It’s an exciting time for entrepreneurs when one business leads to another, as Dave Duncan and Ellen Harnish discovered when Duncan’s beekeeping blossomed into BeeOlogy, a company that specializes in items made “with a little help from the bees.” BeeOlogy produces lip balms, hand creams, lotion bars and soaps, among other things.
“It’s not just honey,” said Harnish. “All the other things that come from bees are so beneficial. It’s really good to incorporate them into other products.”
“People are becoming more and more aware of the benefits of everything that comes from the hive,” she continued.
In addition to honey, the bees produce wax, bee pollen, and propolis, otherwise known as “bee glue.” Propolis is a resinous substance used to seal the hive. Duncan said, “We use it in some of our products as a natural antibacterial.”
Propolis is sometimes the bane of beekeepers in that it is an extremely sticky substance that must be cleaned out of the hive during the honey harvest. Duncan was met with amazement when he decided to use it in his products. “I remember the first time I told beekeepers I was going to sell it. It was kind of humorous,” he said.
In 2001, Duncan was already making soaps, candles, and wax ornaments. He wanted to expand into hand creams, lip balms, and other products, but, as he put it, he lacked the computer skills to bring everything together.
“Ellen fine-tuned the whole thing,” said Duncan, and the pair have been business partners in BeeOlogy since that time.
BeeOlogy’s products, noted Harnish, are all-natural, “We don’t add any chemicals or colors to it. We try to use as many essential oils as possible.”
Harnish said that the BeeOlogy product line is always expanding. “Usually in the winter is when we do the research and development work. We make small batches of stuff to see how it works and see how we like it,” she said.
She added that BeeOlogy welcomes suggestions for new items.
Although a staunch protector of bees, Duncan ironically owns Duncan Pest Control. “It was something that I had to do a lot of soul searching about. I had nothing but contempt and fear for pesticides, being a beekeeper and organic gardener. It was a real conflict that I had to justify in my life,” he said.
That justification came in an epiphany. “Who would you rather have at your home applying pesticides: someone that has a fear of them, a respect for them, and is an organic gardener, or someone who isn’t? I leave less of an impact on the earth than someone else may,” said Duncan.
Pesticides are not always the answer, noted Duncan, who often is called in to capture swarms of honeybees. Those bees are then placed into hives in Duncan’s apiary, or with another beekeeper. “If you can seize that moment, then everyone is happy, including the bees,” said Duncan.
Harnish and Duncan are available for public speaking, they noted. Harnish has given demonstrations on encaustic painting, a technique that uses hot beeswax and pigments to create works of art.
Duncan has spoken to groups on the different facets of beekeeping, soap making, candle making, catching swarms, and many other topics.
BeeOlogy’s main operation is online, though the busy entrepreneurs may be found at the Prairie Peddler and Clear Fork’s Christmas in the Valley as well as the Great Trail Festival in Malvern and the Ontario Craft Show.
Duncan and Harnish may be contacted through the BeeOlogy website.
“Usually in the winter is when we do the research and development work. We make small batches of stuff to see how it works and see how we like it,” said Ellen Harnish.
