Like the sand dough and the sawdust dough, oil dough is another unique sensory experience. It’s smooth and creamy and soft, and yes, it will leave your hands and work surface oily, so be prepared.

The oil is what makes this dough truly special, however. You can use the cheapest oil available and your dough will work just fine, but for a treat you can substitute in any other oil that you’d like, taking advantage of its properties—something to soften the skin, perhaps, or something soothing especially for a child with eczema can play with, or you can substitute in some essential oils for an aromatherapy benefit (be cautious, of course, about using essential oils on children—they’re smaller than we are, and you know that a little essential oil already goes a long way).

You will need:

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Our focus on natural ingredients was, in retrospect rather laughable as we included all sorts of what we now call, toxic ingredients, but promoted the “natural” additives. We looked for opportunities to tie into events and with charities that focused on green initiatives with an eye toward increasing sales.

In many ways that hasn’t changed.

Brands across categories, but particularly in the natural products industry are choosing charities with which to align themselves. In most cases this is an exercise in determining what the brand will stand for. The bigger the brand, the larger the charity and the more thought is given to this exercise as seen in the almost perfect launch last year of Clorox Greenworks brand.

But many brands have turned this reasoning on it’s head now and are looking at their social responsibility as the primary raisn d’etre for being. Is this a viable strategy?

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I spent most of the last two days touring the exhibit hall at the Anaheim Convention Center, fighting crowds (an unusual occurrence these days) and marveling in how healthy the natural products industry still is. This is my second year at The Natural Products Expo West, one of the largest trade shows for the industry and it was, if possible even more crowded than last year.

In addition to the expected retailers, Whole Foods, Sprouts and various regional and local natural food stores, I spotted a number of badges proclaiming the wearer was from traditional grocery, drug and discount chains. Though, during a conversation I had with one vendor, I was told that they were not planning to approach Wal-Mart because there current vendors would be upset. Ah, yes, I’ve been there.

In the early stages of an industry’s growth or in times of change in the retail landscape, smaller dedicated stores will do everything possible to keep you, as a vendor from selling to the big guys. I went through this in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s when the country was populated with small office supply store and wholesale distributors. As Big Box retailers Staples and Office Depot came onto the scene and then Wal-Mart started expanding across the country, larger office supply dealers threatened to pull the products of office supply vendors if they sold to these category killers. They were, of course able to use their muscle for awhile, but in the end, it made more sense for manufacturers to sell to the big guys, if they didn’t they risked being sidelined as the industry grew and changed.

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Writer Marla Cone points out that the green products available today are not perfect, but the article is encouraging for the prospects for green businesses. And although she is focused on big companies that are going green, she also gives some good case study material on green companies that have gone big.

More on green products from Ecopreneurist:

Attack the Ingredient Not the Brand: Is Burt’s Bees New Campaign on the Right Track?

Organic Lotions Go Glam and Luxurious

4 Questions to Ask Before You Launch a Green Product

One of the biggest fallacies in popular folklore is:

“Make a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.”

In reality, over 90% of businesses fail within the first five years, even the ones with really great ideas. Good execution beats originality any day. And good execution requires good solid market information.

With organic products so hot many a natural product manufacturer or organic food processor has found initial success came easy. As the field matures however, competitors enter the market and bigger retailers show interest in the product. Both require a fledgling company to be prepared with data and selling points.

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