Having a candle-making business is easy. In fact, you can start with as little as $25. You can grab a nice candle-making kit (see my top picks here), which also includes some of the equipment you will need, and you can get cracking.
But as you know there is a lot more to making candles and selling them and becoming rich than you think. Yes, there is a huge market worth billions of dollars annually and not showing any signs of slowing down even during times of crisis and hardship. There are also hundreds of people with exactly the same idea as you.
So what can I do to make my candle business successful?
Focusing on the following points will make me stand out from the crowd and in turn, be successful. Being generic or safe will just put you into the fray with the others and that will just harm your business in the long run.
- Branding
- Unique selling point
- Target Market
- Promotional method
Branding
To make a successful brand you need to ensure you focus on your target market. A brand needs to resonate with its buyers so it’s important to research your market and find out who will be buying your products. Once you have identified your target market then you can create a style, packaging, and awareness that is laser-focused on this particular demographic.
Having a robust brand that reflects your products is key as it needs to come together and work seamlessly to avoid being seen as cheap, cheesy, overindulgent, or even self-aggrandizing. Being sincere and not over the top are two important aspects you should also consider. Throwing gold and silver over everything can make it look gaudy and cheap, conversely, a plain brown cardboard box shows a lack of effort and a lack of thought in the business.
Target Market
Knowing your customer and who you want to sell to is key. You need to research your target market with your brand in mind to see how potentially successful you will be. Often you will not get the exact market demographic you hope for but you can get close. As well as wanting to market your products to a certain range of people you also need to sell your products well to make sure you not only remain in business but that you do well.
Avoiding small niche groups is a good way to start at the beginning. By making your products more generic you can appeal to a wider range of people. Generic does not mean you have to sacrifice your creativity for profit but rather listening to the market and seeing what everyone wants as opposed to a select few.
Unique selling point (USP)
Having a unique selling point in the candle market can be beneficial as there is only so much you can do to make a candle once you have varied the size, shape, color, and perfume. Thinking outside the box is key here. Some things you could consider to make yourself stand out maybe adding extras to your products. Items like candle trays to rest your candles on so the wax doesn’t melt onto a table or other furniture. You may want to add a candle snuffer so people don’t have to blow them out or try to pinch them out with their fingers.
One great USP that works with almost any product is exclusivity. Alongside your regular range maybe a few limited editions that you can sell at a slight premium. This often works great around the holidays, especially Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Valentine’s Day.
Don’t be cheap with your packaging but at the same time don’t be extravagant. As dictated by your target market, you must set your costs and purchases accordingly. Focus on quality and your customers will return.
Promotional method
Promotion is essential to brand awareness and a candle business needs to be pushed into the market with a sound strategy to make it shine and stand out. A solid marketing plan can often mean the difference between success and failure.
To start with you would be promoting your candles using social media to family friends and any social groups you may be part of. This is a great first step into getting a foothold and some initial feedback about your product and brand so you can make any necessary tweaks or changes before you get some solid traction.
Use your nearest and dearest to give you honest feedback and don’t allow yourself to feel like a charity case where only those who care about you seem to be buying your candles. This is normal at the outset and as awareness grows you will begin to get referral customers outside this circle and so on.
Another way to get yourself known is to set up some small physical pop-up shops to launch your business. Some markets and small malls can end up being quite lucrative and can definitely give you that ego boost you need at the beginning when your candles start flying off the shelves.
One of the best ways, however, is to set up a website and have your own online shop. It sounds daunting but in reality, it can be done with little to no skill in today’s world. I use Bluehost for my website and have done so for many years as I think they offer the best service and quality for the money. There is a link on the right that you can click on to get your own web hosting for as little as $2.95 a month, which is a crazy price for your own business.
From there you can find a cool name and then you can start creating a wonderful shop that you can show off to the world. (I get a commission from Bluehost if you do sign up but this does not cost you anything extra and it goes towards helping me keep this site going so I can continue to provide helpful advice)
Secret Sauce
Once you have set up a website you can create a Google business listing by opening up Google and clicking the app’s icon. Once done you can create an account in the ‘My Business’ app and get a powerful link back to your website from Google.
This Google business listing will be powerful for you on a local level as you can not only be found by locals in your area but you can link your website to this account to increase visitors to your website. Many visitors may click on your website out of curiosity as you will be showing up on Google maps and that can, in turn, generate extra sales for you.
Conclusion
Given the sheer amount of candles bought every year I am sure your future endeavor will be a fun and interesting one, whatever your brand and market strategy I hope your efforts will be rewarded both online and offline.
