Business ideasMaking
Start a candle business.
Candles are small, light to post and easy to give as presents. You pour them. Your team builds the shop and sells them.
Start with this idea→- To start
- About $200 for your first 12; $600–800 to stock 30–40
- Each candle
- About $3–5 to make
- Sells for
- About $16–28
- Time
- An afternoon to pour, 1–2 weeks to cure
- Busiest
- November and December
Rough figures for an 8 oz jar candle.
Why candles work
For themselves, and as presents for birthdays, new homes and thank-yous.
November and December are the busiest months by far.
A good scent and a nice jar look lovely in a photo, and a candle is light to post.
Is it right for you?
- You like making things with your hands
- You have a kitchen or table you can keep clear
- You can store a few boxes of stock
- You want something that sells online, anywhere
- Small children or pets near hot wax
- You need money in the first week
- You can’t air the room while you pour
What you’ll sell
Start with three scents in one size. Add more once you know what sells.
Choose a wax
SoyNatural, burns slowly and cleanly. The most popular choice for handmade candles. The top can look a little frosty.
RapeseedGrown in the UK and Europe. Smooth, creamy tops and a good scent. Often blended with coconut.
Coconut blendVery smooth and holds scent well. Costs more, so it suits a premium range.
ParaffinThe cheapest, with a strong scent. Many handmade buyers look for natural waxes instead.
And a container
Your first batch
Everything for about twelve candles, and how to make them.
Shopping list
Roughlyabout $185
5 kg of wax makes about 20 candles, so there’s room for test batches. Prices are rough; add product liability insurance on top.
Fill one jar with water and weigh it. Wax is lighter than water, so each candle needs about nine-tenths of that weight.
In a jug over a pan of hot water, to the temperature on your wax’s instructions, often around 80°C (176°F).
At the temperature your supplier gives, usually 6–10% of the wax weight. Stir gently for two minutes.
Fix the wick in the centre of the jar, then pour at the pouring temperature.
Leave it to set for a day, then cure for 1–2 weeks so the scent comes through.
Burn one for four hours. The melted wax should reach the edge with no smoke or tunnelling. If not, change the wick size and try again.
The rules where you sell
Short and plain. Not legal advice, so check before you sell.
- Every candle you sell must be safe to use, under general product safety rules.
- Scented candles need a CLP label: the hazard symbols and warnings from your fragrance’s safety data sheet, any allergens named, and your name, address and phone number.
- Add the candle safety warnings set out in BS EN 15494, like never leaving a burning candle unattended.
- Get product liability insurance before your first sale.
- Register your business: in the UK with HMRC once you earn more than £1,000 a year from it, and in the EU the way your country asks.
- Selling from the UK into the EU? You’ll need a person or company in the EU who is responsible for your products.
Check with your local Trading Standards before you sell. Read the British Candlemakers advice pack
- Put the fire safety warning from ASTM F2058 on every candle, where buyers can see it. It’s voluntary, but shops and buyers expect it.
- Label each candle with what it is, your business name and town, and the net weight in ounces and grams.
- If your wicks have a metal core, it must be lead-free (no more than 0.06% lead).
- Make sure your candles burn safely in normal use. ASTM F2417 sets out how they’re tested.
- Get product liability insurance before your first sale.
- Register your business and collect sales tax where your state asks you to.
Check with your state and the Consumer Product Safety Commission before you sell. Read the CPSC guide for candle businesses
- Under Canada’s Candles Regulations, a candle must not relight by itself after it’s put out.
- Scented candles may need hazard labels under the consumer chemicals rules, in English and French, naming any hazardous ingredient at 1% or more.
- Packaged candles should show the net quantity in metric, and your business name and address.
- Get product liability insurance before your first sale.
- Register your business in your province, and for GST/HST once you pass the small-supplier limit.
Check with Health Canada before you sell. Read the Candles Regulations
- Always keep a burning candle within sight.
- Never burn a candle on or near anything that can catch fire.
- Keep burning candles out of reach of children and pets.
- Trim the wick to 5 mm before lighting.
- Burn for no more than four hours at a time.
What it costs, and what you keep
Change any number. For example, an 8 oz candle sold online.
Start with this idea→Before your own time and postage.
Ways to sell
Most candle makers start online, then add one more way once orders come in.
Your website, open day and night, sending anywhere you post to.
You keep the mostGift shops and cafés buy a box at a time to sell on their shelves.
Usually about half your priceMeet buyers, let them smell the scents, and hand out your card.
Best before ChristmasA candle of the month, gift sets and refills bring people back.
Steady through the yearStart on Rivendel
Your candle shop, from one line to open for orders.
Write your one line, then answer a few questions in Chat. About 15 minutes.
Pick a name and a look from three. Send a few photos of your candles, by upload or in Chat.
Or take pre-orders straight away. From then on your team posts, answers customers and handles orders.
- Plan
- From $49.99 a month
- When you sell
- We keep 4%
- Setup fee
- None
- Contract
- None, leave any time
- Your money
- Straight to your bank
Who does what
Your first month, step by step, from your kitchen to a customer’s door. Tap any step to see who does it, and when.
Pick three scents you love. That’s enough to start.
Why 4%?
Website builders charge every month for tools, whether you sell or not. Our 4% pays for something else: finding you customers.
- The same whether you sell or not
- Finding customers is up to you
- We earn more only when you sell more
- Finding customers is our job too
Your pages and your Google listing kept up to date, so people nearby find you when they search.
Each month we ask ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity what people ask about shops like yours, and work to get you named.
Posts and short videos written, made and put out for you.
Emails to past customers when there’s a reason to buy again.
A review asked for after every order.
AI agents look for people and businesses who need what you sell, and reach out for you.
Your part Make what you sell, answer the important messages and make the calls. Ad money is yours, spent only with your yes.
Things to watch
Questions people ask
Something else?Talk to a personIn the UK and most places you don’t need a special licence. You do need to follow product safety and labelling rules, register your business when you earn enough (over £1,000 a year in the UK), and it’s wise to get product liability insurance.
Yes. Most handmade candle businesses start in a kitchen. Keep a clean, aired space and store wax and fragrance safely.
A first batch of twelve and the basic tools cost about $185. To stock 30–40 candles with better equipment and packaging, expect about $600–800. Add product liability insurance, often about $10–55 a month. Each 8 oz candle then costs about $3–5 to make.
It can be. Handmade 8 oz candles often sell for about $16–28, several times what they cost to make. Busy months like December make up much of the year.
Soy is natural, burns slowly and is what most handmade buyers look for. Paraffin is cheaper with a strong scent. Many sellers start with soy or a soy blend.
Usually 1–2 weeks for soy, so the scent fills the room when the candle is lit.
Yes, get product liability insurance before your first sale. It covers you if a candle causes damage or harm. Policies for small makers often cost about $10–55 a month, depending on where you live and how much you sell.
Yes. Gift shops and cafés often buy at wholesale, usually about half your retail price, so price with that in mind. Your team can make a wholesale price list and an email to send to shops.
Yes. Your website is ready on day one. You can take pre-orders, or open orders once your first batch has cured.
Send a few photos of your candles from your phone, by uploading them or in Chat. Your team edits them for your shop and your posts.
Your team builds your name, labels, website and shop, makes the photos and posts, answers emails and handles orders. You pour, pack and post.