Running a Business: Selling Soap in France

A twist of fate brought Lucy Truscott to her new life in a green corner of Hérault, writes Steve Turnbull…

Londoner, Lucy Truscott, can remember the incident 24 years ago as if it was yesterday. Her brother was swimming in the sea at Hérault on the Mediterranean coast when he got dragged dangerously out of his depth by a strong current. Fortunately, several people saw what was happening and one raced into the sea to save him. Soon after, he was airlifted to Montpellier hospital and soon recovered. But Lucy and her friends found the whole episode so stressful that they went for a stiff drink in a local bar. That’s when fate took a hand in things.

Lucy got chatting to a handsome young man called Caradoc, and discovered that he had done the same music technology course as she had at London Guildhall University. She also learnt that he was born and raised by English parents in a charming little village to the north of Hérault called St-Privat. Fast-forward to today and the couple – now married – live there with their two bilingual sons, aged 15 and 20. In many respects, they are living the green dream. Their house on a hillside (constructed originally by Caradoc’s parents who now live next door) is not off-grid, but it is certainly eco- friendly. As Lucy says: “It has been built to blend in with the terraced landscape and uses all- natural materials. Some of the walls are built with bricks that my in-laws made in the 1970s- they dug up clay, pressed it into brick form and left the bricks to dry in the sun.”

Some might find the house a bit quirky especially the toilet window made from recycled beer bottles and the spare bedroom, which has rocks protruding from the walls-but that’s part of its charm. Besides, the couple have learnt to live with the impracticalities of a home that evolved organically. “There aren’t many straight walls or right-angles, so it’s always a challenge to fit cupboards or decorate, but there are many benefits, both environmentally and economically,” explains Lucy. “The roofs are planted with succulents, which is very insulating, and the upstairs bedrooms are designed with a roof overhang that lets in sunlight in the winter and keeps it out in the warmer months. It’s all so natural that most summers we get a swarm of bees arriving to make their home above us!” The couple also have two and a half hectares of land with a vegetable garden/potager, and are surrounded by nature. St- Privat is nestled in a beautiful valley in the Coeur d’Hérault region and is covered by a tapestry of vineyards and olive orchards. In the spring, there are wild flowers everywhere, and just down the road is the Grand Site of Lac du Salagou/ Cirque de Mourèze with its amazing geological contrasts to marvel at. Thanks to builder Caradoc’s stonemasonry skills, they also have a new swimming pool offering fabulous views, and are planning a dining room extension. There is work to do finishing the facades as well, but there’s no urgency. As far as the couple are concerned, maintaining balance is the key. This approach means they have time to enjoy the attractions beyond their immediate area, including Hérault’s ‘cool’ capital Montpellier and the underrated gem Narbonne in Aude. A bit further afield, they also enjoy trips to Collioure on the Côte Vermeille, and the Costa Brava in Spain.

But, to go back to the early part of the story, while Lucy was content with her new life far from the hustle and bustle of London, she wanted something more the chance to run her own home-based business. Reading a book about soap making that she’d borrowed from a friend one day, she got all the inspiration she needed. Next, she worked for an umbrella company to learn how to run a business, and from this La Savonnerie de Saint Privat was born..

She didn’t want to make cheap, industrial soap: “From the beginning I wanted to create a 100% natural product that doesn’t put anything harmful onto your skin. I also wanted to encourage people to go back to using solid soaps and shampoos that avoid the use of plastic packaging. As well as my soaps being very colourful and smelling great, I think people like the high percentage of nourishing oils and butters, which are very moisturising.” So what’s the process? “To make the soap, fats and oils are combined at room temperature with sodium hydroxide (lye) into a batter. This creates a chemical reaction called ‘saponification’. Then I add natural colourants and essential oils, and pour the batter into moulds, which I cover and leave for 48 hours. The soap is then cut into logs, then into bars and left to cure for roughly four weeks.”

Getting the business off the ground wasn’t easy initially – especially with all the complicated cosmetics legislation. But Caradoc was a big help, not least because he converted a building on site into an atelier/workshop. Lucy also exploited a connection with the founder of Neal’s Yard Remedies, who had a holiday home locally. Production then peaked at 24,000 units in one year before she took a break to have children.

She now sells the soaps, which are also vegan/cruelty- free, in a range of local outlets, but mainly in the market at nearby Clermont-l’Hérault and via her website. While she enjoys so much about her life, she likes nothing better than to be on her own in the workshop experimenting with different scents and oils (some of which are provided by her perfumer friend Nicholas in St-Guilhem-le-Désert) and developing new products. She also makes soaps/ shampoos for dogs (she has two border collies) and an exclusive soap for the wellness centre, Oleatherm, in St-Privat, which is made with the spa’s own organic olive oil and ground olive stones.

Music is Lucy’s other passion. She learnt several instruments as a child, and as an adult in London she worked as a piano tuner for a company with many famous clients, including Jools Holland. She was also a singer in her brother Simon A Stewart’s band, and a DJ at a Soho club. Strongly influenced by artists like Bob Dylan, Tom Waits and Van Morrison, she still enjoys playing guitar and songwriting. She has her mum to thank for her political outlook: “When we were kids, she was an active member of Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, and took part in the anti-nuclear protests at Greenham Common in the early 1980s. She was a vegetarian, and I became one too at the age of 12.” France can hardly be described as ‘veggie- friendly’, of course, but she maintains it’s getting better. Lucy also values the many friendships she has developed in her “richly diverse” community, which extends to the local town of Lodève: “This is really up and coming, thanks to the socialist mayor. There’s lots going on and plenty of new cafés and restaurants, plus a brilliant arts festival every summer. It’s also investing in lots of recycling and zero- unemployment initiatives – one of which my brother-in-law, Samuel, helps to manage.” In fact, the strong environmental ethos of the area goes back to the 1970s and 1980s when hippies and other ‘alternative types’ from all over Europe moved here, attracted by the low price of land and houses, as much as the unspoilt beauty and tranquillity. Many were also inspired by the so- called Lutte du Larzac (1971-81) when an ‘army’ of farmers and activists defeated the right- wing government’s attempt to extend a military base through a campaign of civil disobedience. More recently, the area has attracted a host of celebrities seeking a secluded corner of the south of France, as well as organic winemakers, resulting in the Terrasses du Larzac appellation.

So, does Lucy miss anything about the UK? “Mainly my family and Indian takeaways,” she says. What about adapting to the cultural differences between the French and Brits? “I still feel pretty English here, but when I go to the UK I do find myself feeling a bit French, and certainly European!”

Economic forces beyond her control have made the soap-making business more challenging of late – cocoa butter and olive oil have doubled in price, squeezing her profit margin – but her customers are happy to pay extra for a natural, artisanal and ethically produced product. She is also meeting the challenges head on by diversifying her range. She recently added a new soap made with beer (provided by her friend Richard at nearby Brasserie Baudille) that is “creamy, bubbly and smells divine”, and is planning to create reed diffusers and room sprays soon.

It seems the wheel has come full circle with her green ideas too. Once dismissed as being ‘cranky’, environmentalism is now firmly in the mainstream, even if our collective ability to combat climate change remains in doubt. Regardless, she has never looked back since leaving London, and is excited about the next chapter of her nature- loving, soap-making life in picturesque St-Privat.

savonneriesaintprivat.com

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