The bath supply shop—located in Old Town Spring—has been selling items, such as handmade soaps, creams, body butters, scrubs and toy ducks, since February 2002. Putnam’s husband, Jon, also owns the store, which the couple opened so Putnam could move her homemade soaps “out of the house,” she said.
Putnam learned how to make soap after shopping in a big-box store and feeling like she could replicate many of the items.
“I've always had this brain that says, ‘I can make that,’ whether it's clothes, some exotic dish [or soap],” she said.
Connie’s Bath Shack sells products in store and online, shipping all across the U.S. Most of the products have unique scent combinations mixed in, Putnam said.
“You can't go someplace [else] to find my lavender scent,” she said. “It's my own blend.”
While the Putnams do not claim their bath products “cure” ailments, many can be used to help customers with acne, dry skin or just relaxation, Putnam said. Some of the most popular sellers include lavender, dragon’s blood—a sweet-smelling product with “no dragons were harmed” written on the label—and calendula, Jon said.
“The first time [Connie] made that calendula, she walked down to the corner ... to pick some calendula flowers, brought them back to the house, cut them, cooked them ... then she started making calendula salves,” Jon said.
The Connie’s Bath Shack rubber duck collection is the largest in Texas, Putnam said. Multiple sizes and colors of ducks are for sale, including some that look like other animals or popular TV characters.
The Putnams agreed their biggest accomplishment with the store was still being open after more than two decades. They survived the business shutdowns of the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020, thanks to their customers, Putnam said.
“I can't praise my customers enough,” she said. “During COVID[-19], they would call and say, 'I'm going to come and pick up something.' We had cars out here every day to do pickup, because they couldn't come into the store.”
Hurdles the store continues to navigate include increased supply prices, Jon said. Some ingredients used in the soaps, such as olive oil, shea butter and coconut oil, have almost doubled in price, he said.
Shipping delays have been tricky too, Putnam said, as they are still waiting on some containers they ordered more than a year ago to arrive.
Despite the obstacles of running a business, the Putnams said they know a lot of their customers well and are grateful for them.
“Everybody loves Connie,” Jon said. “They love her products, and she only works seven days a week.”
“Maybe eight,” Putnam said.
Connie’s Bath Shack
211 Midway St., Bldg. E, Spring
281-288-9595
https://conniesbathshack.square.site
Hours: Mon. 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Tue.-Thu. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 10 a.m.-6:30 p.m., Sun. noon-6 p.m.
