Wow….wouldn’t that be a great opportunity for us at the Adirondack Candle Company. A very close friend often says that very same thought to us all the time….”Candles for the World”…how cool.
We have grown a lot since we first started making candles back in 1993. We started our business in 1994….but in reality we were busy trying to “figure out how to even do it” during 1993. Not too many people know how it all started….maybe we should share it with you. Pull up a comfortable chair and let me tell you how it all started.
Our twins, Mike and Christina, were only about 2 years old and literally running under our feet wherever we went in the house. In fact, our house was much, much smaller back then compared to what it is today. We only had a one story bungalow back then and the twins bedroom was literally only 8′ x 9′. WOW!
So, back to our story….I’m a “do it yourself” kind of guy and I was rebuilding our kitchen (gutted right down to the studs and rebuilt from there)…and I thought “how hard could it be to make a candle?”. You see…we really LOVED Yankee Candles back then….I know, I know…we really don’t like to say those things, but back then…yea, we loved them. But…they sure were expensive and we couldn’t afford them with the twins. So…I started the process. It took MONTHS to make them, test them, THROW THEM OUT…and start all over. In the end we succeeded and thought we had a good product. I thought of a name, then thought about it more….didn’t really think it was that great, and went back to the drawing board. I didn’t know where this whole process would take us…but if it got big (if you know me….I do dream big all the time!), I wanted the name to be something that “had legs” and could grow. There it was….the Adirondack Candle Company….I knew it in my heart that this could be a big company. I wanted it to be centered around something that I loved and then built it to reflect that vision, that feeling, that region….that brand.
With that, we marketed the product to 4 local stores, and they liked it….or maybe because they knew me that were just being kind….whatever the case, if we failed and they never reordered, well, at least we would have made back our initial investment and would not be out anything. We started with a $500 investment and would have broke even without a reorder….but as you know, that NEVER happened…they reordered and we grew from there.
I don’t believe in failure…so truth be told I knew it wouldn’t fail. I would just keep working it until it succeeded….that’s what I do! We looked at old photo’s recently and found one from the very start of the company…when we made them in our kitchen…..3 at a time. Yes…that’s right…3 AT A TIME! Hahaha…too funny. The first year we “stocked” our product (Our inventory was 20 candles on a small shelf) we were thrilled when on Christmas Eve we sold the last one! We were sooooo proud. Now, we sell them by the thousands per year. Very cool!
So…we thank ALL OF YOU who have supported us and allowed us the priviledge of continuing to grow and bring you our “love in a jar” that we call the Adirondack Candle Company. The way we’re going, and with a little luck…maybe it will be “Candles for the World” in the end!
Have a Great Adirondack Day!
your Adirondack Candle Guy~