USA TODAY International Edition
Jaguars LB Jack turns unusual hobby into charity venture
Jack be nimble. Jack be quick. Jack makes his own candlesticks?
That might not be exactly how the nursery rhyme goes, but it fits the booming business Jaguars linebacker Myles Jack runs out of his kitchen.
Less than two months into his first entrepreneurial venture, Jack is “overwhelmed by orders” for his hand-poured candles.
The 23-year-old picked up the hobby while looking for something new and creative to try during this offseason. He turned to Youtube tutorials and online articles for tips on how to make candles, then began experimenting with scents and dyes once he mastered the basics.
Now, every candle he sells goes toward funding for community charity events.
Jack remembers his first foray into candle making well and recalled it to USA TODAY: “I always take baths with candles … so I made my own little lavender candle. I lit it, and I was reading in the bath, and I was like, ‘Oh, OK. This candle’s actually all right.’ ”
He posted a picture of that candle to his Instagram story, and things took off.
After seeing the Microsoft commercial featuring former Titans players Michael Griffin and Brian Orakpo running their own cupcake bakery, Jack felt inspired to try his hand at operating a business. He initially took product orders through direct messages sent to his candle Instagram account, @handmade44jack, but when his inbox flooded with requests, he redirected customers to a mobile payment app. The business quickly outgrew that platform, leading Jack to upgrade to a website.
While fans jumped at the opportunity to buy a product personally made by an NFL player and meet the linebacker at TIAA Bank Field to pick up their orders, Jack’s teammates had a different reaction. Leonard Fournette and Jalen Ramsey went live on Instagram to tease Jack for making candles, and others in the locker room “were talking crazy” about his hobby.
But when Jack brought candles in to share, suddenly other Jags players were big fans.
“Some people tried to partner up with me on the business, and some people were giving me ideas. I’m like, ‘No, you were being haters at first. Now you want to team up with me.’ It’s just funny how they switched from one side to the other,” he laughed.
Of the 11 scents Jack offers, his teammates are partial to strawberry ice cream, lavender and Hawaii, while he prefers summer rain.
The success of sales allowed Jack and former Jags tight end Pharoah McKever to treat students at Jacksonville’s River City Science Academy to pizza, Capri Suns and chocolate chip cookies. The two also read to the elementary schoolers to complete the fun-filled day.
With the business continuously growing, Jack says he intends to spread the funds he raises throughout the community. He is in talks with the Boys & Girls Club and has plans to visit disabled veterans, children’s hospitals and retirement homes.
As of June 3, he had sold $11,870.50 worth of candles to customers from Australia to Denmark, according to a screenshot of order summaries posted on Instagram. Jack recently decided to increase the price of his candles from $10 to $20 after the demand exceeded his supply.
Although he did not keep track of exactly how many candles he made at the beginning, he estimates he’s nearing 1,000.