an entrepreneur.

How it starts: “After college I travelled, making money playing soccer and beach volleyball. It’s easy to attract beautiful women that way. Then I met Isabel, the woman of my dreams and we married.”

The disaster: “As part of a much larger project in New Brunswick , my wife and I invested in a country inn, planning to sell a variety of hand-made goods. Unhappily, the project fell through and we lost almost everything.”

The unexpected miracle: “At Christmas, we had no money so we gave family and friends the soap we’d made, as presents. Soon, everyone was talking about this extraordinary soap. That’s when we realized we’d struck gold.”

The difference: “Today, many companies promote their use of organic materials, but equally important is how such ingredients are processed. Most soap is made in three days, using heat. Instead, our cold process takes twenty-eight days, creating a soap of exceptional quality.”  

The big push: “Now, our soap sells in New York City , across Quebec , and we’re about to open a shop in Toronto . We are entering agreements with other companies and our market reach is rapidly expanding.”  

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