We recently connected with Camille Todaro and have shared our conversation below.

Camille , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?

I didn’t want to be just another candle company with cliché labels. Each candle says things that are uniquely human and relatable. Our Cancer zodiac candle reads, “I like you and then I don’t,” because it’s totally normal to get irritated with people. Our more mature candle labels like “New
Dick Glow” are particularly popular among divorcees or those going through a breakup. And “Quarter-Life Crisis” is popular among college grads because well, not everyone knows what they want to do yet in their twenties.

Camille , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hi, I’m Camille. If I had to describe my company Angsty Addie in one word, it’s that we do existential aromatherapy. We offer 100% soy candles, perfumes and other smell-good products with an existential twist.

I didn’t want to be just another candle company; I wanted to be different. Each candle says things that are uniquely human. Our Cancer zodiac candle reads, “I like you and then I don’t,” because, sometimes, we get tired of people. Our Quarter-Life Crisis candle is popular among new college grads because, well, not everyone knows what they want to do yet at that age.

My background is in print media. I’ve written for national and regional magazines, but when COVID hit, it really put a damper on the already dwindling print media industry. Watching my friends and family be laid off and furloughed was the driving factor in me starting a business; I
didn’t want to be at the mercy of some company. Then, I myself lost some retainer clients and it forced me to pivot and think of other ways to monetize. I knew that I wanted to be mobile and not be chained to a desk everyday. I also knew that a lot of my observations—my comical view
of them—could be parlayed into a product.

Do you donate or work with charity?
Yes. We recently launched a fleet of products that donate a portion of the proceeds to Naral North America . Our Mine tank-top was very popular following the overturning of Roe VS. Wade.

We also have tanks that draw criticism to the ongoing gun violence epidemic plaguing schoolchildren, those donate a portion of the proceeds to everytown.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

When you’re first starting out, many times you don’t have the capital to hire an ad agency to do campaigns for you. You also don’t have the money for sleek packaging. Or a social media manager and SEO whiz. You are essentially wearing all the hats. But, you also have complete
control over the direction of the business. It’s a bittersweet symphony.

My favorite saying is “Pain into progression.” That didn’t ring more true until the pandemic. It’s no secret COVID brought many people to their knees, but I took the time to build. I pretty much worked around the clock on my business. I took my laptop everywhere with me, even the dog park. If it wasn’t SEO I was working on, I was learning how to do an ad campaign on Google. I was building my email list. I was applying to wholesale marketplaces. Time is a finite resource that we can’t get back, so instead of sulking, I used the time effectively.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

The beauty of e-commerce is that there’s low startup costs. You have no brick and mortar expenses like utilities and rent. What you do have are fees and simple overhead to create your products. I haven’t borrowed any money to build mine, it’s completely bootstrapped. If you can, I think that’s the best way to do it. I always like to start small especially when launching a new product because you’re not sure how it’s going to pan out. Also, many wholesale sites offer no MOQ, which is great for small businesses that have super small budgets, if any at all. Consistency is key. I am a firm believer in small steps everyday for a greater outcome. You are the sum of your efforts.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://angstyaddie.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angsty_addie/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angstyaddie