"Who would ever want a stinky candle?"
We asked ourselves the same thing when we started The Stinky Candle Company back in 2013. We figured people would maybe buy them for gag gifts or novelties. It made us laugh, so we assumed other people would get a kick out of it too.
Then we started hearing feedback like this from our customers and it shocked us:
"Oh my gosh, I love the scent of skunk and I wasn't able to find it anywhere. THANK YOU!"
People were actually looking for "stinky" scents??
As crazy as it sounded, we kept hearing from customers that had been looking for smells that no one would ever find at Bath and Body Works. As we continued to listen to customer feedback, it started to make more and more sense.
We were the only company around that was selling candles whose scents were actually accurate. I can go into any home goods store and find a candle called "Ocean Breeze" or "Summer Evening", but too often they smell like a miasma of air fresheners rather than anything recognizable. And to be frank, we don't think that's good enough.
The Stinky Candle Company prides itself on authenticity
When you smell one of our products, we want you to be transported through time. Which is part of the reason why our candles are "stinky". They're strong. If you're not expecting it, it will feel like you just got slapped in the face. And that's the way it's going to stay because you can't get that anywhere else.
We've often wondered why after 10+ years of business, nobody else has really gotten into the same market as us. And honestly, over time we have discovered there are actually a number of reasons:
Stinky candles are difficult to get right
We use scent suppliers from all over the globe to ensure we're bringing you top quality products. We also tirelessly test every scent before it's placed in production, and our shelves are lined with many candles that did not meet our standards.
Furthermore we've also found out that scents can be subjective. Some people have a very specific idea of how a candle should smell and for whatever reason, we occasionally get customers who don't think our candle matches exactly what they were expecting.
We completely respect this and that is why we hold strong to our return policy: any customer that is dissatisfied with their purchase can expect a refund on any product returned within 30 days. We believe customers should be able to buy from us knowing that they are guaranteed the scent that they are expecting or their money back.
Producing stinky candles is a labor of love
If you think some of our products smell a little intense, try working at the factory when we're pouring our Body Odor candles. Even some of the objectively non-pungent scents like Nacho Cheese and French Fries can smell downright toxic at such high concentrations.
We've come to realize as we've talked with other candle manufacturers that most companies just don't want to deal with such intensity during the pour process. Which is not entirely unrelatable. When we started out pouring candles by hand in a residential garage, you sometimes couldn't set foot in there for days afterwards.
We understand. It can be brutal. However, we don't compromise on our mission and so we remain the only company in the world that offers such a wide range of accurately scented products.
People are taught they can only enjoy certain scents
Very few people looking for candles in a store test how accurately the scent corresponds to the label. We've all been so conditioned to assume that accurate candles aren't achievable, so we all just look for candles that smell nice.
The Stinky Candle Company doesn't settle for nice. Even our sweet smelling candles are both strong and accurate. When you sniff our Crème Brûlée Candle, we want you to feel like John Cena just slammed your face through the caramelized topping, and not like a pastry truck overturned 3 miles away and you caught a slight whiff on the breeze.
Over a decade in and we've never looked back
We've been so lucky and blessed to be able to bring our unique products to so many people. There are always those who remain a little confused about what we're doing (and probably are mystified that we get any business at all). We hope someday that everyone comes to realize the power a truly "stinky" candle has.
Until then, we remain committed to bringing the scents of life (both the bitter and sweet) to our loyal fans and customers, and championing the power of "stinky" candles every step along the way.