WILLIAMSBURG — A Brooklyn-born mother of two, inspired by some of her favorite foods like cookies-and-cream ice cream, Caribbean black cake and tangy grapefruit, has crafted her own line of soaps, branching out from her day job to launch her own business after years of bill-paying and raising children, she said.
BrooklynWhipps soaps, body butters and salt scrubs will debut at local pop-up shops and markets this spring once the first bulk batch of soaps finishes curing, said budding entrepreneur Erica Porter, 39. Porter is currently raising funds to defray the cost of a soap cutter and more molds so she can increase production.
Porter, who grew up in Crown Heights, said some of her favorite foods are the inspiration for her scented, exfoliating soaps.
The cookies-and-cream soap, for example, is made with coffee grinds and goats milk, black cake soap is flavored with cloves and peppermint for a "nice earthy smell," Porter said.
Grapefruit, avocado, poppy seeds, oatmeal, whipped coconut oil and shea butter are some of the other ingredients Porter uses in her soapy alchemy.
For nearly 20 years, Porter has worked for the city's School Construction Authority where she is an administrative assistant, she said.
"I have to pay bills and provide for my family, but my heart is elsewhere," said Porter, who raised her 12- and 18-year-old daughters, mostly by herself she said. And now that her youngest is in middle school, she's found herself with more time to pursue her own passions.
Porter has always loved working with her hands and excelled at creative, crafty pursuits like crocheting. She started making soaps last year after a bad reaction to a store-bought product and fell in love.
"I'm loving the outcome. I'm loving the product. I'm loving the process. I'm loving all of it. That's what keeps me going. Everyday I make a soap," Porter said. "It's empowering. I'm making my own product for my body."
She started giving out samples of her products to friends and family members about two months back and received great feedback, she said. Now Porter is hopeful that with enough hard work BrooklynWhipps might one day become her full-time job.
"It is a big shift," she said, adding that she wants to set an example for her daughters, showing them the value of entrepreneurship and following your heart. "You have to do it and say I either succeeded or failed.
"Or you don't do it and you never know."
