Candles with Character

IN A YEAR which has witnessed major disruptions to events such as weddings, christenings and funerals, a family-run candle company has defied the odds by prospering.

Maureen and Michelle Myatt are the mother and daughter team behind Candles With Character, a producer of personalised candles from their home base in Ballyalla. Maureen took on the business following a chance discussion with her friends Mary Naughton Foley and Barry Foley, owners of The Candle Emporium.

With the Foleys deciding to expand their model into a wholesale business, the opportunity to acquire the personalised candle offering came about in early 2018. The relationship continues with The Candle Emporium supplying materials to Candles With Character.

“We changed one room in our home to an office-slash-candle making room,” explains Maureen. The pair had no business background but with the guidance of the Foleys and a passion to build the business, Candles With Character has grown a strong local customer base in the last two years. They offer an extremely personalised service to help customers get the perfect end product, with a short turnaround time. All was going to plan until along came 2020’s unique set of challenges.

“Weddings and Christenings would take up most of our time and obviously they’ve been cancelled for a long time,” explains Michelle, who was forced to postpone her own wedding this year.

The pair admit that while it’s been a challenging year, there has been a silver lining. With no shop front as such, the re-set allowed them to focus on building a new website.

“We always had a website but it wasn’t great, there were a number of issues when it came to design and ordering. Then we got Aimee Mc design [run by Amy McMahon] to produce the new website with the LEO Clare trading online grant. She gave us a new website and tutorials on how to add new products and fix any problems that we had, she’s been great.”

The website went live in June and Maureen and Michelle are seeing the benefits already. “Before we had the website we were promoting everything on Facebook so now we find there aren’t half as many calls or messages on Facebook because people are going straight to the website.”

Michelle, who also works as a nurse at Cois Mara in Spanish Point, adds that the ‘support local’ message appears to be hitting home with the public with an increased interest in Christmas products noted, “Christmas candles have been very popular this Christmas, people have thank God been really good this Christmas, a lot who have rang have just said they want to support local.”

With the potential return to normality predicted by some to arrive next year, Candles With Character are expecting an upturn in fortunes and hope their success will burn long into the future.

This article is part of the Click for Clare initiative by The Clare Echo and Local Enterprise Office Clare. To visit Candles with Character click here. To shop online in Clare click here.

Related News

stephen keogh 1
Clonlara's Keogh appointed to Charities Regulator Board
agriculture hay bales farm 1
Acres Scheme has let down farmers in North Clare
mayoral awards flan brennan paul murphy marie roche cecelia o'sullivan pat daly 1
'Priceless volunteers' honoured at Ennis mayoral reception
kilkee signs 06-09-19 1 drive warning
Drivers coming into Kilkee from Miltown Rd 'at frightening speed'
Latest News
agriculture hay bales farm 1
Acres Scheme has let down farmers in North Clare
newmarket celtic 1
Newmarket Celtic carve out more history by claiming Munster Champions Cup
clare v kilkenny 10-03-24 brian lohan 1
Limerick still 'head and shoulders' above the rest - Lohan
mayoral awards flan brennan paul murphy marie roche cecelia o'sullivan pat daly 1
'Priceless volunteers' honoured at Ennis mayoral reception
feakle v clooney quin 09-03-24 enda noonan shane mcnamara 1
Winning Clare Cup starts for Feakle, Bridge, Blues, Inamona & Scariff
Premium
mayoral awards flan brennan paul murphy marie roche cecelia o'sullivan pat daly 1
'Priceless volunteers' honoured at Ennis mayoral reception
feakle v clooney quin 09-03-24 enda noonan shane mcnamara 1
Winning Clare Cup starts for Feakle, Bridge, Blues, Inamona & Scariff
clare v kilkenny 10-03-24 peter duggan cian kenny 1
Clare on track for league semi-finals with Kilkenny win
stephanie fitzpatrick
Ennistymon man 'drank all day' before fatal crash that killed his girlfriend Stephanie Fitzpatrick
roadworks o'connell square ennis 07-03-24 2
Local media not helping Ennis' reputation with negative stories says senior Council official

Subscribe for just €3 per month

If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.

Subscribe for just €3 per month

If you’re here, you care about County Clare. So do we. Did you rely on us for Covid-19 updates, follow our election coverage, or visit The Clare Echo every week for breaking news and sport? The Clare Echo invests in local journalism and we want to safeguard its future in our county. By becoming a subscriber you are supporting what we do, will receive access to all our premium articles and a better experience, while helping us improve our offering to you. Subscribe to clareecho.ie and get the first six months for just €3 a month (less than 75c per week), and thereafter €8 per month. Cancel anytime, limited time offer. T&Cs Apply. www.clareecho.ie.

Scroll to Top