What It's About
A candle company that sheds light on important causes.
Business Model
Skills Required
Complexity
Profit Potential
Words of Wisdom
Nicole’s advice for people who want to do similar side hustles—aside from getting business insurance—is to perfect one product or side and then slowly expand. If she decided to offer all the scents that her vendors and suppliers do, she’d have well over 1000 to choose from. She says it’s a bad idea to dive in and try to sell 1000 different scented candles. Instead, she recommends starting with 10 scents and expanding from there.
Fun Fact
The orphanage that Nicole helped her mentor, Noah Elias, raise money for when she started making candles for charity is called the Ingane Forever Home through Acres for Love. It has recently opened its doors. Each child accepted into the home receives medical care, therapy, education, siblings, and an extended family support system. The home also has a garden and a chicken, so the family gets fresh eggs every morning.
Notes from Chris
Episode 301
Today’s side hustle story comes from Nicole Nichols in Moore, Oklahoma. By day, she’s a project manager at an oil and gas brokerage, but in her spare time, she’s burning the midnight oil running her social good, handcrafted candle company Lux Illume When one of Nicole’s mentors was working on raising money for an AIDS orphanage in South Africa, they realized that people are generally more likely to give more when they get something in return. While they were trying to think of something they could offer for donations, Nicole thought of candles. She already knew how to make them, and it was something they could easily make in bulk. So, Nicole ordered supplies from a variety of vendors and started testing. While it’s an easy business to get started, to get it right requires a delicate balancing act with lots of different variables. Nicole started testing out different candle options from the comfort of her own dining room and part of her kitchen. After a few months of lots of trial and error and hot wax, she felt that she finally had a batch of candles she felt comfortable selling—100% soy wax candles with cotton braided wicks and fragrances that were infused with natural essential oils; perfect for the eco-conscious. They did a fundraiser for the orphanage and sold out of 50 candles in a couple of weeks, earning $600 for the orphanage! She loved that she was able to make a difference in this way and sought out more fundraisers and charity events that she could share her light with.
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:
- Lux Illume: Find a cause (and scent) you can get on board with on Nicole's website!
- Cratejoy: The subscription box based e-commerce platform that Nicole used to create her Circa 1955 subscription box line
- St. Baldricks Foundation & Make-A-Wish: Learn more about the visual page building Wordpress theme that Anja and her team kept in mind when creating their UI kits
- Candle Science | Learn Candle Making: Interested in learning how to make your own candles? Here are some tutorials to help you get started
- Skillshare: If you're looking to learn a new skill to help your side hustle, check out the courses at Skillshare. Right now you can get a full month free for being a Side Hustle School listener!
- South Carolina Man Learns to Make Candles by Watching YouTube: Inspiration strikes in an upscale men’s store when a man comes across a line of handmade scented candles
Download Episodes By Months: Season 6 (2022): JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC | Season 5 (2021): JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC | Season 4 (2020): JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC | Season 3 (2019): JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC | Season 2 (2018): JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC | Season 1 (2017): JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC |
Resources
CREATE YOUR ONLINE STORE
Create your online store with Shopify using an exclusive discount for Side Hustle School listeners. For a limited time, get a free 21-day trial and a 10% discount for a whole year.
Many Side Hustle School listeners are building sites using Shopify's easy-to-learn platform. Try it free today!
Learn More
GET YOUR FIRST 1,000 EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS
Social media is nice, but building an email list is still the single best way to get customers and clients for your hustle. It's not hard to get started—sign up for a 30-day trial and join the list-building challenge! You’ll be up and running in no time.
Quote of the Day
Sponsors & Gratitude
Create a Stunning Website With Wordpress
Today’s episode of Side Hustle School is brought to you by Wordpress.com! Whether you’re looking to create a personal blog, business site, or both—you’ll make a big impact, when you build your website on WordPress.com. 💻
Get 15% off when you build your website with Wordpress.com—use promo code PODCAST when you check out.
Get Started Here
Like the Show? Leave a Rating!
Side Hustle School is for you! If you’re enjoying it, please take a quick moment to leave a rating or write a quick review. It's really easy and it makes a difference! ✅
It also makes a huge difference when you tell your friends about the show. Remember, it's 100% free and listener-supported.
Keep in Touch
There’s a new story every single day on Side Hustle School. Episodes are produced to be short and to the point—I know you’re busy. Be sure you subscribe to get instant notification of the day’s broadcast!
To infinity and beyond,
