The Lil’ Soap Shoppe that Could
We are highlighting Black-owned businesses for Black History Month. Plus our COVID infection count is over 90,000 and more kids are cleared to go back to school.
☀️Good morning, Fresno! It’s Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021
Hey, what’s up, Fresno. It’s Sunday, it’s Black History Month, it’s mf February. We’re so happy to be with you. January was a big month for us with the launch of our new Patreon, our first merch collection and of course our regular content drip of spicy podcasts and funny little newsletters. We hope to bring you even more hot original content this month.
Plus, in honor of Black History Month, we’re highlighting a different Black-owned business in Fresno every week. This week, it’s Symmone’s Soaps run by Symmone Woods. She sells these adorable little soap bars made out of oatmeal and, like, good vibes, and some of them are even soothing for eczema.
She answered a questionnaire for us below.
Thanks for sticking with us,
Ram🧡
Symmone’s Soaps feat. Symmone Woods
What got you into soap making / saponification?
I have a skin condition that gives me violent cysts and there are so many chemicals and large corporation products and I wanted to be able to treat them myself at home.
How important is skincare and why should your customers go with your brand instead of countless other popular retailers?
My products are made with natural honest ingredients that your skin will not become dependent on. I also offer low-income accommodations on all of my bars.
How is business during the pandemic? Has it changed how you do business?
I’ve always done my business online so the pandemic has actually not changed the way I get my orders out to customers.
How much thought goes into the choice of ingredients, especially the products meant to treat eczema and irritated skin?
I got a lot of my herb choices from family remedies passed down from my grandmother and after a little research, I found out that raw oatmeal balances the epidermis PH.
The designs on the soaps are so interesting. What inspires them?
I love the woodland, forest-y aesthetic to match the nature of the products. I felt that the look should match the feel.
As a Black-owned business, do you ever feel a unique pressure to succeed?
I feel like many people have a lot of preconceived notions about Black-owned businesses not being professional/trustworthy because of how the media has portrayed them, so I definitely do feel a certain pressure to give the best shopping experience.
Are you the only person involved in making, packaging, and shipping your products?
I am the only one currently running this business, from taking the orders to shipping them off.
Any good deals going on in the month of February?
I have actually refrained from deals this month because I’m doing a large bar drop the first week of March so I’m keeping everything pretty relaxed right now. Many things are in the works.
You can order Symmone’s Soaps through her website.
You can also follow her Instagram account here.
Fresno by Five
🦠 Coronavirus Updates: The infection totals are over 90,000!
As of Jan 29, since last Sunday there have been:
90,126 (+2,725) Total Cases
Total Deaths: 1,224 (+87)
Currently Hospitalized: 443 (-57)
The Supreme Court has ruled against Gov. Gavin Newsom’s order to ban indoor services. In a partial victory, churches can hold indoor services with a 25% limit in attendance and singing and chanting inside are still not allowed. Fresno’s Cornerstone church was extremely happy about the decision. They have not stopped indoor church services since May 31, 2020. Smh.
Coincidentally, it also came out that California’s stay-at-home order, particularly the ban on outdoor dining, actually helped curb the surge in December.
The Central Valley is still not getting enough vaccines with only 8,000 doses expected to arrive next week. The Fresno City Council unanimously passed a resolution to directly ask President Joe Biden for more vaccines. Mayor Jerry Dyer also sent a letter to Pres. Biden for more state and local funding once any form of the stimulus bill was passed.
🎒 Back2InPersonSchool
Fresno County health officials have given the green light for more K-6 classes to return to in-person classes. Social distancing and masks will still be in place. Almost 11,000 students are already doing in-person classes in Clovis Unified. There were about 2,300 elementary school students that were not able to return when the spike happened.
You would think this means teachers will get vaccinated ASAP right? Nope. They MAYBE getting vaccinated in March, maybe April or even May! Who knows! As we mentioned earlier, there are not enough vaccines being delivered and it’s looking grim for our teachers.
On the topic of in-person college classes, Fresno State Interim President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval said that return to in-person classes in fall 2021 would depend on the COVID-19 vaccines and while it won’t be required to return, students will be required to wear a mask.
🚜 Our Essential Farmworkers are Suffering
A new report by the COVID-19 Farmworkers Study has revealed our essential farmworkers are treated worse, have limited access to resources and wider health and economic disparities.
The report surveyed over 900 California workers and conducted 63 in-depth interviews across the state and found that workers have been struggling financially to pay for things like rent, childcare and water.
💻 The Fresno Bee Ed Lab Schools Comcast
The Fresno Bee Education Lab’s Isabel Dieppa wrote about the connectivity issues, bandwidth limits and price hikes for Comcast’s low-cost internet packages that low income families in Fresno desperately depended on for school.
After the story was published, Comcast announced that they will be giving those families unlimited monthly data on their plans for the rest of 2021.
🏆 Fresno Ranks Highs on Lists We Should Not Be Proud to be on
Fresno is on some lists this week. And these lists… are not good lists to be on. First, Fresno is ranked second in U.S. cities for fastest rise in rent prices -- an increase of 10.8% year over year.
Second, we are the 10th most surveilled city in the U.S. We have 8.85 cameras per 1,000 people. What they tryna see?
🚪 When one business’ doors close, another’s open…
Beloved downtown brewery, Zach’s Brewing Co. has closed its doors. The bar had been there since 2018, and while they didn’t provide the exact reason for their decision to close, the coronavirus pandemic definitely didn’t help.
Sears in Clovis is also closing... That one isn’t a surprise actually.
BUT fret not, there is another restaurant opening, from the owners of Heirloom & Butterfish, comes Mayd Modern Mediterranean. It’s like Butterfish but with Mediterranean food. Crazy!
📰 More Need to Know Stories
Adventure Church is at it again! This time for *checks notes* throwing a Christian concert. 😔
Rihanna and Mayor Jerry Dyer have been uttered in the same breath in this Fresno Bee article. Dyer, alongside Rep. Jim Costa and Rihanna, gives his support to the farmer protests in India.
Fresno Councilmember Tyler Maxwell is introducing his first major policy that will reduce fares on FAX busses to zero. It’s called the “Zero Fare Clean Air Act” and you know it’s a progressive policy because the newsletter’s favorite council member has already spoken out about it.
Oh, I know. Let’s make riding buses free and then we can cancel water bills. #Nothingisfree #someonepaysthebill https://t.co/YFidK0IfFk“Cancel student loan debt” is not canceling student loan debt. People who didn’t choose to incur debt will now have to pay for YOUR debt. Hell, let’s do mortgage forgiveness too. Car loan forgiveness. Perhaps some credit card debt forgiveness! Sky is the limit, guys!
I Am Leah @Bossy_Leah
🎧This Week on the Pod
What a Mess feat. Kathleen Schock
The journos jump straight into it with Kathleen Schock, the host of KVPR’s Valley Edition and adviser to the Rampage, the student-run newspaper at Fresno City College. The coronavirus has been an unprecedented challenge for college students and journalists alike. And then there’s Schock. Guiding student journalists. The venn diagram of pain.
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