You Should be Rooting for this Gem of a Soap Company from Norfolk

What we’ve found after all the products that we’ve tried is that natural usually tends to smell better (and more interesting). And that’s certainly the case with a brand we stumbled across on our travels: Sop (which stands for Scents of Place). Scent is the most powerful of our five senses and is one of the first things we notice about a product, so the fact that this brand pays attention to it is smart.

Made in Norfolk, all products are vegan and cruelty-free. What we also admire is their aim is to leave as small a footprint as possible, so everything they make is bottled, printed, and fulfilled in Norfolk and made by Norfolk folk (they are currently working towards becoming a carbon-neutral company).

We tried their Bergamot and Black Pepper Bodywash which didn’t feel all that different than your typical body wash - what sets it apart though is its unique scent whose earthiness reminded us of turmeric. We liked that it also didn’t dry out our skin. We’d also recommend their Neroli and Ylang Ylang Shampoo

which didn’t strip our hair of oil or leave our scalp dry: again, the focal feature is its unique scent which smelled floral, citrusy, and green (like you just cut up the leaf of said citrus tree) all at once. The bottom line here is that their products change up your everyday shower into something bordering on aromatherapy, delivering smells that aren’t as basic as those found in your drugstore shampoos and body washes (i.e. there’s no watermelon or vanilla here).

Such exotic scents usually come at a premium whether we’re talking boutique fragrances, luxury candles, or more unique self-care brands like Grown Alchemist or Davines, so it’s nice to find something in the middle. If you’re looking to support a small brand that also looks and feels like you bought it in a high end department store, this is it.

Sop Bergamot and Black Pepper Bodywash, $20.00

Neroli and Ylang Ylang Shampoo, $18.00

Price point: Mid-High

Vegan, cruelty-free, no GM ingredients, parabens, mineral oils, SLS, silicones, palm oil, or artificial colors or fragrances