Danielle says she has always been intrigued by the look and smell of homemade soap. After buying some, she did some research into making her own. She discovered that she could buy a kit or do it completely from a recipe. She, of course, chose to make it from scratch.

She started by making soap with basic scents like lavender and patchouli and even sold some on Etsy. Then, drinking a cocktail one night, the idea of a Soap Distillery hit her—soap scents based on drinks. The first one she made was absinthe, and the project took off from there. She had a home-based operation for the first 5 or 6 years and then moved into a small studio space. But not long after that she outgrew it and moved into her current location, a warehouse on Chicago's near west side. Today she has a staff of six, and they are in the process of moving into a larger space once again.

I love the fact that Danielle grew her hobby into a small business. She says she wouldn't trade it, even though she works harder now than ever before. As a small business owner, it’s hard to plan for a day off because there will always be emergencies. She and I commiserated about how the actual business stuff isn't our favorite part, and we’d rather just make and create. But as the owner, you have to do it all.