Home Made Candle Business: How to Start a Candle Making Company

Candles are very important in celebratory occasions, dinner dates, and religious activities. They also provide light in areas without adequate power supply.

It is not uncommon to find many third world countries with little or no electricity. Especially in rural areas where there is a lack of modern amenities such as good roads, electricity and water. 

Candles have evolved over the years from the medieval craftsmen to modern candle makers. Modern candles come in different shapes, colors, sizes and fragrance.

There are also aromatic scented candles filling the air with interesting smells. Scented candles are used for romantic, religious ceremonies, worship and services.

Modern candle makers are innovative, continually experimenting with the candles appearance. They also create amazing scents such as bourbon, vanilla, sandalwood, pine and strawberries.

Candles are easy to make and require basic tool and equipment. The ingredients are simple and easily sourced from the open market.

Candles contain three or four basic elements the candle wax, fragrance, container and wick. The wick is the tiny string that is lit to get fire.

There are a few things you need before starting your candle business. You need a good work-space, equipment, knowledge of the craft and ingredients.

Funding

It cost very little to start a home based candle business. Secure funds through personal savings or soft loans.

You can convert a space into your factory however you need adequate ventilation. Funds are needed to buy the ingredients, equipment and safety gear.

Registration

It depends on the size of your business and purpose. A small candle factory needs to focus on safety and environmental issues.

You need insurance, tax and registration as a one man business. You might also need a trade license to sell your products. Find out what is obtainable in your country.

Different Types of Candles

There are different types of candles such as votives with wick pins, pillar candles. We have the beeswax rolled pillar candles, basic gel candles, dipped taper candles and basic container candles.

Things you need to Produce Candle

Before you start turning out your candle you need to put in place safety protocols and equipment. Install a powerful fire extinguisher, safety gloves, and safety goggles

You need a stainless steel electric stove, cooker or hot plate to melt the wax. Purchase the appropriate wick, wax suitable for the type of candle you wish to make.

Select high quality molds or containers for your candles. There are many choices of fragrance you can add to your candle.

Buy a few and experiment to find the ones that best appeals to you. A double boilers setup is an effective method to boil your wax.

Ingredients

Startup cost is very small especially if you are running a home based enterprise. The ingredients are also cheap and easily sourced.

You need few supplies ad basic tool to start your candle business. You need wax, wick, fragrance and container or mold.

Other equipment's are weight, and melt pot. Suppliers sell wax in block or pellet form which provides easier handling and melting.

Wax

The wax is the most important ingredient in candle making. There are three common types of wax used to make candles. We have the paraffin, soy and beeswax. They are all effective materials when used to make candles.

Paraffin

Paraffin is a petroleum byproduct that has a toxic reputation. This traditional method of making candles is cheap, easy to source and effective.

 Despite its toxic nature the ingredient easily accepts colors, scents. Due to its ready availability many candle makers use paraffin. Another property of paraffin made candles is that it burns nicely.

Beeswax

Beeswax is a byproduct of honey making process of the honey bee. Beeswax has been used for thousands of years to make candles.

It produces a sweet scent, has a natural golden color and less toxic than paraffin. Beeswax attracts high price and does not burn as well as the others.

Soy

The soy ingredient is made from soybeans. It is natural more atmospheric friendly and less toxic. You can add color and scents to soy or blend it with paraffin.

Fragrance

Fragrance oils are added to the wax to produce the pleasant aroma. There are many formulated candle fragrance you can buy both online and offline.

 Formulated candle fragrances are better than adding essential oils for better results. There are many scents to choose from such as blue spruce, coffee, amber and fireside to mention a few.

Wicks

The size of your wick is important to the candles performance and durability. The sizes range from small, medium and large. Select the size that complements your candle dimensions.

Double Boiler

You need a double boiler to melt your wax. You can buy a customized one or a universal model. You have a lager choice of containers for your candle.

Experiment with different containers such as glass mugs, stainless steel cup or fabricated containers. The only requirement is that your container should be able to withstand heat.

You can buy readymade molds instead of containers. At a temperature of 165 degrees it melts within 14 minutes. Make sure the heat is properly regulated for consistency and better results.

How to Make Candle

Prepare your work area and basic tools such as spatula, towels, containers, molds and a small thermostat.  The next step is to melt the wax in a double boiler.

Add water to bottom of pan and place you cut wax in double boiler, break up chunks and stir. As the wick melts into a pool of liquid add fragrance oil to the melted wax and stir to blend.

You now have to stick the wick to the bottom of a container.  Allow the wax to cool then pour into the container.

Secure the wick in the center and once it hardens the wick becomes rigid to the base. The last step is trimming the wick on the candle.
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Build a Website

You can sell your candles online through a website. Build an attractive website with description and images of your candles. Add a shopping cart and shipment plans for foreign customers.

Marketing

 To reach customers you need to market your products. Sell to wholesalers and retailers in your area. Try supermarkets, stores, malls and local markets.

You can sell directly to individuals, restaurants and party planners. Advertise in both electronic and print media.

Place your business on yellow pages and directories. Use online advertisements and classified websites to get more patronage. Consider branding and packaging including competitive pricing to gain customers.