When Life Gives You Goats – Make Soap: Ingonish family finds success in unusual farm-based business
“Everybody thought we were … crazy,” Shannon Costelo laughs. “It’s definitely not something that has been done in our area before – it’s kind of a different business model.”
Shannon, along with her husband, Ryan, own and operate Groovy Goat Farm Co. With their three kids helping out here and there, the Ingonish business has been steadily growing for the past 13 years.
Groovy Goat started with a simple line of handmade soaps made with goat’s milk. Eventually, the line expanded to include other body care products, like: lotions, lip balms, shampoo bars, balms, and bath bombs.
“It was a happy accident,” Shannon shares. “I had no experience with farm animals. My husband, who grew up on a farm in Cape North, decided to get back into farming – starting with chickens, then getting a few goats as pets – we loved the goats. The kids loved them. We got more goats, started having baby goats and it just sort of grew. We started milking the goats – but what to do with all this goat milk? How do we support this hobby getting a little bit out of hand?”
The answer to that question began with soap. The couple researched options and tested recipes for making soap using goat’s milk. Then they made small batches at home, giving them as gifts to friends and family. Flooded with positive feedback, Shannon and Ryan decided to bring the rich, creamy, all-natural soap to market.
During those early days, Shannon and Ryan only had one summer student helping out and made everything themselves. Their first store opened back in 2013 – with help from CBDC.
“They have been with us all along,” Shannon smiles. “We have used CBDC three separate times over the life of our business. The idea was a little bit off the wall, but they went with it and said it was fantastic. We’ve enjoyed a long, positive relationship with CBDC.”
“Working with Shannon and Ryan was something special,” their CBDC Advisor, Ryan Ivey says. “You could easily tell they have a passion for what they do right from the care of the animals. That passion was noticeable throughout the entire business with the products they produce to sell and the customers they have. When you have that level of passion for all aspects of your business, combined with an incredible talent in what you do, you have the recipe for business success.”
In 2017, Groovy Goat reached out to CBDC again, requesting financial support to expand and build a new barn. “They were on board, happy to support our growth,” Shannon recalls.
Then, in 2021, an unexpected tragedy - the Costelo family experienced a barn fire that destroyed the new build and all the animals inside.
“It was very hard to bounce back from – we lost everything,” Shannon explains.
That’s when the tight knit community of Ingonish stepped in – and stepped up – to support the Costelos, playing an active role in helping them rebuild their business and their barn.
You can hear the gratitude swell in Shannon’s voice when she talks about those days. “We had an old-fashioned barn raising, we had t-shirts printed, hundreds of volunteers from the community, and we rebuilt the barn in a four-day weekend! Donations were flooding in. We even got animals – people from all over sponsored new animals. They would call and say “I heard your story, I want to buy a goat for you in the name of my grandchild.” It was amazing.”
In 2023, they expanded again - building a new storefront containing a soap shop, gelato counter, production kitchens and three accommodation units.
You can book accommodations to stay on the property, tour the farm, pet the animals, hang out with baby goats and see how the soap is made. The gelato is made in-house with fresh ingredients and interesting flavours, like peach and bee pollen, matcha tea – even goat cheese and redcurrant.
What’s next for the Groovy Goat?
“This summer, we’re expanding the petting farm to better educate visitors,” Shannon says. “Down the road, we will add more accommodations as well.”