How to Start a Candle Business in 2025: Building a Million-Dollar Candle Brand (Part 1 of 3)

Starting a candle business can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re juggling a full-time job and uncertain about where to begin. But what if I told you that it’s absolutely possible to go from candle-making experiments in your kitchen to building a million-dollar candle brand? In this comprehensive guide, I’m sharing the exact steps my husband Chad and I took to transform our pandemic hobby into Garsnett Beacon Candle Company, a thriving business with three storefronts and over 140 wholesale accounts.

This is Part 1 of a 3-part series on how to start a candle business in 2025, where I’ll walk you through the foundational decisions, lessons learned, and strategies you can use to build your own successful candle brand. Whether you’re a complete beginner or looking to refine your approach, this article will help you build a solid foundation for your candle business journey.

Ready to dive in? Let’s start from the very beginning.

Our Unexpected Candle Business Journey: From Burnout to Brand

When the pandemic hit in 2021 and 2022, like many people, Chad and I found ourselves working from home, living life in a bit of a blur. We were both holding down nine-to-five jobs—me at a podcast network in Indianapolis, and Chad at a title company doing numbers processing. We didn’t set out to create a million-dollar candle business. In fact, we were just searching for a creative outlet, something to help us stay sane during a chaotic time.

Chad discovered candle making almost by accident when he bought a simple candle-making kit online for less than $100. It came with the basics: a pouring pitcher, a candy thermometer, some wax, fragrance oils, and a few wicks. We assumed that after making a few candles, we’d be candle makers. But those first candles were nothing like the ones you buy in stores—they were far from perfect.

We experienced the classic struggle that many new candle makers face. Our candles didn’t burn right, the scent throw was weak, and the overall quality was disappointing. But instead of giving up, we dove deep into learning everything we could. We watched every YouTube tutorial, read countless articles and blogs, and listened to podcasts about candle making. We experimented with different waxes, wicks, and fragrance oils, even tried soaking wooden wicks in olive oil, and blended our own waxes. We were determined to figure out what we were doing wrong.

The biggest lesson we learned is this: start simple and master the basics before adding complexity. When we finally focused on one vessel, one wick, one wax, and one fragrance oil, everything started to click. This simple formula became the foundation of our million-dollar business. More on that below.

Mastering the Basics: The Key to Candle Making Success

One of the most important pieces of advice I give to new candle makers is to stick to the basics at the start. It’s tempting to tinker with multiple variables—different wax blends, exotic wicks, complex scent blends—but this can lead to frustration and wasted resources.

Instead, focus on these four essentials:

• One vessel: Pick a container that suits your brand and customer preferences.
• One wick: Choose a wick that works well with your wax and vessel size.
• One wax: Use a reliable and consistent wax as your foundation.
• One fragrance oil: Start with a great quality fragrance oil, even if it’s not a custom blend.

By simplifying your process, you can ensure your candles are safe, have a strong scent throw (hot throw), and look professional. Once you’ve mastered this, you can gradually introduce new elements like scent blending, multiple wick candles, or wooden wicks.

For example, Chad, the creative mind behind our brand, loves to blend custom scents, but many of our best-selling candles use fragrance oils straight from the bottle. Customers don’t notice or care whether the scent is custom blended or supplier-made as long as it smells great. This approach helped us keep costs manageable while building a consistent product line.

Choosing the Right Supplies: Building a Reliable Supply Chain

When you’re sourcing supplies for your candle business, you’ll quickly discover there are hundreds of options out there—from wax and wicks to fragrance oils and vessels. Here’s what we learned about finding reliable suppliers:

Wax and Wicks: Prioritize Stability and Consistency

For foundational materials like wax and wicks, it’s critical to choose products that are widely available from multiple suppliers. Why? Because if your supplier runs out or goes out of business, you want to be able to pivot quickly without having to completely rebuild your product line.

We recommend avoiding trendy or “designer” waxes and wicks that are heavily marketed but might not have long-term availability. Instead, choose a staple wax and wick that are industry standards and easy to source from several places. This gives you peace of mind and protects your business from supply chain disruptions.

Fragrance Oils: Experiment and Support Small Businesses

Fragrance oils are where you can have fun and differentiate your brand. There are many small businesses creating unique fragrance oils, and supporting these suppliers can help you stand out. We personally work with about seven different fragrance oil suppliers to keep our scent library diverse and fresh.

Keep in mind that some fragrance oils may be seasonal or eventually discontinued. In one case, we loved a particular fragrance oil that was discontinued by the supplier, so we partnered with a manufacturer to replicate it in larger quantities. While this isn’t ideal for everyone, it’s an option once your business grows.

Supplies Checklist

To make your life easier, we offer a free candle making supplies checklist that includes every tool and supply we use—from vessels and wax to scales and hot guns. You can download it anytime to guide your purchases and avoid overwhelm.

The Birth of Garsnett Beacon Candle Company: Naming and Branding

Choosing the right name and brand identity is one of the most important steps in building a candle business. When Chad and I started brainstorming, we wanted a name that represented our story and values, but also connected with our target customers.

Our last name is Garnet, and we were planning to move from Indianapolis to Michigan, a state famous for its many lighthouses—the most of any state in the U.S., actually. We liked the symbolism of a lighthouse beacon: a light in the darkness, a guiding presence. We also wanted our business to be a giveback company, supporting our community. The idea of being a “beacon” fit perfectly with that mission. So, we combined “Garsnett” and “Beacon” to create Garsnett Beacon Candle Company.

Our logo features a lighthouse with a shining beacon, reinforcing our story and values. When it comes to naming your candle business, here are some tips:

• Avoid using just your personal name (e.g., “Sebastian’s Candle Company”) unless you have a strong personal brand.
• Choose a name that resonates with your target audience and reflects your niche.
• Think about the story and emotions you want your brand to evoke.
• Make sure the name is memorable, easy to spell, and available as a domain and on social media.

Finding Your Niche and Target Audience

Understanding your niche and target audience is crucial to building a brand that connects and sells. Your niche is the category or theme your candles fit into, while your target audience is the specific group of people you’re making your candles for.

Defining Your Niche

Your niche shapes everything about your candle business—from scent choices and packaging to pricing and marketing. Here are some examples of candle niches:

• Travel-inspired candles themed around exotic cities or hotels
• Farmhouse or cottage-style candles in mason jars with rustic decor
• Luxury candles with elevated ingredients and sophisticated packaging
• Seasonal or holiday-themed candles
• Eco-friendly or sustainable candles with natural ingredients

When choosing your niche, pick something you relate to, something that aligns with your lifestyle or interests. For example, if you’re a busy mom, you might create candles that emphasize self-care and relaxation. If you love travel, you might develop a line inspired by your favorite destinations. This connection helps you create authentic products and communicate effectively with your audience.

Understanding Your Target Audience

Once you’ve chosen your niche, you need to zero in on your target customer. This includes understanding:

• Demographics: Age, gender, income level, family status
• Lifestyle: Hobbies, values, shopping habits
• Preferences: Price points they’re comfortable with, scent preferences, packaging style

For example, Chad and I wanted our candles to fit into women’s boutiques in downtown shopping districts, so we researched the types of candles sold there. We discovered that these boutiques typically carry candles priced between $25 and $38, in 8 to 12-ounce vessels, with simple yet eye-catching labels. Most candles had minimalistic designs with script fonts, so we chose to use bright, colorful labels to stand out while still fitting the niche.

Knowing your target audience guides your branding, marketing, and product development. It helps you create a cohesive experience that appeals directly to the people most likely to buy your candles.

Taking Your Brand to Market: Building an Engaged Audience

Many new candle makers make the mistake of launching their business without building an audience first. We learned that the best way to succeed is to invite people to join your journey from the very beginning.

Here’s how we recommend doing it:

1. Create social media profiles: Set up a business page on Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok—wherever your target customers spend their time.
2. Share your story: Post regularly about your candle-making progress, struggles, small wins, and behind-the-scenes moments. Be authentic and vulnerable.
3. Engage your followers: Respond to comments, ask for feedback, and make your audience feel like part of your story.
4. Build anticipation: When you’re ready to launch, your audience will be excited to support you and buy your candles.

When we launched Garsnett Beacon, we had been sharing our journey for over two months. Our first weekend of sales brought in $3,000 from friends, family, and early supporters—even though we were new to the Michigan community. Having people invested in our story made all the difference.

Next Steps: From Launch to Growth

After your initial launch, the real work begins. Now you need to focus on selling your product and expanding your reach. There are many ways to do this:

• Online storefronts like Shopify and Etsy
• Local markets and pop-up shops
• Wholesale accounts with boutiques and stores
• Fundraisers and community events
• Opening your own brick-and-mortar store

Chad and I have experience with all these channels and will dive deeper into them in Part 2 of this series. For now, focus on building a strong, simple product and a brand that resonates with your customers.

Summary: The Foundations of Starting a Candle Business

To recap, here are the key takeaways for anyone wondering how to start a candle business in 2025:

• Start simple: Use one vessel, one wick, one wax, and one fragrance oil to build a quality product.
• Choose reliable suppliers for your wax and wicks to protect your business.
• Have fun with fragrance oils and support small businesses.
• Create a brand name and identity that tells your story and connects with your target customers.
• Define your niche and target audience to guide all branding and marketing decisions.
• Build your audience by sharing your journey authentically before launching.
• Plan your sales channels and growth strategy for after launch.

Remember, building a candle business isn’t about perfection. Even after four years, Chad and I are still learning and evolving. It’s about starting with purpose, testing, simplifying, and always keeping your customer in mind.

If you want to explore more about building a candle business, be sure to check out Part 2 and Part 3 of this series, where we’ll cover selling online, wholesale strategies, and opening your first storefront. [Links to Part 2 and Part 3 will go here]

For more resources, including free checklists, courses, and a supportive community of candle makers, visit CandleBusinessPro.com. We’re here to help you go pro.

Thank you for reading, and I can’t wait to see you succeed in your candle business journey!

— Sebastian Garsnett, Co-founder of Garsnett Beacon Candle Company & Founder of Candle Business Pro

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