Lavender Soap to South Korea!

These little soaps are headed to South Korea! The Small Business Development Council is headed to South Korea on a trade mission highlighting eastern Washington businesses. Establishing trade partners within South Korea for goods from Eastern Washington is the goal of this mission. Lavender is a booming business, with the recent interest using essential oils for health and wellness, the timeless use of lavender in bath and beauty products, and the upsurge in culinary uses, there is plenty of opportunities for lavender lovers to develop businesses around this wonderful plant.

Recently we spoke with someone who is building a growers co-operative, and nearby apple farmers are tearing out orchards to plant acreage in lavender. With the glut of apples on the market, they feel like it is a more profitable crop for them. New equipment, new farming practices, but less risk, as they see it. These farmers are growing the raw product only, and selling to a processor, who makes Essential Oil, Hydrosol, and a few products.

Our business is more of an end-product business. We distill our own oil, and use it in our products, and sell just a portion of our oil. We grow for our own use, and only a small amount of our dried buds, go to wholesale products. As our business continues to grow, we will be making decisions about planting more plants. Currently we harvest about 500 plants. We seem puny, compared to the largest lavender farm in Washington, Trinidad Lavender, as of this year, they will have over 50 acres of lavender varieties planted. Greg Gerritts, the owner is passionate about everything lavender, a wealth of information and help! We feel grateful to call him a friend.