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

Hi Holly, thanks for joining us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

I went through a ton of names in my head before The Wax Lab was chosen. Naming a business feels a bit like naming a kid, right? It’s going to stick forever and it needs to be fitting and you really need to love it. My other half is a Chemist and he helped me with formulations for my products. One day, it just came to me that I should be called The Wax Lab! Everyone that I ran the name by, loved it and said it was perfect!

Holly, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am 45 years old and have two wonderful kids that will be 20 & 23 this summer. I have a long term partner, Brad, and he and I have been together for 11 years. We have two mini schnauzers that I like to lovingly refer to as our “bearded brats.”

This all started from a sheer interest in the process. I would watch videos on how wax melts were made and just wonder how these people came up with their formulas and designs. Once I mentioned being mesmerized by the videos and the process to a few people, they were very excited and urged me to do it.

I took their advice and basically let it go into one ear and out the other. I honestly didn’t think I had the knack for this sort of craft, as I have never been a crafty person at all. I have tried so many craft projects over the years, and they always came out looking like a three year old made them.

I have a wonderful friend that, oddly enough, I met on Etsy! I purchased wax melts from her, and we became friends after she asked my opinion on something. I ran all of this by her, and she is the one who really gave me the push and set me up to start! She very graciously surprised me with ten pounds of wax and a ton of fragrances and told me to get to it! I quickly found myself obsessed and enjoyed every second of what I was doing. Suddenly, for the first time in my life, I felt I had creativity! I could envision something and make it come to life.

I worked with Brad on formulations for my melts. I figured since he is a Chemist, he knew what he was doing. Once we had it all figured out, it was then, that The Wax Lab was born.

I have my online shop loaded up with snapbar style wax melts in different sizes & designs, all sorts of shapes, squeezable wax, which I call “Squeezy Wax”, wax melts with crystals & herbs and many more. I offer Carpet Sprinkles and am working on adding room sprays back in to the shop. I also offer wax melts as favors for baby showers, bridal showers & bachelorette parties. I have made some beautiful melts for a few bridal showers so far, and have also made some custom melts for a couple of crystal shops!

When I started this, I knew I didn’t want to make traditional wax melts. I needed more and felt that my future customers needed more, so I got creative. I needed glitter and shimmer and bold, beautiful colors. I needed them to be highly scented. I needed to know that when I was pouring and creating, that I was adding positive intention into every melt that I made. So, that’s what I have done, and I love it so much!

I never saw myself as a business owner. I never wanted that in life. I am so glad I took this leap and am now filling people’s homes with good smells, good vibes, and all the shimmer and glitter…because no one likes a boring wax melt!

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

I would have to say social media, word of mouth and partnering with other small businesses to get your name out there.

Tik Tok has been a huge help with getting my work and name out there. You reach so many people, all over the world! I feel like I have more of a reach with that platform than any other.

Word of mouth is also a great one. Happy customers tell their friends and family, and if they’re in the market for what I offer, they will come shop with you.

Partnering with other small businesses has also been a great tool for getting noticed. I have a few other small business owners that I met over social media, and we steadily promote each other. We offer samples of each others products in our orders. It has really helped us all in gaining more attention.

How’d you think through whether to sell directly on your own site or through a platform like Amazon, Etsy, Cratejoy, etc.

I started out on Etsy, which was a wonderful platform. They really drive a lot of traffic to your shop. I wanted to have my own website eventually, so I made the switch to Shopify. While Etsy charges more in fees, they basically do all of your marketing for you, so the fees are understandable. On Shopify or any other platform like it, you really have to hustle and do your own marketing and it does take a lot of time and sometimes you have to get real creative. Luckily, my daughter is a marketing major, so she helps me out when I need it.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.waxlab22.com
• Instagram: @the.wax.lab
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/thewaxlab22
• Youtube: @thewaxlab22
• Other: Tik Tok – @the_wax_lab Pinterest – TheWaxLab22

Image Credits
Holly Whitten