For all things candle and home fragrance making!
Made by Lauren Jade
For this customer story, we’re hearing from Lauren O'Keeffe, the owner of Made by Lauren Jade! Whether you’re looking for yummy smelling wax melts or beautiful wax burners, or want to buy a gift for somebody but not sure what to get?
Lauren offers a huge range of scents in her wax melts collection, as well as various designs of resin bookmarks and keyrings, perfect gifts for friends and family. All of Lauren’s wax melts are made with 100% natural and botanical soy wax which is paraben-free, vegan and cruelty-free!
Lauren told us that she always loved anything crafty and has always enjoyed trying out new skills. From being very young, she’s made homewares and clothes and grown her skills immensely. When lockdown hit in 2020, she really struggled mentally to try get into any type of routine or focus on any one thing. She took some time out of her "every day 9 to 5" job to reset, refocus and recharge and through that she started to learn how to cut glass, make candles and make wax melts. After showcasing some of her creations to friends, they started making requests for their new homes or gifts for family members. And so she set up Made by Lauren Jade online. She’d never made a website before or had a shop so learning about all the different requirements was thrilling. She told us how Supplies for Candles has been one of the most wonderful places she’s found that sells the best smelling fragrance oils. Lauren told us that she has never been disappointed by a scent she bought from us. She also told us that The Hub has so many helpful hints and tips and it's her go-to if she ever has a question about CLPs, what temperature she should be melting at and so much more. The range of products is amazing and always is the first place to have the latest trends and smells. Thank you!
We asked Lauren what made her want to try her hand at candle/wax melt making? She told us it's something she had wanted to do for a long time. She always bought them and thought "surely I can make these". And so she tested different methods and figured out what worked. Lauren had also tried bottle cutting so that she could make candles from old gin bottles, still some practice needed but another string to her bow!
So how did she start her business? Firstly online, via her website and then Lauren set up Facebook and Instagram accounts to help promote it.
The name of my business is Lauren’s business is her first and middle name; Lauren Jade. She told us that she wanted a name that wasn't a niche market in case she wanted to expand her business later on. She was playing with all sorts of names but in the end, she settled on "Made by" because everything is made by her! Just her! Lauren’s logo was created by a wonderful graphic designer who had the patience of a Saint! Harpreet Bhogal @ Rare Elephant. She told us that she wanted to incorporate leopard print or spots within it as it's her favourite pattern and Harpreet surprised her with a font that actually looks like her handwriting (she had never seen Lauren’s handwriting) and it just was everything Lauren wanted.
We wanted to know how Lauren chooses her candle/wax melt scents. She told us that she sets up polls on Instagram and asks her followers what they like, what they don't like and what they'd like to see. Everybody has a preferred scent, so she tries to have a wide range of good scents without being too vast or complicated for her customers. She told us that she also uses Supplies for Candles website to see what scents have been rated as best sellers and she tries to go with what works for a wider audience.
Lastly, we asked Lauren what advice she would give to those hoping to build their own candle business? Don't give up because you didn't get a sale! It takes so long to build up a customer base. Don't get disheartened it will happen! Also, don't make too much stock before you set up your shop/online site. You may go your first couple months with little sales and you'll want to try new scents so be careful. Don't let anybody tell you you are doing it wrong! You are doing it exactly right!
You can find Made by Lauren Jade on;
Facebook
Instagram
And online!
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