Ashlyn Rowland, owner, and founder of Bare Candle Company shares with us how her candle company is different from all the rest.
Here is her Under 25 story!
“My business is Bare Candle Company. At Bare, I create candles that only contain the essentials. There are no icky toxins like phthalates or paraffin wax (which is a product of petroleum gas). All the candles are made with 100% soy wax and are the pretty pearl-white color from the absence of unnecessary colors and dyes. Those that do have a little off-white coloring are due to the natural color of the fragrance.
I had dreams of opening Bare Candle Company in December of 2018. At that time I was running a business that I had created in August of 2017, while still in High School. I learned from my first business, although not always the easy way. It was an interesting business, creating custom coffee mugs and t-shirts; although, it was not something I could see myself doing full-time.
During the 2018 year, I started to get obsessed with candles, the scents, the colors, the design of the packaging/container. Just like any other DIYer, I started to make a mess in my kitchen with wax everywhere. I put up with these messes because I wanted to find the perfect lavender and sandalwood mixture. I loved creating candles so much that by December, I was ready to start my business plan. After moving out of the kitchen to a small candle studio, it was time to open in February.
During my process of learning about candles and making them hands-on, I gained a lot of valuable information. Upon creating my line of candles, I wanted them to healthy and simple. I did not want my customers nor myself subjected to the harmful ingredients that are in so many candles today.
Running a business and going to college full-time has been the greatest challenge. I take about five classes each semester. After taking the time out to attend these classes, there is also a lot of time taken for the homework and studying for the exams. Additionally, it can be hard to schedule classes back to back which can also cut downtime for my time dedicated to Bare Candle Company.
What are my goals for the next 12-18 months? That is a very good question. It can be difficult to plan how much time will go toward each of my goals as I will not know how many classes I will have in the next coming semester. In 12-18 months I would like to double how many boutiques I am in.
Ideally, I would prefer some of the stores to be in new states that I am currently not selling in. Another goal is to broaden my social media following to also bring awareness to my brand. By 18 months I would like to have a large enough following, sales, and boutiques to where I am outgrowing my current small studio.”
Ashlyn took a shot with her business and it has certainly been paying off. With her time being split between the business and school, we are excited to see what she can accomplish when all of her time is going to be focused on the business!
The Under 25 section of 1PRCNT is meant to showcase to everyone that there are plenty of young entrepreneurs out in the business world making strides to better themselves and the world around them.
If you are an entrepreneur under the age of 25 and have a story you would like to share then please feel free to email us and we would love to interview you!
