We recently connected with Kitra Thomas and have shared our conversation below.

Kitra, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Looking back, do you think you started your business at the right time? Do you wish you had started sooner or later

Well I do wish I would have started my business when I was in my sooner. Being that I started when Covid-19 happened and everyone was stuck in the house it seems like I was competing with everyone else that was doing the same thing I wanted to do. I sometimes wonder if I had started it sooner if I would’ve taken off quicker. But the Lord has his own time for everyone and everything and when it is time for my business to grow and be successful beyond my dreams then that time will happen. I was on leave from my previous job when I started my business so I was able to just concentrate on that alone. But since Covid has slowed down some and I have had to return to my 9-5 I have learned how to balance work, family life and building an business all at the same time. To be successful you have to make time for those things you desire to succeed. So to say that I feel I started my business when God put in plan for me to and when it is time for my business to be successful beyond what I imagined it will happen when God, Faith, and Determination.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

For the new readers I want to introduce myself. Hello, my name is Kitra Thomas – Owner/Manager of Soothe-N-Me Candle and Soap Company. I am also an Medical Assistant by day and when requested for appointments an Massage Therapist. I got into this industry by my husband he suggested that I make candles since I love them so much, and when we were on lock-down during Covid it gave me the opportunity to pursue the craft. I my business I sell container candles as well as wax melts, handmade soaps with fragrance or aromatherapy and all natural ingredients, shower steamers that include aromatherapy or fragrance, body butters made with all natural ingredients and many more products in the making. What sets my products apart from other people is that it is made first and foremost with love and hard work, and then with natural ingredients, I try to make products that is good for people health and home. I incorporate natural ingredients surch as sea moss into my soaps, oatmeal and may other ingredients. Everything that I make is made by hand. Whether is is something that a client want that has aromatherapy in it or fragrances.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Don’t rush I to making you product take you time and to learn your product focus on one thing at a time and learn what it is you are wanting to do and achieve that goal before you move on to the next goal. So the reason I say that is because when I first started making candles and other products I watched YouTube a lot and I wanted all of the things I made to look like those products did. Everything looked so polished. Well when I started that wasn’t the case everything looked horrible there was no smell from the candles they would burn all wrong. The soaps came out with no bubbles. Nothing worked, so my husband said quit just adding things and study the math and what you have to add properly. No Math iss not my beat subject but with some patience and time and going back to the beginning. Everything started working. The candles started smelling up an whole room plus, soap started to have bubbles,shower steamers had fragrance. So with time patience and learning your craft things will work our.

How did you build your audience on social media?

So the audience that I have was built primarily from Tiktok. I watch a lady that makes cups live and she has a huge platform of people that watch her. Her page is called Orealla, but she has it where people can request followers and that is how I got my followers on there and posting my products as I was making them. For Instagram I just post pictures of my products before, after and while I’m making them to gain followers.

Contact Info:

• Website: soothe-n-mecandle-andsoapcompany.myshopify.com
• Instagram: [email protected]
• Facebook: Facebook.com/sugathomas1978
• Other: Shoutoutdfw.com Google.com/soothenmecandleandsoapcompany