Award winners’ lives are a real Soap Opera!
As seen in In Business, June 2003 issue
When partners Chuck Bauer and Chuck Beckwith opened a body care
products store in March of 1973 in a tiny space on Lake Street, they
could never have predicted that The Soap Opera® would be awarded a Best
in Business Award more than 30 years later. Then again, there are a lot
of realities they could not have predicted.
“Award! I never dreamed we’d be waiting on the children of our first
customers, and in some cases, they are now carrying a baby in their
arms!” Bauer quipped. “I really never envisioned the passage of time!”
Yet Bauer and Beckwith are 31-plus years further along in time and
experience – and they have the stories to show for those years. Eighteen
months after opening The Soap Opera®, the two Chucks discovered that
their building had been condemned and was slated to be torn down. They
quickly moved into a 300-square-foot building in the 300 block of State
Street, where they rented space for eight years – six without a lease.
“We had high anxiety about the future all of the time,” Bauer admitted.
“In 1982, when this building [the current State Street location] became
available across the street from our then location, we pounced on what,
for us, was the ultimate security – to own our own property.”
Since making the decision to buy their building, the pair have crafted a
business that has become a State Street institution. Today, they have an
established trade that includes Internet sales as well as gift, mail,
wholesale, and special-order services.
Just as they are a routine part of State Street entrepreneurialism, the
business has become a touchstone for Bauer’s and Beckwith’s lives. “We
are here all day, every day,” Bauer said. “We make sure it is a pleasant
and happy place.”
They also have made it a financially stable business – so successful
that the store was presented with a Best in Business award. One
criterion seriously considered by the selection committee is the
requirement that a nominated company demonstrate a positive workplace
environment. Two of the employees at The Soap Opera® have been employed
for more than 15 years, and another more than 10.
Historically, retaining employees is challenging in any retail
marketplace. Bauer explained why he believes The Soap Opera® offers a
career for many folks: “We all pull together. [We are] never short of
staff, so all can feel supported all the time.” He describes the owners’
managerial style as “loose.” In addition, employees are given four weeks
of interchangeable paid vacation/sick time per year, and regular raises
are given.
Bauer and Beckwith have more in common than just The Soap Opera®. They
own and manage an 80-acre “tree farm” which includes a 20-acre native
prairie restoration and a 10-acre Oak Savannah restoration. “We have a
native ecosystem with fire- resistant oak trees,” Bauer explained. “We
burn the understory on a regular basis to encourage native plants to
survive. This is an endangered ecosystem in the state.”
The partners always have been interested in the natural world and the
use of herbs, which explains the variety and attention to detail devoted
to making new lines of soaps, lotions, and body oils. “What you see in
the story is the result of 30 years of adjustment, tinkering, and
experimenting,” Bauer conceded. “A lot of it came from customer
recommendations.”
In their free time, both are practicing artists who enjoy painting,
mosaics, sculpture, landscape design, and other artistic mediums.
Beckwith’s mosaics and garden structures are largely commissioned for
homes; Bauer’s are featured on Guild.com, and his paintings are sold in
various galleries throughout the state.
While some entrepreneurs say that focusing on one endeavor is the key to
success, Bauer and Beckwith would claim that finding a balance between
many passions – native restoration, creating works of art, and
practicing the art of soap making on State Street – is the key to a
fulfilling career.
Best in Business Award Committee membership includes: (Chair) Kristi
Shepard, United Way of Dane County; Neil Lerner, UW Small Business
Development Center; Elaine Beaubien, Edgewood College; Katie Montgomery,
Verona Chamber of Commerce; Michelle Heitzinger, Greater Madison Chamber
of Commerce; Robin Marohn, Heartland Credit Union; and Wendy Coe,
Madison Community Foundation.
Sponsors of the Best in Business Award are: Jody Glynn Patrick, In
Business magazine; Donna Gray, Total Awards & Promotions; and Zanne
Marie Gray, Industry Connection.
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