Love, joy, and hard work are just a few of the building blocks that have shaped Candles By Victoria into what it is today. Located on Main Street across from the infamous Dinner Bell, this country home candle store is paving the way for a bright future.
Victoria Elliott, mother of sophomore Chelsea Elliott, has operated Candles By Victoria for eight years. Although the store is a gift, it’s definitely not her main source. For six years, Internet business was strictly all she had. Shipping all over the U.S and Canada, Internet has been her main stream of income.
Starting on her kitchen stove and eventually moving to a building in the backyard, Victoria made candles her living.
Victoria, as a young girl, loved candles. The smell and different aromas were what drew her in. After receiving a candle from a supplier, Victoria noticed that the candle was not suited to her liking. That’s when she decided it was time for the people to get the perfect candle.
She searched the web and ordered a candle making kit, hoping to find a way to change the ordinary candle. After months of trial and error, testing and reformulating, she discovered what would be the rest of her life.
In March of 2000, Candles By Victoria website went live and was open for business. Victoria had started from scratch, creating the website herself. Prior to getting into the candle business, Victoria had been a web designer, and graphic artist and knew all about the business and creating a website. Starting with a few fragrances and the basic jelly jar candle, Candles By Victoria was born.
For Victoria, life in the candle business has not always been the way it is now. Though her Internet sales are what keep her going, the sell of candles are not all she has to offer. Message boards, a monthly newsletter and weekly candle give-away are just a few of things that Candles By Victoria has to offer. The website also sells candle warmers, candle warmers are used to replace the flame, instead of lighting the candle, the candle sits and melts inside of the warmer, giving off the same aroma as a lit candle. Candles By Victoria also offers scented potpourri, both are good alternatives for those who cannot burn candles.
The site also offers a monthly name that scent contest. Victoria gives her customers a fragrance combination, and the customers conjure up a name for that particular combination and submit it. The winner receives twenty dollars in free candles. For more information and details, visit www.candlesbyvictoria.com.
In 2006, Victoria opened her first store in the little town of Mt. Sylvan, twelve miles west of Lindale, Texas, right off highway 110. The Alamo shaped building became the first Candles By Victoria Store. The store took months of preparation and dedicated before it opened in June 2006. “It really was not hard opening my first store.” said Victoria, “I had prepared for six years to open the store and make my dream come true.”
Though, a year later, due to a not so great location, the decision was made and the store was relocated to Van, Texas in January of 2007, and has been going strong ever since.
Candles By Victoria has come a long way, from Victoria’s kitchen stove, to a small country store in Van, Texas; life has changed for Victoria and her family. Her daughter, Chelsea, has done her fair share of helping out in the store. Late night packing for Internet orders and helping with the opening of the store, Chelsea has always been there for her Mom. Victoria’s oldest daughter Melissa, twenty-two, has also been part of the candle business. Starting in her teen years, Melissa has helped with the building of the business and helped all throughout her high school years. Now living in Dallas with her fiancé, Melissa still makes time to come and visit the country store.
It’s always been three independent woman who strive to make the store the best it can be, and help make one woman’s dream come true.
“What I love most about making and selling candles for thousands of customers is the flexibility I have of working for myself. I love making other people happy with a great smelling candle and the aroma that makes a house a home.”
Making a house a home is just what Candles By Victoria’s candles do, with over 400 different fragrances, the sweet scents are what make Victoria’s candles extra ordinary.
“I love the candles.,” said Chelsea, Victoria’s daughter, “I love the smell, and the way they just turn the whole house into a pool of whatever that scent may be at the time. I am extremely proud of my Mom. She has come a long way and is such an inspirational woman. She is not only my mom, but also my best friend, my confidant, and I love her so much. She is the candle woman to all my friends, and I love being the one who can say that.”
Hard work, and dedication have pushed Victoria’s business into what it is today. For six years, opening a store was a dream that had always filled Victoria’s heart, and now, she has fulfilled that dream. Candles By Victoria is an image of what true dedication and courage can do.
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