WickedWineCandles Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 Hi! I was hoping to get some feedback from other candle enthusiasts on my product/small online business. I great appreciate any advice/tips you can share with me ....We have been making candles since 2011 selling at local farmers markets and most recently we were featured at the Fryeburg State Fair in Maine. In September'13 we launched our website (http://wickedwinecandles.com) along with some social media profiles (e.g. Etsy, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest).Anyways, I make each candle completely by hand from recycled wine bottles. I use soy wax infused with two different scents (Merlot and Chardonnay), and fit each with a timber wood wick. I have posted a few pictures below.Currently, we do not have a label for the candles. I personally like our 'naked' bottle look, but I have had a handful of repeat customers ask for labels, so I figured I would try and design one myself. The label is still a work in progress.The candles burn very nicely and the scents are not too overpowering.Any thoughts on what I may be doing good/bad? How about the 'brand' I am trying to build, 'Wicked Wine Candles'.Thanks SO much everyone. I am looking forward to any and all feedback.-Andrew Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthfriendly Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Love the name, and your candles look great. Henry the Chief Barking Officer is a cutie. Congrats and good luck with your company. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 3, 2014 Author Share Posted January 3, 2014 Thanks so much for the kind feedback. We have put a lot of work into our candles (and the website). Henry is great to have around the studio with us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scented Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Oh what an absolute cutie! I like the look of your candles. That's a lot of wine to drink lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 3, 2014 Author Share Posted January 3, 2014 (edited) Thank you! Yes, people love Henry everywhere we go. He's such a good pooch we had to incorporate him in as we try to build the Wicked Wine brand.While we do turn most of the wine bottles we drink into candles, we have help from a few other people in our local area.We found the type of bottles that work best for creating a quality candle, so we are a bit more selective when we collect our bottles for repurposing them into candles. For other bottles, we make drinking glasses!Also, we are taking corks and making some pretty cool coasters to accompany each wine bottle candle. I will post a picture of the final product once its complete. Had to delay some of the production today with all the new snow we got! Edited January 3, 2014 by WickedWineCandles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeahRB Posted January 3, 2014 Share Posted January 3, 2014 Your candles look very classy. Very nice job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vernie1 Posted January 4, 2014 Share Posted January 4, 2014 Your bottles are nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandlekrazy Posted January 6, 2014 Share Posted January 6, 2014 They look great! Lots of work cutting bottles and finishing the top of the jars, I did it for a while. Now I found a guy that will sell them to me already cut and finished in lots of 100.A local candle maker here leaves the wine labels on hers, customers seem to love it, personally I'd rather see a branding label. I used brown kraft labels on mine because I didn't like white on the wine bottles andclear just didn't show the label enough. Kudos & good luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 6, 2014 Author Share Posted January 6, 2014 Thanks very much for your kind words. I truly appreciate it.May I ask how much the person charges for 100 pre-cut and finished bottles? I would love to find an opportunity like this in my region (would save TONS of time and hand cramps!)As I type this, I have been designing a product label in Photoshop. My plan is to offer 3 types of candles...1. Naked - meaning no label2. Wicked Wine label - the custom one I am creating that captures our brand image3. Original label - Several customers have asked me to sell candles with original labels. A potential issue that arises in the way I cut the bottles. I would have to figure out a process for removing the original label, then cutting, then reapplying the original label. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted January 6, 2014 Share Posted January 6, 2014 Do you have to worry about copyright infringement when you keep the original labels? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthfriendly Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 I was kind of wondering the same thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 I also wonder about legal issues if something goes wrong with the candle... If my winery's label is on the candle would i be liable for damage caused by a product made from my used, empty, altered discarded bottle? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 7, 2014 Author Share Posted January 7, 2014 Excellent point. I researched this a bit and found the below answers..."The issue you have is using the trademarks of others in commerce and this would be a violation of the trademark and copyright laws. If you re-use these items in selling your crafts the owners of those rights can sue you for violations of the Landham Act for trademark infringement and for copyright violations and can get very significant and substantial damages from you. The use would be considered derivative use, meaning you are using their mark in another form or fashion. You would need to get written permission from the owners of those rights in order to market your crafts.""as long as you are not using items with trademarks then you can make and sell your works."SOURCE: http://www.justanswer.com/intellectual-property-law/34l78-copyrights-craft-items-using-recycled-reused.htmlAfter reading the above, I have decided to not offer candles with the original label. I am not sure how other sellers are handling this as I have seen many people sell candles with trademarked wine labels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandlekrazy Posted January 8, 2014 Share Posted January 8, 2014 Thanks very much for your kind words. I truly appreciate it.May I ask how much the person charges for 100 pre-cut and finished bottles? I would love to find an opportunity like this in my region (would save TONS of time and hand cramps!)I haven't called him yet, he would not quote me a price at the antique faire where I met him but gave me his card and said to call him. He is in California, most likely Southern because that's where I met him. He did say he would give me a price that I couldn't do cheaper myself and since I was driving to wineries to get empty bottles he is probably right. He was selling individually at $2.50 a glass (what he called them) and I told him I needed to be at around $1.00 ea and he still said "call me, we'll work something out". I haven't called because I'm still on the fence as to whether I want to add that line back in...sort of overwhelmed just keeping up with what I have and doing the antique store. I'm now doing status jars and they are selling well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 8, 2014 Author Share Posted January 8, 2014 (edited) I haven't called him yet, he would not quote me a price at the antique faire where I met him but gave me his card and said to call him. He is in California, most likely Southern because that's where I met him. He did say he would give me a price that I couldn't do cheaper myself and since I was driving to wineries to get empty bottles he is probably right. He was selling individually at $2.50 a glass (what he called them) and I told him I needed to be at around $1.00 ea and he still said "call me, we'll work something out". I haven't called because I'm still on the fence as to whether I want to add that line back in...sort of overwhelmed just keeping up with what I have and doing the antique store. I'm now doing status jars and they are selling well.Glad to hear your candles are selling well. The issue of keeping up with demand is a good problem to have!Do you sell online? Have a website? If so, I would love to take a look at it. Edited January 8, 2014 by Vicky_CO pushes the line of no self promting to much Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kandlekrazy Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 Glad to hear your candles are selling well. The issue of keeping up with demand is a good problem to have!Do you sell online? Have a website? If so, I would love to take a look at it.Closed my website down and quit online sales 4 years ago, shortly after purchasing the antique malls. I'm strictly selling in our stores and also a little in a couple coffee shops in Mexico...not much happening there. I'm so busywith the antique stores I can only devote 1 day a week to candles if that, so that's why I can't keep up...sales are good for me but modest. I average about 100 melts a month and only about 15 candles a month. I even had to purchase a bunch of soy candles to sell for Christmas from Swan. I just didn't have time to make my own...pretty sad but I come home wiped out and too tired! I'm even buying bulk soaps to sell instead of making my own...which is prob best due to insurance rates here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OldGlory Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 Gosh I just love your concept! I think you should make a label with your logo. Elsewhere on the label you could mention something about the original wine, and a story about how you conceived of your product, or some kind of backstory. I would buy something like that for the novelty and the story behind it. However, if you opt for the naked bottle, you can always add a hangtag of some sort. That way you can convey information and they can remove it pretty easily. I'm thinking some really thick paperstock, vintage looking, wrapped with natural heavy jute. And I can see them sold in upscale hotel bars. I think you've got a great idea there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 (edited) Wow, thank you so much for the kind words and the amazing feedback. I truly appreciate it.We are actually designing a label right now. Personally, I like the look of the 'naked' bottle more, especially when the wax burns low enough to accentuate the flickering wick in the bottle.With that said, we are planning to have our label be tied onto the bottle with some nice looking twine. This way, the label can be kept on or removed by the owner.We are also in the middle of making coasters from recycled wine corks to accompany each candle we sell. I will be sure to post pictures here of the 'final' product. Edited January 13, 2014 by WickedWineCandles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OldGlory Posted January 13, 2014 Share Posted January 13, 2014 I can't wait to see what you decide on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 14, 2014 Author Share Posted January 14, 2014 (edited) We haven't finalized them yet, but below is a peak into the label design. This particular one is for my Chardonnay scent. (also, we designed a new logo, not sure if I like the old or new/refreshed version better).I am still debating whether or not to trim the label down a bit, and use a hashtag so as to not hide the beautiful glass of the bottle. Edited January 14, 2014 by WickedWineCandles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest OldGlory Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 I would feel negligent if I did not suggest that you buy insurance for your wine bottle candles. There is a link here somewhere for companies that offer candle makers insurance. The bottles aren't manufactured for candlemaking, or to withstand the heat created by a burning candle. You can factor that in to your pricing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JI Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 (edited) I love the bottles you use. The different shades of green are nice and I think the wood wick with the earth tone brown colours is great. One question:Your fb page (under about) says you use only 100% organic soy. Where do you buy this?I also saw the 100% organic soy listed on your website. I am on the lookout for organic soy since I lost a major wholesale account bc my soy wax yis not organic. I also noticed the wood wicks are organic. Same supplier maybe? Edited January 18, 2014 by JI Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iansmommaya Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 I love that you use organic products in manufacturing. I think you labels are very nice. I like the refreshed logo, too. I also would love to know where you get organic soy wax. I am not a chandler so I know little about waxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WickedWineCandles Posted January 19, 2014 Author Share Posted January 19, 2014 Thank you JI. The bottles we use are collected/donated from our local area. After testing for a while, we found the bottles that we feel work best for our candles, so we are a bit more selective now-a-days.For the soy wax, we buy it from a friend of ours who runs a surf shop nearby. I will reach out to him and ask for wholesale pricing for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JI Posted January 19, 2014 Share Posted January 19, 2014 That would be great if I could get wholesale organic soy wax from him. I look forward to hearing from you on contact/wholesale info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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