How to Get Your Candles Into Stores: Wholesaling and Consignment, Start to Finish

Selling at markets is a great start, but stores put your candles in front of buyers every day without you standing behind a table. This guide walks through the whole process: the difference between wholesaling and consignment, how to price so you still make money, how to find and approach shops, what to say, what to put in writing, and how to turn one yes into reorders. By the end you will have a plan you can act on this week.

1. Wholesale vs consignment: the difference in plain English

These are the two ways a store can carry your candles, and they are very different deals. In both cases the store sells your candle to a customer at a retail price. What changes is who owns the candles while they sit on the shelf, when you get paid, and who loses out if they do not sell.

Wholesale means the store buys your candles from you outright, usually at about half the retail price, and then sells them at whatever retail price they choose. Once they pay you, the candles are theirs. If a candle never sells, that is the store’s problem, not yours.

Consignment means the store puts your candles on their shelves but does not buy them. You still own them. The store only pays you after a customer buys one, and the two of you split the sale. If a candle never sells, you take it back — and you have tied up your stock and your money in the meantime.

Which one suits you?

Choose wholesale when your candles already sell well (at markets, online, or to friends), you can make a batch of 12, 24, or more at once, and you need the money back quickly to buy more supplies. Wholesale is the goal for most makers because it is simpler and safer for you.

Choose consignment when you are just starting out and have no sales history to show a buyer, when a store likes your candles but will not risk buying stock from an unknown maker, or when you want to test whether a particular shop’s customers actually buy your style. Treat consignment as a trial, not a permanent arrangement: agree a review date (say, 60 or 90 days) and decide together whether it converts to wholesale or ends.

A mix is normal. Many makers wholesale to two or three confident stores and consign to one or two trial shops at the same time. Just keep track of which deal applies where — a notebook, a spreadsheet, or a tracking tool will save you from confusion later.

2. Get retail-ready before you approach anyone

Buyers decide fast, and they decide on professionalism as much as on scent. Before you contact a single store, get these four things in order.

Price so wholesale still leaves a profit

This is the mistake that sinks most new wholesale makers: they price for selling one candle at a time to a friend, then discover the wholesale price barely covers their costs. Work it backward from your costs, not forward from a price that feels nice.

Here is a short worked example. These are example numbers only — run your own through the calculator linked below.

• Your cost per candle, all in (wax, fragrance, wick, vessel, label, packaging, and your time): $8.50
• Retail price you want the customer to pay: $28
• Wholesale price at around 50% of retail: $14
• Your profit per wholesale candle: $14 minus $8.50 = $5.50

If that profit looks too thin, you have three honest options: raise the retail price, lower your costs, or do not wholesale that candle yet. What you must not do is accept a wholesale price below your true cost and hope volume makes up for it — it never does. Run your real numbers through our free Candle Pricing Calculator first, and include your time: a candle that pays for its wax but not for your afternoon is not a business.

Consistent labeling

Every candle going into a store needs the same clean, finished look: your business name, the product name, the scent, the size or weight, and any safety or warning information your local rules require. Labels should be straight, fully stuck down, and identical from candle to candle — a buyer judging a shelf of your products will notice one crooked label. If you are unsure about labeling rules in your area, check your local requirements before your first delivery rather than after a store asks.

Barcodes: only if the store requires them

Most small independent shops do not need barcodes — they ring sales up by price or by a simple till code. Larger stores and chains often do require them. Do not spend money on barcodes before anyone asks. If a store does require them, ask exactly what format they need, and only then look into getting them.

A note on insurance

Some stores will ask whether you carry product-liability insurance before they stock your candles, and some will not. Insurance covers you if a customer ever claims your product caused harm — it is about protecting your business, not just ticking a store’s box. If you do not have it yet, look into product-liability cover for candle makers and get a quote before you start approaching stores, so a buyer’s question never catches you unprepared. Keep your policy details somewhere you can find them quickly when a store asks.

3. Finding the right stores

Start local. Your first stores should be places you can drive to, because you will be delivering, restocking, and checking in in person — and because a local buyer who meets you is far more likely to say yes than a stranger reading an email from three states away.

Look for shops whose customers already buy things like candles:

• Gift shops and boutiques — the most natural fit, and usually the most open to local makers
• Home-goods and decor shops — candles sit naturally next to the rest of their range
• Salons and spas — scent is part of their atmosphere, and customers buy what they smell
• Bookstores — especially ones with a gift section; a candle pairs well with a book as a gift
• Farm stands and farmers-market shops — if you already sell at markets, ask the shops near your stall
• Coffee shops — some sell retail goods alongside drinks, especially local and handmade ones

Before you contact any shop, research it. Visit first, as a customer. Notice what candles they already carry, what price range they sit in, and whether your candles would fit or clash. A shop selling $45 luxury candles is not the place for your $14 everyday candle, and a shop full of bright novelty gifts is not the place for your minimal apothecary line. Your pitch gets ten times stronger when you can say, “I noticed you carry X and Y, and my candles sit right in that same price range.”

4. How to approach stores: email, phone, and walk-in

There are three ways in, and all three work. Email is the least disruptive, the phone is the fastest, and walking in with samples is the hardest to ignore. Pick the one that suits the shop — and your nerve. Whichever you choose, keep it short, specific, and about them, not about you.

Email: the low-pressure opener

Email works best when you have the buyer’s name and the shop has an email address on its website or social media. Keep it under 150 words. Attach nothing on the first email except, at most, one photo — large attachments from strangers often go unopened. Your goal is a reply, not a sale.

If you hear nothing in a week, send one polite follow-up: “Just floating this back up in case it got buried — happy to drop samples off any time that suits you.” One follow-up is professional. Three is pestering.

Phone: the fastest yes or no

Call during quiet hours — weekday mornings are usually better than Saturday afternoons. Ask for the buyer by name if you know it. If you get a staff member, do not pitch to them; ask when the buyer is in and call back then.

Walk-in: the hardest to ignore

Walking in with samples is the most effective approach for local shops, and the most nerve-wracking. Here is how to do it well.

What to bring: two or three of your best-selling candles (lit or unlit — ask first before lighting anything in someone else’s shop), a one-page line sheet, and a wholesale terms sheet. Put them in a clean bag or box, not a carrier bag. Dress like you already run a business, because you do.

Best times to visit: weekday mornings or quiet afternoons, never during a lunch rush, a sale event, or the last hour before closing. Tuesday through Thursday mornings are usually the calmest.

What to say: “Hi, I’m [your name] from [your business] in [your town]. I make candles and I was hoping to leave a couple of samples and a line sheet for whoever does your buying. Is there a good time to come back and chat for five minutes?” Short, polite, and easy to say yes to.

If the buyer isn’t there: leave the samples and line sheet with your name and number, ask when the buyer is next in, and follow up by phone or email a few days later. Never leave stock on consignment without an agreement — samples are free, stock is business.

5. The pitch: what buyers actually care about

Buyers are not buying your candle. They are buying something that will sell in their shop, at a profit, without causing them extra work. Everything in your pitch should answer one of these four questions:

• Will it sell? Show proof: your best sellers, your market sales, your repeat customers, your reviews. “This scent outsells everything else I make three to one” beats “I love this scent” every time.
• Is the margin right? State your wholesale price and suggested retail price clearly, so the buyer can see their profit in one glance. Do not make them do the math.
• Is reordering easy? Tell them your lead time, your minimum reorder, and how to order (email, phone, or a simple form). A buyer who cannot reorder easily will not reorder at all.
• What is the story, in one line? Buyers retell your story to customers. Give them one sentence they can repeat: “Small-batch soy candles poured in [town], in reusable glass.” That is enough.

What to leave out: your life story, how hard candle making is, every scent you have ever made, and any apology for being small. Confidence sells. You are not asking for a favor — you are offering a product that will make their shop money.

6. Your line sheet: the one page that sells for you

A line sheet is a single page listing everything a buyer needs to place an order. It is the most important document in this whole process — buyers keep them, compare them, and order from them. Make one, keep it to one page, and update it whenever a price or scent changes.

Every line sheet needs:

• Your business name, contact name, phone, email, and website
• Product names, scents, and sizes (with a short description of each)
• Wholesale price per unit and suggested retail price per unit
• Minimum opening order and minimum reorder (in units or in money — state which)
• Case packs (how many candles come in a case, if you sell by the case)
• Lead time (how long from order to delivery)
• Payment terms (for example: payment on delivery, or payment within 30 days — see the terms section below)
• How to reorder (email, phone, or order form) and your delivery area or shipping terms

Below the table, your line sheet states: minimum opening order 12 units (mixed scents welcome), reorders 6 units minimum, lead time 7 to 10 business days, payment on delivery for new accounts. Those last four lines prevent more misunderstandings than anything else on the page.

7. Sample agreements: get it in writing

Never leave stock in a store on a handshake. A short written agreement protects both sides: you know when and how you get paid, and the store knows what it is committing to. You do not need a long legal document — one clear page each is enough for most small-shop arrangements. Adapt the samples below to your situation, fill in the blanks, and have both sides sign and keep a copy.

A warning from real makers: the most painful consignment stories are not about slow sales — they are about damaged stock. Makers have dropped candles off in good condition, only to find them chipped, dusty, or broken later, with the shop owner refusing to take responsibility — and the maker absorbing the loss. That is exactly what the damage clause and the inventory sheet below are for. Never let a store wave the paperwork away with “we’ll look after them, don’t worry.” If it is not written down, it did not happen.

Sample consignment agreement

Sample wholesale terms

Two habits make these agreements work in real life. First, attach an inventory sheet to every consignment delivery — a dated list of exactly what you left, in what quantities — and have the store initial it. Second, keep a copy of every signed agreement where you can find it. The agreement you cannot find is the agreement you do not have.

8. After the yes: delivery, merchandising, and reorders

Getting the yes is the start, not the finish. Stores that reorder are worth far more than stores that buy once, and reorders come from makers who make life easy for the buyer.

Delivering

Deliver on the day you promised, in clean packaging, with the candles counted and matching your delivery note. If anything is short or delayed, tell the store before they discover it themselves. First impressions on delivery set the tone for the whole relationship.

Merchandising tips

• Shelf placement: Offer to help set up the first display. Candles sell best at eye level, grouped by scent family, with labels facing out. A jumbled shelf is a shelf customers walk past.
• Tester policy: Offer one tester of your best seller, clearly labeled as a tester, so customers can smell before they buy. Agree in advance whether testers are free or charged — and write it down.
• Signage: A small sign with your business name, your town, and one line about your candles (“Small-batch soy, poured in [town]”) helps customers connect with the product and helps the store sell it without a staff member explaining it.
• Keep it full: A half-empty display looks like a failing product. Check stock on every visit and top it up before it runs out.

Getting reorders

Do not wait for the store to call you. Check in two to three weeks after the first delivery: “How are the candles moving? Anything selling faster than the rest?” If something is selling well, suggest a reorder on the spot. If something is not selling, ask why — wrong scent for their customers, wrong spot on the shelf, wrong price — and fix it if you can. A maker who follows up gets reorders; a maker who disappears gets forgotten.

For consignment accounts, follow up on the same rhythm, and always reconcile before you ask for payment: “Here is what I count as sold this month — does that match your records?” Matching records first prevents every awkward money conversation later.

Tracking store accounts

Once you have more than one or two stores, memory stops being enough. Track each account: what you delivered, what sold, what is still on the shelf, what you are owed, and when you last checked in. Our free Makers Market Inventory Tracker helps you track products, stock, and sales in one place, and the Batch Cost Log keeps your batch costs straight so you know what each store’s stock actually cost you. Whatever system you use, update it on delivery day, not at the end of the month when you have forgotten the details.

9. Common mistakes

• Underpricing. The most common and most expensive mistake. If wholesale leaves you nothing after costs and time, raise the price or do not wholesale that product. A cheap candle that loses money is not a foot in the door — it is a trap.
• Saying yes to bad terms. A store that wants 90 days to pay, unlimited returns, and your lowest price is not doing you a favor. It is fine to say, “My terms are payment on delivery for new accounts — I can revisit that after a few good orders.” Good stores respect clear terms.
• Consigning everywhere with no follow-up. Ten consignment shops you never visit are ten piles of stock earning nothing. Start with a few accounts you can actually visit and look after, and grow from there.
• No reorder system. If you have no list of who stocks what and when you last checked in, reorders happen by luck. A simple tracking habit is worth more than a clever sales pitch.
• Skipping the paperwork. No agreement, no inventory sheet, no delivery note. Everything is friendly until money is involved — and then the paperwork is the friendship.
• Trusting a verbal promise on damaged stock. “We’ll look after them” is not a damage policy. If the agreement does not say who pays when a candle gets chipped, dusty, or broken on the shop floor, assume you do. Get the damage clause and a signed, dated inventory sheet (with photos) before a single candle stays in the store.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an LLC first?

Not necessarily. Many makers start wholesaling as sole proprietors, and many small shops are happy with that. A limited liability company (LLC) is mainly about separating your personal assets from your business — it is a business-structure decision, not a requirement for selling to stores in most cases. Some larger stores may ask about your business setup, and requirements vary by location, so check your local rules and get professional advice if you are unsure. Do not let “I don’t have an LLC yet” stop you from approaching your first local shop.

How many stores should I start with?

Three to five is a sensible first goal. That is enough to learn what works without spreading your stock, your time, and your attention so thin that no account gets looked after. Once those accounts are reordering smoothly, add more.

What if a store never pays?

Start friendly and in writing: a polite reminder with the invoice attached, then a second note with a clear deadline. If that fails, stop shipping new stock until the account is settled, and keep every email and delivery note. As a last resort, small claims processes exist for exactly this kind of unpaid invoice — that is general information, not legal advice, and the right step depends on your situation and location. The best protection is prevention: clear payment terms in writing, and no new deliveries while an invoice is overdue.

What if my products don’t sell in a store?

First, find out why before you pull them. Visit the shop, look at the display, and ask the staff what customers say. Common fixes: a better shelf position, a tester, a different scent mix, or a seasonal swap. If a product genuinely does not fit that shop’s customers, pull it gracefully, thank the buyer, and try a different product or a different shop. A product that flops in one store often sells well in another — the shop was wrong, not the candle.

Your first-week action plan

1. Run your real numbers through the Candle Pricing Calculator and set one wholesale price and one suggested retail price.
2. Write your one-page line sheet, using the list in section 6.
3. Make your target list of 10 to 15 local shops, and visit five of them as a customer this week.
4. Pick your best three candles, prepare samples, and send your first email or make your first call.
5. When a store says yes, use a written agreement, attach an inventory sheet for consignment, and set a follow-up date before you leave.

Getting into stores is not about one perfect pitch. It is about a good product, a fair price, a short honest approach, and following up. Do those four things, shop after shop, and several stores carrying your candles is a realistic goal — not a lucky break.