Every night, Kathie and Stephen Pagliaro destroy their kitchen. Pots and pans are strewn on top of the counter, and utensils are dripping with cake-like substances.
But, the Pagliaros aren’t baking.
Their Sunbeam mixer is working overtime, twisting and folding the natural ingredients that make up a laundry detergent.
They’ve only been making it for three weeks, but they show no signs of fatigue.
In fact, they feel the exact opposite. The product has gained a local popularity in such a short amount of time. The demand keeps the couple whipping up new batches.
“It’s been a whirlwind,” Stephen said. “We’re in four stores now, but a week ago, we were just making it to stockpile.”
Kathie originally was making the laundry detergent for her family. A friend convinced her to try an online recipe. Kathie, a teacher at Lincoln Elementary Magnet School, didn’t think she’d have time to create the messy concoction. But, once she tried it, she was hooked.
When friends and family starting asking Kathie to make them a batch, she created a Facebook page for the detergent. Kathie and Stephen nicknamed the cleaning solution Dot’s Sunbeam Laundry Cream after her “Memaw Dot.” The page garnered 200 Likes in just four days.
Then, several stores contacted Kathie through the page requesting to carry Dot’s in their stores. The couple immediately got to work in the kitchen.
Now, the Pagliaros are stocking Plant City store shelves at Mimi’s Place, Southside Farm and Pet Supply, The Corner Store, as well as Southern Posh, in Fort Meade, with their product.
“If someone says you’re going to own a business and three weeks later, we’re doing it, I would have never believed it,” Kathie said. “We’re busy. We have full-time jobs; we’re involved in church.”
Kathie and Stephen, an accountant, also have two young children, who have learned quickly to sleep through the blending roar of the Sunbeam.
And before bedtime, their second-grader, Grace, gets in on the family business. She helps stir the ingredients.
Kathie was busy making deliveries last week when Grace starting talking business. Passing a jar full of Dot’s to her client, Grace demanded 10% of profit from that jar. She had helped stir the batch the night before.
“She has started using all these business terms,” Kathie said. “She asks, ‘What if this really takes off?’”
Dot’s is made of washing soda, Borax and Fels-Naptha, which is bar laundry soap. After grading the bar into soap, they cook it to concentrate it. Then, the mixture sits for six hours before being mixed again.
The final product is a thick creamy substance.
Dot’s is then packaged in two different sizes of Mason jars. The 32-ounce jar yields about 64 loads and costs $10. The 16-ounce jar yields about 32 loads and costs $6.
It takes just one flat tablespoon of Dot’s to clean a load of clothes.
The couple wants to keep going with their accidental side business. Although Dot’s is safe on sensitive skin, the Pagliaros want to make a gentle cream. The fresh smell of Dot’s is loved by many, but the Pagliaros also want to diversify with a non-scented product.
“I’m so excited to be doing something for my family,” Kathie said. “If a mom can pick it up and think she’s doing something good for her family, then my mission is accomplished.”
Contact Amber Jurgensen at ajurgensen@plantcityobserver.com.
WHERE TO BUY
• The Corner Store, 121 E. Reynolds St., Plant City
• Mimi’s Place, 3402 James L. Redman Parkway, Plant City, FL
Southside Farm & Pet Supply, 3014 James L. Redman Parkway, Plant City
• Southern Posh, 145 W. Broadway St., Fort Meade
FUN FACT
The tag and label includes the ingredients and a Bible verse, 1 John 1:7:
“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”