- April 15, 2024
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It was a week of mixed emotions at Naples Soap Co.
The chain both permanently closed one location, in Key West, due to damage from Hurricane Irma, and opened a second location in Naples. The Key West store opened in 2012 on 128 Duval St., in the heart of downtown Key West.
“We have been a member of our beloved Key West community for five years, and it is with a heavy heart that we close our Key West location,” Naples Soap Co. founder and Chief Innovation Officer Deanna Wallin says in a statement. “Over the years, we have learned that this tight-knit Key West community is resilient, and they will continue to be in our thoughts as they recover and rebuild from the storm.”
In Naples, meanwhile, the company is growing its retail presence. Its second location there will be on Fifth Avenue South, in a 1,100-square-foot store expected to open in mid-October. The flagship location, at Tin City in Naples, continues to recover from Irma, say company officials in the statement.
“As the namesake of our company, Naples is a part of who we are, and we are grateful for the opportunity to grow and better serve this region with our second Naples location,” says Wallin in a separate statement.
Wallin founded Naples Soap Co. by selling homemade soaps at farmers markets in Naples. That led to the first store, in 2009, and she had five stores by 2011. Naples Soap Co. now has 10 locations statewide, from Naples through Destin.
The company also has national presence though its website and the Eczema Kit, a line of fragrance-free products designed to provide a head-to-foot natural solution for eczema, psoriasis and dry, itchy skin. Wallin signed a deal earlier this year with St. Petersburg-based entrepreneur and product pitchman Kevin Harrington to produce a series of infomercials for a national sales launch of the Eczema Kit.
