If you’re looking to bring some of your favorite aromas into the homes of people across the globe, candle making might be the next venture for you. To help you get started, we’ve created an all-encompassing guide on how to start a candle business that allows you to fulfill your passion while remaining profitable. Read on to learn more about the top reasons for starting a candle business and seven steps to get you up and running.
Why Should You Start Your Own Candle Business?
Candle making is a billion-dollar industry. Not only are consumers buying candles to spruce up their homes, but businesses like restaurants, spas, and stores, use these scented products to create an ambiance that targets their customers and clients.
With that said, there are many exciting possibilities and opportunities that come with starting a candle business, including:
- Popularity: Candles are popular. In fact, Verified Market Research found the candle industry to be valued at $7.1 billion in 2020, and expected to grow to over $10.6 billion by 2028.
- Personalization: To stand out in this competitive market, you can easily personalize your candles with scents and details that set you apart from your competition.
- Straightforward process: Creating a unique line of candles is easy, as Pietra allows you to create your own artwork, select the wax, and choose your fragrances and vessels in a few simple steps.
- Selling options: There are plenty of options when it comes to selling candles, such as online, local businesses, fairs, and markets.
Starting a candle business is a great idea for several reasons, from its projected market growth to its extensive selling options. Now that you’re interested in starting a candle making business, let’s explore how to start a candle business from scratch.
7 Steps to Start Your Candle Business
Running a candle business is a great way to create a lucrative income stream while working in a creative market that brings joy to homes and businesses across the world. With Pietra, you can create a candle business from start to finish, including finding a supplier, designing your logo, shipping your products, and more. Learn how to start a candle making business with these seven steps below:
Step 1: Find Your Niche
While the candle making industry may seem saturated at first glance, there are plenty of ways you can stand out and make your business known. The first step is finding your niche, which can be done by keeping several factors in mind:
- Target audience: To find your target audience, analyze your business goals and think about the demographics of the people you want to sell to, such as age, location, gender, and interests.
- Target industry: In addition to your target audience, you want to consider your target industry if you’re planning on selling to businesses, such as spas, restaurants, and retail stores.
- Type of candle: Lastly, think about the types of candles you want to sell. For example, do you want to sell luxury candles or affordable candles for the masses? Soy candles, wax candles, or vegan candles? Or, consider whether you want to sell decorative candles or traditional candles, such as taper, votive, and pillar candles. Focusing on one or a few different types of candles can help you perfect your craft and define your niche.
Step 2: Choose a Creative Business Name
The next step to starting a candle business is to choose a creative business name. There are a few routes you can take when picking a business name, such as using acronyms, your own name, creating a new name, or using foreign words. You can also draw inspiration from the types of scents you’re recreating through your candles or the location of your business.
Step 3: Define Your Business Plan
One of the key elements of a successful business is having a detailed business plan. A business plan is a written document that serves as a roadmap of how you will run and operate a profitable business. At Pietra, you can gain access to our Creator Blueprint, which is a business plan that can be personalized for your company.
Explore the components of our Creator Blueprint below:
- Find a trusted supplier to work with
- Order samples to test quality
- Select the components and customizations
- Hire a creative freelancer to create your logo and design your artwork
- Order a production run
- Ship products to Pietra's Fulfillment Center
- Have a business setup call with the warehouse
- Connect your website
- Create content to promote your products
- Start selling and have Pietra ship your customer's orders to their home
Step 4: Create Your Product
Now comes the fun part—creating your candles. If you want to know how to start making candles, you’re in the right place. Pietra helps streamline every aspect of your candle making business from start to finish. With Pietra, you can find a supplier to create your candles for you, whether you’re interested in wax, soy, or beeswax candles, for example.
Once you find your supplier, you can hire a freelancer on the platform to design your packaging, and leverage Pietra’s fulfillment center to ship and send your candles anywhere in the world. With Pietra, creating high-quality candles is easy.
Step 5: Build Your Brand
Now comes the fun part — building an image and message that allows you to shine. To build your brand, consider these tips:
- Color palette: Choose a color palette that consists of your primary and secondary brand colors that tie into your brand identity.
- Candle label: Design a candle label that’s easy to identify and showcases your logo, contact information, candle scent, warnings, and other pertinent information. At Pietra, you can work with our creative freelancers who can create the artwork for your labels directly on our platform.
- Packaging: Choose your packaging. This is the first thing customers will see when they open your product, so think about aesthetics and sustainability. With Pietra, you can find a packaging supplier on the Pietra Sourcing Marketplace to find packaging that matches your brand. You’ll also be able to customize your packaging to make your brand stand out.
Step 6: Master Your Marketing
Once you’ve created your brand, it’s time to start marketing your products to reach your target audience. This means creating a detailed marketing plan that helps you reach your business goals. Some components you should integrate into your marketing plan include:
- Social media: Create an online presence via social media and take professional photos of your candles and products to create an aesthetic feed that matches your brand. Popular platforms include Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and TikTok.
- Giveaways: Host contests and giveaways to engage with your followers and spread brand awareness.
- Referrals: Create a referral program that rewards loyal customers and brings in new ones.
Step 7: Determine Where You're Selling
You’re almost there! Now, it’s time to determine where to start selling your candles. There are several routes you can take, such as selling in a brick-and-mortar store or at craft fairs, markets, and local businesses.
Another option is creating an eCommerce candle business that allows you to light up the homes of people across the globe. Pietra is the perfect place to start.
At Pietra, you can easily create a candle eCommerce business to sell candles. Pietra will work to find suppliers and fulfillment options to streamline your eCommerce, and help run your business for you. Through Pietra, you’ll have the following options to sell:
- Connect your Shopify website to fulfill your orders
- Sell on Pietra’s Creator Marketplace — a vast shopping destination for independent brands
- Allow Pietra to set up products on various sales channels, such as Instagram Shopping, Google Shopping, and other online marketplaces
Pietra gives you all the tools you need for starting a candle business.
Light Up the World With Pietra
Spread light and love through your candle making business with Pietra. In a few simple steps, you can start a lucrative candle business without worrying about the complexities of operating a business, such as sourcing materials and finding fulfillment services. Create your candle business with Pietra by registering today.
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