Left to right: Chris Boukydis with his father Andy and his brother Matthew at The Soap Works warehouse in Vaughan, Ont.Thomas Bollmann/The Globe and Mail
At The Soap Works, blocks of the family-owned manufacturer’s product are still cut by hand – or rather, by “harp” – at its warehouse in Vaughan, Ont., a bedroom community north of Toronto. It’s an unexpectedly low-tech process that’s in step with the company’s humble roots, environmentally conscious ethos and focus on simplicity.
Even as current trade tensions with the United States force Canadian businesses to rethink global supply chains, the three-generation company is proving the strength of its simple approach. Its concentration on sustainable, ecofriendly products and a domestic‑first model shows how Canadian enterprises can remain competitive despite economic uncertainty.
The Soap Works’ hand-cranked harp, designed in the 1980s by co-founder Mike Phin, is still integral to producing its soap bars and is older than his two grandsons who currently run the company: Chris Boukydis, 37, coordinates sales and social media while his brother, Matthew Boukydis, 34, is general manager.
Twelve-kilogram slabs of hand-poured soap are pushed through the device and first sliced into strips by piano wire and then again into 120-gram soap bars. They’re sold across Canada and the U.S., the latter of which has made up 35 per cent of sales.
But the uncertainty tariffs and threats have created now has The Soap Works focusing more at home. As the price of raw, all-natural ingredients from the U.S. has increased, the company has switched to Canadian suppliers as much as possible, then looks internationally before turning south of the border if necessary.
Deliveries to U.S. retailers have also become unreliable: “I’ve had three identical shipments to the same area in the U.S., and there will be no tariff, some tariff, and almost complete refusal,” Matthew says. “There’s no rhyme or reason. It’s random.”
The company is therefore working to expand its domestic reach beyond the Healthy Planet stores in Ontario and the national Bulk Barn chain that have carried the Soap Works’ products for decades, including 25 different bars as well as liquid and laundry soaps.
More mom-and-pop shops outside Ontario, such as in Alberta and British Columbia, are inquiring about carrying the company’s wares as provincial barriers come down to mitigate cross-border trade pressures. The Soap Works is also increasingly pushing beyond its roots of independent health-food retailers, with mass-market grocers such as Thrifty Foods and Sobeys now stocking its products to respond to consumers’ nationwide embrace of package-free and naturally made personal-care items.
The Soap Works still uses the same “harp” tool today that it started the business with in the 1980s to manually cut its product into bars.Thomas Bollmann/The Globe and Mail
A consumer sustainability report by accounting and financial services firm Deloitte found that 94 per cent of Canadians surveyed in 2023 say it is a company’s responsibility to create products that do not harm the Earth.
“People are really interested in what’s good or bad for them personally, for their bodies, and for the planet,” says Joe Solly, national consumer leader of the sustainability and climate change practice at Deloitte Canada.
Family businesses with smaller product lineups and flexible supply chains compared with retail giants often have greater control to make goods genuinely sustainable rather than engaging in greenwashing that can turn customers off. The Soap Works’ bar soaps, for instance, are sold bare except for a bar code sticker that’s printed with vegetable-based ink on recyclable paper.
“The world needs more innovation and the more that [small family businesses] can demonstrate making products with less or no packaging, the more bigger companies can learn from them,” Mr. Solly says.
Mr. Phin and his co-founder, Bob Pugh, began The Soap Works in 1982 because they both dealt with skin sensitivities and couldn’t find anything gentle enough in stores. They started making a pure, unscented liquid glycerin soap – still sold today – using just six all-natural, biodegradable ingredients.
“Mike was an outdoorsman,” Chris says. “He wanted a soap he could use while camping that wouldn’t harm wildlife.”
Chris and Matthew’s father Andy Boukydis purchased The Soap Works in 2001 from his father-in-law Mr. Phin, who by then was approaching his 70s. Andy says the operation was “pretty old school” at the time. Orders were handwritten and totals were punched into a calculator.
Andy, who had previously worked in corporate research at a Fortune 500 financial services firm, introduced a computerized accounting system – with his wife Vicki keeping the books – and launched a company website in the mid-2000s. He developed the business from one employee to the current 14 and annual bar-soap sales increased tenfold under his tenure.
His sons grew up doing every job at The Soap Works, from packing to logistics, delivery, sales, purchasing and bookkeeping. “Chris and I still wear these hats when necessary, which is why we have such an understanding of the company and its structure,” Matthew says.
The company is increasingly sourcing its ingredients domestically and building its Canadian customer base as trade tensions with the United States have created higher ingredient prices and uncertainty with delivering product across the border.Thomas Bollmann/The Globe and Mail
The brothers took on more responsibility around 2017 when Andy gradually reduced his hours to part-time. The next year, the company began to rebrand its website and made an online marketing push, which Chris and Matthew continue to build today.
Andy, now 67, officially stepped back last year, though his sons call it a “soft retirement.” He is still looped in on big-picture decisions and the brothers’ domains of responsibility are different enough that reaching consensus through discussion is usually straightforward.
The business’s next phase includes bolstering direct-to-consumer shipping on its website and increasing its online presence as demand spiked after the COVID-19 pandemic.
But the company is careful to balance growth with restraint and it remains focused on its foundational principles. If anything, the market has caught up to The Soap Works: its decades-old approach is a selling point for new customers seeking low-waste and eco- and skin-friendly products.
“We’ve fit that bubble since day one, instead of transitioning towards it,” Matthew says. “…We’re one of the originals, and it shows.”