I have been revamping my product lineup lately. Refining and finetuning what I offer to ultimately benefit both my customers as AND myself. Housing everything in my house means I must have more dedicated space or fewer ingredients. Here are my two strategies to help save money in my business, cut out unnecessary expenses, and still provide quality products to my customers.
One Ingredient, Many Products
It is inefficient and expensive to have multiple one-off ingredients for every product you sell. Find ingredients that can be incorporated in multiple products. With sweet almond oil, coconut oil, and Shea butter you can make soap, body butter, lip balm, and deodorant. This keeps ingredient turnover high so you don't end up with rancid ingredients.
Shelf-Stable Ingredients
Offer few products with a variety of colors or sizes rather than formulations. Bottles and jars do not expire. Colorants and clays do not expire. Dried botanicals kept dry and out of direct light can stay "fresh" for a very long time. Simply make your base in batches then customize with your shelf-stable ingredients.
In Conclusion
You don't have to eliminate all of your one-off ingredients but decreasing the number will in the long run benefit your product quality AND bottom line.