Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Beaunca Wade. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Beaunca, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

I named the brand after my grandmother, Emma. She raised me in a public housing community in Birmingham, Alabama, where her love manifested through gardens—vegetables in the backyard, roses in the front. Even when resources were limited, she cultivated beauty, nurtured our family, and upheld dignity in a world that didn’t always offer it. Naming the brand Emma Rose was my way of honoring that: the contrast of soil and softness, strength and scent, survival and grace, but more than just a tribute, the name represents a standard. Emma didn’t believe in doing anything halfway. If you were going to show up, you did so with care. You cooked with intention. You spoke with respect. You made people feel held. That’s what I want every product in this brand to carry—the energy of something poured, not just produced. Something rooted, not rushed. So yes, naming can be hard. But when it’s true, it names you back. Emma Rose isn’t just a name. It’s a legacy I’m extending, one quiet luxury product at a time.

Beaunca, 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?

It all started with Luxury Black Label a business I created during the pandemic after being furloughed from my corporate job. At a time when the world felt heavy and disconnected, I needed something that felt like purpose. I began making gifts like wax melts, self-care sets, small tokens that helped people feel seen and held. What started as care packages for friends and family slowly evolved into something more structured.

But like many first-time founders, I reached a point where I felt disconnected from the mission. I knew I could make beautiful products, but I didn’t want to just sell things—I wanted to build something that meant something. That’s when I decided to take a step back—not to shut Luxury Black Label down, but to restructure it. I turned it into the manufacturing engine, the infrastructure, the studio. And then I asked myself the deeper question: What story am I really here to tell?

That’s when Emma Rose came forward.

For a long time, I wasn’t sure my story was something worth telling. I grew up in a public housing community in Birmingham, Alabama, raised by my grandmother Emma Mae a woman who grew vegetables in the backyard, roses in the front, and carried herself with quiet pride. She created beauty from nothing, stability from survival, and rituals from routine. The more I said her name, the more I realized: this isn’t just a story it’s a legacy.

That’s how Emma Rose was born. A luxury home fragrance brand rooted in storytelling, memory, and intentional design. Through our wax melts, candles and room sprays, I created products that aren’t just fragrant they’re layered. Each one reflects a feeling, a lesson, or a piece of wisdom passed down from the women who came before me.

Luxury Black Label still exists it’s the structure, the system, the production studio. But Emma Rose is the soul. And telling her story gave me permission to tell mine.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

My journey into entrepreneurship didn’t begin with a business plan or a five-year forecast. It began with a furlough. During the pandemic, I was let go from my corporate procurement role, and like a lot of people at that time, I was trying to make sense of uncertainty. Out of that stillness, Luxury Black Label was born. At first, it was a creative outlet—a way to reconnect with purpose through making and giving. I started with candles, small batch body products, and care packages for friends and family who just needed to feel held during a difficult time. I didn’t realize I was building the foundation for a future business.

As the orders kept coming and the brand gained traction, I started taking it more seriously. I learned how to blend fragrance, package with intention, and streamline my production process. But even as the demand grew, I felt a shift in myself. I no longer wanted to just make and sell—I wanted to lead with meaning. That’s when the pivot toward Emma Rose happened.

I restructured everything. Luxury Black Label became the in-house studio—the manufacturing arm. And I started Emma Rose as a focused, emotionally rich brand rooted in my story, my grandmother’s legacy, and the values that have always guided me: beauty, intention, and softness.

Some of my biggest milestones have happened behind the scenes. Securing my WOSB certification. Blending my first private label orders. Building out my own candle lab at home. Creating four full collections that each tell a deeper part of my story. The growth hasn’t been overnight and its still being built it will be layered, intentional, and deeply aligned.

So yes—what started as a side hustle became my main focus. But more importantly, it became my mission.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

What started as a side hustle definitely grew into something deeper but, not in the way social media makes it look. I started with wax melts, not candles. No logo. No grand strategy. Just me in my kitchen, trying to figure out how to turn grief, stress, and uncertainty into something people could hold in their hands.

It began during the pandemic, after I was furloughed from my corporate procurement role. I needed something that gave me structure. Something that felt like purpose. I started pouring wax melts for friends and family—then for friends of friends. Orders picked up. I saw potential. And like many new entrepreneurs, I thought momentum meant I was ready to scale.

But the truth? I learned the hard way.

There were pop-up markets where I didn’t make half of what I expected. Collections I was so excited to launch; only to be met with silence. Shelves full of overstock that I thought would sell out in a weekend. And more than once, I questioned if I should just give it all up. I’ve cried over shipping labels. I’ve wondered if people really saw what I was building. I’ve sat with inventory that didn’t move and doubt that wouldn’t quit.

But even in those moments, I kept coming back to the why. I thought about the women like me—who grew up learning to survive, but not necessarily how to dream big or launch a brand. I thought about my grandmother Emma. About legacy. About the kind of brand I wished existed when I needed it.

That’s what pulled me out of the fog and led to the evolution of Emma Rose.

I turned Luxury Black Label into my production studio and reframed my entire approach. I stopped chasing hype and started building with intention. That decision changed everything.

So no, this didn’t go viral. I didn’t sell out overnight. But I built something rooted. And that’s what I want people to know. You’re not failing just because it’s hard. You’re not behind because it’s taking time. If you’re building with heart, you’re already further along than you think.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.luxuryblacklabel.com
• Instagram: @luxuryblacklabel
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beaunca-wade-458154249

Image Credits

Brian Pride