We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Claudia Akers. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Claudia below.

Claudia, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

My father was a Cuban political refugee. He fled Cuba in 1961 with just the clothes on his back, and just enough change in his pocket to call his sister when he landed in Washington, DC. He left everything behind and had to start from scratch in a foreign country. Through hard work, grit and determination, he built a new life and successful career.

He taught us through his example to work hard, and never give up no matter the odds and no matter what life throws at you.

I would never have been able to build my company and be where I am today without the work ethic he instilled in us.

Claudia, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Copper Soap Works is a small, family owned all-natural soap and candle company.

We make plastic-and-package-free artisan soaps + candles made from ingredients locally-sourced in California. They’re sustainable, and–unlike mass-market soaps– won’t overwhelm your senses.

Copper Soap Works was founded in September of 2017. We are nestled in the heart of the SIerra Foothills of California in a tiny town called Copperopolis. We are in the heart of the Motherlode, an area steeped with gold rush history.

Our name – Copper Soap Works – is a nod to our hometown name (Copperopolis, or “Copper” as the locals love to say).

These days, a lot of big companies and corporations practice “green washing” and use environmentalism as a talking point, without truly practicing sustainability in every level of their products and processes.

A deep commitment to the environment and lowering our own footprint is at the foundation of our company, from how we source the material for our soaps (mostly locally, and with materials like goat milk that are both renewable and healthy on the human body) to the absence of unnecessary packaging. We plant a tree with every purchase through our partnership with One Tree Planted.

100% of the funds from the sales of our soap end bundles product go towards funding our full- sized bar donations to our community members in need. We donate the same bars of soap that we sell to local churches, shelters and foundations assisting at-risk community members. Because we firmly believe everyone deserves access to all-natural soap that won’t dry out your skin, regardless of their economic circumstances.

Some people want bath and skin products with strong fragrances. But our customers don’t – the subtlety of our handmade scents, combined with all-natural ingredients, is what customers love. They trust that any soap or skin care product from our collection won’t have the overwhelming aromas, irritants, and unnecessary packaging found in other soap products.

We believe in the power and importance of local communities, and put our money where our mouth is – literally – by sourcing as many ingredients as possible from our local farms and small businesses. The fresh, raw goat milk and raw honey is from neighboring farms in Copperopolis, The olive oil is from a local olive ranch in the neighboring town of Valley Springs. In addition, we are growing, harvesting and distilling our own lavender in partnership with a small family farm in the neighboring town of Sonora.

Our products are made exclusively with essential oils and – whenever possible – organic ingredients. We carefully vet each and every company we source from to make sure the palm, coconut, shea, and cocoa butter is sustainably farmed and produced at livable wages from the countries they are sourced.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Learning to let it go.

This is a lesson I’ve had to learn, and re-learn over the years in both my businesses – in the past as a professional photographer and in my current role as a soap-maker.

I (cough … cough) tend to be a “bit” of a perfectionist. Everything I create must be absolutely perfect and if it’s not, it’s not “sellable”. I convinced myself that my customers felt the same way about these things.

As you can imagine, this attitude was quite disastrous. It caused unbelievable amounts of stress & pressure that I alone was responsible for.

Thankfully, I learned early on that we are all human and making mistakes is perfectly normal. And necessary in order to improve, grow and hone our crafts.

And, much to my surprise, I discovered that my customers are not looking for “perfect”. They honestly don’t notice (or care) if a bar of soap has a design flaw. And as it turns out, I’m the only one that noticed those flaws.

This a lesson that I need to keep reminding myself of every time things don’t go perfectly as planned.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

When we made the decision to move out of the city to the country in order to live cleaner, simpler lives close the mountains that we both adored, I had to make the heart-breaking decision to give up my career as a portrait photographer.

Photography has been a part of my soul since I was in the first grade, when my aunt & uncle gifted me my very first camera. My life-long passion turned career. It was everything to me.

But as it turned out, living healthier lives and leaving the city behind was even more important to us. So I tearfully packed up & sold off my studio equipment and resolved to never regret our decision.

And it was the best decision I ever made.

Because it was here, in the middle of nowhere, that I discovered my calling as a soap-maker and found my new passion.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.coppersoapworks.com
• Instagram: @coppersoapworks
• Facebook: @coppersoapworks

Image Credits
First image only (headshot): Jordy Matt Imagery All other images taken by me: Claudia Akers