Cathy Dowden

Can you share a little bit about how and why you decided on a candle business?

Yes.  Well, first of all I love candles!! ha,ha. I guess who doesn’t.  My background is actually as a holistic therapist and after many years working in the corporate world, I retrained with the London School of Reflexology back in 2004.

Once qualified, I was fascinated about all holistic therapies and studied several others.  Dayoin Tao, a beautiful chinese meridian pressure point therapy, Hopi-ear candling, reiki …. my husband started to worry that  I would turn into some strange old lady burning sage all day, but during these years I learnt so much about our bodies need for balance and how energy blockages lead to illness over time.

Where did you practice?

I set up my therapy business in Canary Wharf and later in South Africa. My clients were generally from the local banks and legal firms and often very stressed and out of balance.  Burnout wasn’t really spoken of back then, but I saw a lot of clients who really would fit this category today.

A key element of my therapy room was always lighting a scented candle before my clients arrived and during their treatment.   I began to naturally tailor a scent to match each clients needs and discovered that scent and their environment (a calm, decluttered therapy room) had an immediate relaxation effect on them mentally & physically.  I would literally see them relax before my eyes.

Since then, candles at the end of the day became my self-care ritual.  I’d light one as I made dinner and then enjoy it all evening and allow myself time to relax and re-centre for the day ahead.

Why Soy Wax & Locally Sourced?

As we now know, most candles are made from paraffin wax or often called ‘mineral wax’.  Paraffin/ mineral wax is actually  a by-product of crude oil.

A lot has been written about toxins released from these and harming effects on air quality when burnt indoors.  While this is often disputed by many candle companies,  ultimately burning paraffin wax is really just not good for our planet or the wildlife we share it with.

Why? Crude oil is highly unsustainable as it is a non-renewable resource.  The oil industry has also been the cause of a slew of environmental calamities, in oil spills, damage of natural habitats and a huge contributor to climate change.  

There are lots of plant waxes out there, but sadly a lot are blends including palm oil or soy that has been sourced from asia or south america and contribute to the global deforestation issue.

Our soy wax is made from 100% pure soyabeans.   Sustainable sourcing it is important and our is sourced from family run farms that have been running for generations.  There is no deforestation, no chemicals or GMO in the farming of the beans and they just burn incredibly cleanly and well. 

Each candle is hand poured here in England so no unnecessary CO2 by having them flown in from China, as sadly so many candles are today. 

For me there is something very fulfilling about working with quality local suppliers and supporting the local economy as well.

Tell us what a normal day looks like for you?

There is no real ‘normal day’ for me.  When the boys are at school, I’m pretty focused and work school hours.  My day can involve anything from testing new scents – part of the job I love – to packing orders, scheduling social media, writing a blog or submitting a Vat return.  The latter is something I really don’t enjoy!

Has building a candle business been easier or harder than you thought?

Honestly – much harder! If I knew back then what I know now, there would not be a candle business.  I really had no idea just how many costs would be involved up front.  When you have a product based business, you need to first purchase everthing! Then there are so many costs from raw materials to packaging,  design,  labels, postage boxes & gift boxes etc.  Add to that the costs that you don’t even think of initially, the monthly subscriptions, accounting related costs, marketing, transport, returns, damages … the list goes on and on. 

Are there any good parts?

Yes! Of course, lots. The candles & diffusers are a great bonus and I get to enjoy them in my home and office so everything smells great all the time! ha,ha

Also, as an introvert, I need a lot of time on my own so working for myself everyday is actually great.  My office is at the bottom of our garden and my quiet space and I really love working there. 

I also really enjoy the learning involved.  My degree is in Business & Marketing but that was over 20 years ago, so things have really moved on a lot.  There was no such thing as facebook or instagram back then so I’ve had to learn a huge amount along the way.  I’m a course addict so always have a few courses going at any one time.  I think it may actually be a problem at this stage! Ha,ha.

What is the biggest challenge  you have faced along the way?

Being  in charge of marketing, customer care, product development, branding, accounts, website maintenance, pricing, sourcing suppliers … etc.… it’s a lot and you really need to be mentally ‘on it’ all the time!

Also there is all the tech to learn.  There is just SO much from the back end of the website to the email marketing, blogging and even payment & invoicing systems. 

I’m quite creative so all the design related bits come easily to me, it’s the accounting and SEO type jobs that I find pretty cumbersome. 

How have you managed to juggle this and still keep sane?

In the past I didn’t.  In fact about a year into the business, I almost burnt out completely.  I thought I had to say ‘yes’ to everything as I was building brand awareness and ended up doing far too many events.  These take up a lot of time and physical energy (candles are pretty heavy)  and I ended up completely losing my voice from all the talking involved as well. 

I felt utterly exhausted and even thought about closing my business.  You also feel like  you’re not performing well in any role – as business owner, mum, wife, friend, daughter, sister … I just felt utterly depleted. 

It was a good wake up call and the beginning of really prioritising self-care, saying ‘no’ more and putting better systems in place to prevent this happening again.  It turns out I am prone to vocal nodules so my voice still struggles and if I overuse it, it can take a few weeks of rest to get back on track again.   It means I can’t over commit to lots of social events like I did in the past and need longer recovery time in between.

As frustrating as this has been, I now see it as a blessing.  It has made me let go of the people pleaser in me and is my body’s way of ensuring I can no longer over-commit like I used to. 

What is your favourite quote?

I love a good quote for inspiratin and have loads! But one you can’t go wrong with is ‘We rise by lifting others.’ by Rogert Ingersoll.  As a women, I feel this is particularly important.  Sadly our culture can so often have us compete with one another and be less than positive of each others successes.  It’s something I’ve always found incredibly sad and try to keep out of.  At the end of the day we are all doing our best, figuring it out as we go and trying hard to navigate lifes many hurdles.

Instead of competing, we should celebrate one another.  Champion each other, cheer on each and every win.  At the end of the day, I truly believe that do in fact rise by by supporting one another.  I’m very lucky to have some really amazing ladies in my life who have always supported and encouraged me to take that next step and it’s something I really appreciate hugely.

Do you have a favourite scent?

I love the uplifting scents for daytime.  ‘Happy Day’ or ‘Rejuvenate’ in my office as I work.  In the evenings it’s always something calming and soothing to relax the central nervous system.  ‘Me Time’ is great but more recntly I’ve been burning a lot of ‘Unwind’ especially when I take a bath.  This could be because a lot has been written about the benefits of lavender on pmt and hormonal balancing.  I love any tools that help with that!!

If people want to find out more about your candles & home scent or enjoy some tips on self-care and wellbeing, they are welcome to visit my website or follow us on social media too.

www.MillerandKeane.com

Facebook @MillerandKeaneLondon

Instagram @MillerandKeane