The Candle Sanctuary

Meet Rachel, the founder of a local eco-friendly candle business creating natural soy candles, refillable products, and inspiring candle-making workshops. Since launching her business in 2020, Rachel has built a welcoming creative space loved by customers and continues to champion collaboration and community among small businesses.

Tell us about your journey from the business idea to launching the business. 

2020 was a difficult year for all and it just so happened to be the year that I decided to take the plunge and follow my dream of setting up my own candle making business. Whilst working as a Primary school teacher, I completed an online candle making diploma and took part in several candle making workshops. Visiting Keyneston Mill, the beautiful gardens and home of Parterre fragrances was a real eye-opener too. Here I was able to learn how essential oils are extracted and distilled from botanicals, giving me an even greater appreciation of the wonder of scent.  My goal was to create natural soy candles in refillable containers and without harmful chemicals. After several years of making and  selling at markets and creating my own online store, I decided to branch out into offering candle making workshops and parties.

What's been your biggest achievement since starting your business?

My biggest achievement has really been all the positive feedback from my customers, not only in terms of many 5 star reviews, but also having customers come back to experience the workshops a second or third time. I am also very proud of the beautiful space that I have created in the studio.

What inspired you to start the business? The inspiration was really just to leave teaching and to do something more creative for myself as I had become disheartened in my job.

What does the future look like? In terms of the future I would really like to form more collaborations with other businesses and groups as well as expand my range into more retail outlets.

What message would you like to send to our community of small business owners?

I think that as a small business owner it can be incredibly lonely and it is important to reach out to others for help, guidance and sometimes just for someone else to talk to about the challenges that small businesses  face.

Follow them here: @the_candle_sanctuary