MAGICAL AROMA
Theme-park scents spark creation of Celebration-based candle company
Keith Mahne and his wife, Stephanie Mahne, were visiting Florida from New Orleans when a specific scent in the lobby of a high-end Orlando area resort captivated them.
“It was a green clover and aloe scent,” Keith Mahne said. “We thought, ‘We really want our house to smell like this.’”
The couple wanted to capture that smell and the nostalgia it inspired, so they set out on a quest to turn the aroma into a candle.
They began by researching all things candles — from how to make one to the different types of wicks and wax. They tried to replicate the fragrance from their Florida vacation, and through trial and error their first scent, “Contemporary,” was born.
After creating their first candle, the Mahnes thought, “there’s probably a lot of other people out there who probably want the same thing, and that’s how it all began.”
The duo founded the Magic Candle Co. in 2017, taking scents
inspired by theme park attractions, resorts and food and crafting it into candles — there are also a few original creations, like “Walt’s Office.” Keith Mahne, the company’s president, and Stephanie Mahne, the vice president, said their Celebration based firm marks its one year anniversary today, Oct. 1.
As for the scent that sparked it all, Keith Mahne said it’s “one of our top sellers, and when you smell it, you’re immediately brought back.”
“Our sense of smell is actually the strongest of the five senses in terms of memory, so if we can develop something that sparks that nostalgia, then we feel like we have a winner there,” he said.
In addition to candles, the company also sells car air fresheners, room sprays, wax melts and the newly released enchanted fragrance oils. All are produced in the couple’s home-based facility in Celebration and can be purchased online at magiccandlecompany.com.
The 44-scent inventory includes “Haunted,” themed to a haunted house with a musty cedarwood and vanilla scent, and “Flying Over Orange Groves” — which packs a powerful orange punch, similar to a popular theme park ride. The Mahnes try to add a new variety every month or two and recently developed the fall-inspired “Pumpkin King” and “Poison Apple” products.
When researching a fragrance, the couple heads to the new scent’s location and takes notes, which are sent to their perfumer. She then develops the aroma, and after some back and forth, a new Magic Candle Co. product is born.
“When you smell a candle or you smell a fragrance oil or a room spray and you’re brought back to that location, when that happens, we feel like we have a winner,” Keith Mahne said.
“Next, we want to expand to a storefront location, something near tourists … something where our customers can come in and meet us directly, experience our fragrances before they purchase,” Keith Mahne said.
The Mahnes said they have a long list of aromas to pursue, but they welcome other suggestions at info@magiccandlecompany.com.