5 Tips to Establishing a Successful Candle Making Business

If you have been making candles for a while, and are looking for that next step, perhaps now is time to start thinking about establishing your own candle making business. This type of business is perfect for creating a second source of income, and allows you to make money doing something that you love!

There are many factors that should be considered when starting your own candle making business and we wanted to give you our top five tips to consider when starting this new venture.

Tip One: Define your Candle Product

There are so many different types of candle products that are available and that you can make for your business. We discuss popular types of candles throughout our site, but if you made all types of candle products for all types of purposes it can actually end up being very confusing for your customers. It is important to be clear on what product or service you will be offering to your clients. Define what will make you unique and special to your competitors in the marketplace.

Tip Two: Know your Costs

Whilst you enjoy making candles, if you decide you want to start a candle making business it’s important that you make sure you’re making money! It is important to be realistic and know the costs of running your business, making your products (or supplying your services), and any miscellaneous expenses.

Firstly determine how much it will cost you to make your candle. Make a list of all the supplies and equipment you will need. To get you started, we have a number of essential candle making equipment articles you can read here. Document this in a workbook and spreadsheet to accurately calculate the true cost of making each product you intend to sell.

Tip Three: Determine Your Prices

When determining how much to sell homemade candles for, a good starting point is your competitor’s prices. Believe it or not, if you offer a product too cheaply then people may not buy them as they’re perceived as having little value. At the same time however, you do not want to price too high above your competitors (unless you have a good unique edge) otherwise you may price yourself out of the market. Do not be afraid to charge for your product or service – just remember that people are willing to pay for a product that they perceive to be of quality and value. The quality of your product or service is important as well as how you market that to the marketplace.

Once you have determined the price you are willing to charge for your product, then compare this to your calculated expenses to ensure you will make a profit.

Tip Four: Create a Business Plan

The old saying goes: “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. Regardless of whether you intend for your business to be part-time to create a second source of income, or full-time to build your candle making empire, it is essential to plan out your business. Elements to consider in a business plan include:

  • Scoping your marketplace
  • Researching your competitors
  • Determining the product or service will you offer
  • How and where do you intend to sell
  • How and where you will you market your product or service
  • What your business goals and time-frames are

Tip Five: Put it into Action!

Whilst these four tips are all very important to set the foundations for you starting your own candle making business, this fifth tip is where the magic happens – pulling it all together and putting everything into action! You don’t want to buy a whole bunch of supplies and set up your workstation just to have it sit there and do nothing with it! The exciting time is when you put everything together and start driving your homemade candle business.

As you establish your business, also consider important elements that are relevant to your marketplace, state or region such as:

  • Registering a Business Name
  • Establishing a business structure (relevant to your state or region)
  • Business insurance
  • Accounting practices

These top five tips should help to provide you with guidance to both create and establish your business. For more tips and resources on building your own candle making business, please look at our eBook here, where we provide you more details as well as templates and guidance on establishing your own business plan.

Good luck with the launch of your own candle making business!

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