A nose for luxury
Candle sales have tripled during pandemic, writes Vicky Sanderson.
It's worth listening to what Louise Abela has to say about the luxury market. Not just because she's been in the retail end of it for almost two decades, but because she was involved in a transformational moment in its evolution.
Abela was instrumental to the launch of Jo Malone London, a lifestyle brand that sold perfumes, candles, bath products and room scents, exclusively at Holt Renfrew.
Malone was one of the first independent brands to focus on fresh, unexpected floral and herbal scents. It quickly gained a huge following, revealing how ready consumers were to indulge in smaller, relatively affordable luxuries, and to embrace more bespoke scents for body and home. In 1999, just nine years after its founding, the company was bought by global conglomerate Estee Lauder.
That chapter in Abela's backstory made her a perfect fit for Kandl Artistique, a Toronto-based, family-owned, global candle-making business with almost 50 years of history. “I had an instant connection with the owners and came on board right away,” says Abela, now boutique manager and lab instructor at Kandl (www.kandl-artistique.com).
KANDL's parent company has created candles for the likes of Jonathan Adler and Estee Lauder. Designer brands like Michael Aram and Lalique candles are available for sale at KANDL and they are an exclusive Toronto store for Europerfumes, whose offering includes pieces with art by modern masters like Basquiat and Keith Haring.
An in-house Kandl Collection now anchors the offering. These are made in Mississauga, with soy wax hand-poured into glass blown in Poland. Because the signature blue vessels are handmade, each is slightly different.
Among a variety of singular fragrances is basil/lime and suede and oud, which marries the musky scent of oud (from the southeast Asian agar tree) with the woody sweetness of patchouli.
Kandl also sells slab candle-holders, long matches, snuffers and wick trimmers. There's a recycling program under which clients who return vessels get 15 per cent off their next purchase.
This summer, Kandl launched a limited-edition outdoor candle, delicately scented with pure essential oil of lemon grass and citronella. “It's a beautifully calming scent that naturally keeps bugs away,” says Abela.
What makes a $90 candle worth the investment?
“It's partly ingredients — first and foremost they are healthier. We used soy-based wax, which burns clean, and doesn't have additives. The wick is 100 per cent cotton. We do months and months of testing to make sure a candle burns properly,” she says.
Choosing candles that don't affect air quality is increasingly important to consumers, says Abela. The scent, made with pure essential oils, also distinguishes the candles from basic brands.
Candle sales have tripled during the pandemic, says Abela. “Candles create an ambience, and the scent plays a big part in the healing feelings they produce.”
Abela also runs “labs” — workshops in which participants create a signature-scented candle. During COVID, they moved online; participants were sent 15 scent samples — five top notes, five middle notes and five base notes — which were edited and combined to make a scent.
While the online lab option remains, it's now also possible to hold events at the Toronto store. (A five-person maximum applied at the time of publication).
Either way, says Arabela, participants experience “a personal journey that uses scent to evoke an emotional memory.”