A list of the names of candle companies reveals how they vary based on a variety of factors. Many have become common household names, while others have filled a niche market.
Popular Names of Candle Companies
The candle industry is like any other in that there are several big players whose products are recognizable anywhere. Most of these manufacturers sell products in their own stores as well as department stores and gift shops, and they also maintain an online presence allowing customers to make purchases from home.
Yankee Candle
Yankee Candle is a leading candle maker with their flagship store in Williamsburg, Virginia. An icon within the industry, Yankee Candle features 150 fragrances, seasonal and specialty candles and candle accessories. With 475 company retail stores, Yankee Candle is sold in over 19,000 U.S. retailers.
Village Candle
Village Candle is known their scented candles. The candle company specializes in its craftsmanship and various blended scents. They created candle innovation, a Dual Wick Technology™ that was designed to ensure a more fragrant candle while providing an efficient and clean burning candle.
Illuminations
Illuminations made a comeback in 2019 after closing its doors in 2009. The formerly popular candle company. The new signature candles features 12 scents with nine original ones.
Colonial Candle
Colonial Candle® officially opened its doors in 1909, four years after Mabel Baker first sold her hand-dipped bayberry taper candles. Baker was the first woman to start a candle company. The original company produced candles in Cape Code, but today the manufacturing facility is located in North Carolina. Colonial Candle features its fragrant signature oval candle jars.
Candle-Lite
Candle-Lite hand-dipped tapers were first produced in 1840 under the company name of Emery Lard Oil and Candle Company located in Cincinnati, Ohio. You can find all kinds of candle scents and styles, including their CLCo Wooden Wick. The candles are sold in grocery, drug and retail stores. In May 2016, this major candle producer joined with PartyLite to form Luminex Home Décor & Fragrance. With this new business model, the company features new candle collections.
Gurley Candle Company
The Gurley Novelty Company began in 1939 and was famous for its small, figurine style wax candles. Most of the novelty candles produced were holiday themed, such as Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. These candles quickly became cherished and popular by collectors. The Vermont Country Store purchased several of the Gurley candle molds to offer these nostalgic candle icons.
Direct Sales Candle Companies
These candle companies rely on independent contractors to sell their merchandise through home parties and events. Many of them sell other products as well, including home fragrance items and household décor.
PartyLite
PartyLite offers scented and unscented candles online or opt to host a party with an independent consultant or you may decide to become a PartyLite consultant. This company merged with Candle-Lite to create Luminex Home Décor & Fragrance. You can shop their candle collections.
Diamond Creek Candles
The inspirational story of Diamond Creek Candles tells how in 1980, cofounder David came up with a unique idea for proposing to his girlfriend - place the engagement ring in a candle. The North Carolina company places a ring in every jar candle with some rings worth $100, $1,000 or $5,000. Do you feel lucky?
High End Candle Companies
These companies make candles that are a little fancier and therefore more expensive. They can be found in upscale department stores and specialty shops.
- Root Candles began in 1869 with hand-rolled beeswax candles. Today, the candles are hand-crafted by artisans using beeswax blends. You can purchase scented and unscented candle styles.
- Armadilla Wax Works makes its own candle molds and takes pride in their designs. You can buy pillar candles as well as novelty candles, such as snowball shaped candles and various floating candle designs.
- Voluspa is proud of their in-house designs that feature rare fragrances sourced around the world. The company uses proprietary blended scents to make luxury scented candles. You can buy many of these votive designs in decorated boxed sets.
- Diptyque Candles are made in France. There are many style, design and fragrance choices. You can also build your own gift set by selecting either three or six candles. Each order comes with a product sample.
- Votivo candles are a blend of natural ingredients and synthetic ingredients. The wax is a proprietary soy-blend. Several fragrance collections are offered.
- Jonathan Adler offers candles in ceramic holders, metal holders and glass holders. The scented candles present unique fragrance blends.
- LAFCO Candles offer blended scents for candles. The hand poured candles are presented in handblown art glass holders.18th and 19th century prints are the inspiration for some of the decorative packaging of candles.
- Belle Fleur presents its signature scents in candles that come with elegant packaging. Many of the fragrance descriptions are paired with visions created by historical context, such as how sandalwood was used to build Hindu temples and its scent filled the mountain ranges.
More Company Names
Here are some other candle company names, some of which may be familiar:
- Archipelago Botanicals presents botanical aromatic candle scents in votive, pillar and boxed sets. You can also find seasonal gift boxed sets that include spice fragrances.
- Beanpod Candles produce soy candles and is considered a soy candle leader in the candle industry. You can buy Beanpod Candles in various retail stores and online. The company offers a large line of candles in different sizes, colors and nearly 100 scents.
- Mole Hollow Candles are available in tapers, pillars, votives, and tiny tapers. You can buy scented or unscented candles as well as beeswax candles.
- Tyler Candle Company features several candle sizes, from cute 3.4 oz jar candles to 40 oz glass container candles. You can select your favorite fragrance candle made from a blend of soy and paraffin waxes.
- WoodWick Candles presents poured candles in hourglass shaped glass containers and a few oval shaped ones. The wicks are made of wood and give a crackling fireplace ambiance while burning.
- Chesapeake Bay candle has a unique quality about their candles with exotic scent blends for candle fragrances.
- Aroma Naturals features holiday themed pillar, jar and three-wick candles, zodiac, travel candles, mosaic, and novelty candles.
- Habersham Candle Co offers a different type of candles with flowers and other botanicals layer in the wax. Citronella blends for outdoor candles are poured into ceramic pots. Jar candles and "The Original Man Candle" in tins with lids are available.
- Just Candles Co produces hand poured soy wax candles. You can also find outdoor scented candles poured into concrete holders.
- White Barn Candle Co has 50 fragrances in six aroma categories. You can choose from 3-wick jar candles and single wick jar candles.
- Yummi Candles features scented candle jars and tea light candles. You can also find just about any type of candle, from floating, votive, pillar, taper, to sphere and memorial candles.
Choosing Your Own Candle Company Name
If you've decided to start your own candle company, choosing a name is a very important step.
How Company Names Are Chosen
There are lots of ways that candle companies select their names. Some of these include:
- Using the first and/or last name of the founder of the company.
- Including words that describe the candles themselves, or the ingredients used to make them. For example, the word "earth" in a company name suggests natural materials.
- Using the location of the company by including a state, city, or neighborhood name. Other geographical titles may be used as well, such as bodies of water or local natural landmarks.
- Creating whimsical or humorous plays on words, including intentional misspellings and common phrases with a twist.
- Including seemingly random yet catchy words, suggesting a hip and modern company with new and exclusive products.
Make Your Name Original
Not only do you want your candle company name to be easy and memorable, but you'll also want to make sure that no one else is using it. Even a name as simple as "Jane's Candles" could be taken, so make a list of several different options that appeal to you. Be very careful not to duplicate or closely resemble an existing company name, or you run the risk of being sued by the original company.
Trademarks and Patents
Once you've chosen a name, visit the United States Patent and Trademark Office online to make sure that it hasn't already been claimed. You can also get all the information you need to trademark your unique candle business name.
Create a Website
Another thing to consider is that you'll likely want to create a website to accompany your candle business. The best website name will be that of your company followed by a dot com, and domain name searches such as GoDaddy will tell you if your name has been taken.
What's In a Name?
Candle company names can give customers a sense of what to expect from their products. From quaint names that suggest homespun quality and handmade products to elaborate names that give the impression of pricey spa items, there are as many different company names are there are types and scents of candles.
