We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Joseph Atkinson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Joseph, appreciate you joining us today. Do you wish you had waited to pursue your creative career or do you wish you had started sooner?
I think I started my creative career at the correct time in my life, but I do sometimes wish I started it earlier. I officially started my creative career after I finished my graduate degree because life was starting to slow down, and I had more free time than ever before. Starting sooner would have given me more time to learn and master my craft. I might have had the chance to experiment with different techniques and formulations, possibly quickening the learning curve and enhancing the quality of my candles. I imagine I would be more confident in my work and managing all the business practices. I could have tried different methods and made better candles and other products. An earlier start might have helped me build stronger relationships with customers, a better reputation, and make more connections with more people in the business. A part of me believes even though I’m happy with where I am now, I can’t help but wonder about the opportunities I might have had with an earlier start.
In reality, there is no way I could have started my creative career sooner. If I did, I might have never graduated with my master’s degree, moved to Federal Hill, and who knows Jwhey & Co. might have been a completely different creative project. I do trust that things happen for a reason when they are supposed to. I was meant to start my creative career at this exact time and I remain grateful for the present and optimistic about the future of my creative venture.
Joseph, 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?
My name is Joseph Atkinson, and I was born and raised in Baltimore, MD. I grew up and lived in Hampden most of my life and moved to the Federal Hill area in 2019, with my boyfriend and corgi, named Tobin. I have always enjoyed candles, especially during the COVID quarantine in 2020, because like everyone I was stuck at home and had nowhere to go, I wanted my house to smell lovely at all times. During the pandemic, I was purchasing and using a couple of candles per week. I would buy candles online from Etsy, local shops, and some from general local retail stores like Bath & Body, Target, Yankee Candle, etc.
After a few months of searching and researching different scented candles, I realized I could just make my own candles. Which I did! I found many popular candles on the market are made with toxins and artificial alternatives. When candles burn, those toxins produce harmful by-products in the air of the surrounding environment. This is harmful and unhealthy to all people and pets. I decided I needed to find a healthy alternative, which is why we make our candles out of only soy wax and essential oils. Soy wax contains nothing artificial and is non-toxic making it better for the environment and our health. The natural essential oils used in our candles offer health benefits that promote mental and physical well-being. We tested different scent combinations and developed three signature candle scents – Vanilla Teakwood, Lavender Eucalyptus, and Bergamot Cedar Wood.
Before I knew it, I did not have enough space to store all the candles I was making. So, toward the end of 2022, I started giving out my candles to my family and friends as gifts and received an overwhelming amount of positive feedback. Their support and encouragement really pushed me to start Jwhey & Co. Toward the end of 2023, I did research on starting a business and what was needed to get the ball rolling. I came up with the name Jwhey & Co. partially because it sounds similar to my name Joey, but I also think it is just fun to say. A few people have asked me how to pronounce “Jwhey” and why I choose it, which I appreciate because it gets the conversation started and I get to tell them some of my story. I wanted a logo that would bring people joy and my immediate thought at what brings me joy is my 6-year-old corgi, Tobin. He is my everything and making him my logo has celebrated and eternalized him. I am so happy with how the logo turned out because I drew it myself.
In early 2023, I filed the LLC for Jwhey & Co. and published our website. Now we are in the early stages of making partnerships with other local businesses and developing a plan to sell our products to local vendors. Along with our candles, we also started making all-natural, wax melts, essential oil air fresheners, hand sanitizer, and Jwhey & Co. re-useable bags. Our candles come in a few different sizes: 8 oz, 13.5 oz, and a three-pack of 2 oz candles (one of each scent).
All candle jars are made of 50% recyclable glass and all candle wicks are natural and eco-friendly. We believe that eco-friendliness is a way of life. Jwhey & Co. is constantly looking to innovate and explore new ways to reduce our impact on the planet. Our candles are made from all-natural, renewable materials that are not harmful to the environment. So, we hope you light up a candle and enjoy the warm glow of our guilt-free indulgent aromas.
Jwhey and Co.’s website launched in early April 2023, with pre-sales and now we are officially live! We are starting to build connections with local small businesses in Baltimore and throughout Maryland. Keep a lookout for us and our cute corgi logo. And remember to shop at small businesses, whenever you can! Our Instagram page is the best resource to stay updated and learn about discounts and sales, and new products. You can follow us @jwheyandco and check out our website www.jwheyandco.com.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
The biggest lesson I had to unlearn has been that it is okay to make mistakes in business. Mistakes and problems lead to learning opportunities. Initially, I believed that any mistake I was making was an automatic failure. This caused me to be more selective when taking risks. However, the early stages of starting Jwhey & Co. reshaped my perspective. Early in Jwhey & Co.’s journey, we launched a line of scented candles without fully evaluating market and audience preferences. The initial response wasn’t as positive as anticipated. Instead of dwelling on this as a failure, we conducted thorough customer feedback surveys, listened to reviews, and used these new insights to refine our candles and other products. We are now testing new seasonal scents and allow our customers to make their own candle scents online. This process not only improved our candles but also strengthened our customer relationships.
This shift in mindset, from fearing mistakes to understanding they are learning opportunities, has become essential in our company plan and practices. It encourages me to experiment with new products, fosters my creativity, and has led to the development of some of our most successful products. Today, I embrace mistakes as a part of Jwhey & Co’s innovation, understanding that mistakes can push us forward rather than hold us back. I think it is important to take risks.
Have you ever had to pivot?
The summer after I graduated college, I had an opportunity to move to Wisconsin. I did not go away for college; I stayed local in the Baltimore area. So, I thought if I did not take this chance and move, I would one day regret it. I moved to a town about 25 miles from the Green Bay area, home of the Packers. I drove from Baltimore to Wisconsin in late August. Part of me was relaxed and not stressed because I already had an apartment ready and a new job that I was starting on Monday. But another part of me was very homesick. In all, this was a major life pivot for me. It was a lot of change all at once. I had just finished my undergrad degree, and started a new job, it was the first time I had moved away from my family, and moved to a new place, where I had to worry about deer driving on the road at night, mowing the lawn, and extreme cold weather. It was very different from I place I grew up in Baltimore, it was all new. That Monday when I went to orientation for my new job, I realized very quickly that it was not the job for me. In all of the stress of that week, I decided to get a puppy. By the next Monday, I quit my new job. I refused to be unhappy and I had a new fur-baby that needed my full-time attention. I got my dream dog, a Pembroke Welsh Corgi, and named him Tobin (the logo and story of Jwhey & Co.) Also, I had a part-time job and thought I could easily find work again since I just graduated….I quickly realized that was untrue. It took one month to get my first interview for a random job I did not want and took me almost three months to finally find the perfect job. I got hired to work in the accreditation department as a coordinator for a pharmaceutical company. This was another pivot for me but in my career. I went from working in human resources at a credit union to working in accreditation at a pharmaceutical company. What I lacked in experience, I had in knowledge. I graduated with a degree in healthcare management. My main job duties were to research and project manage. I liked the organization; it was a great job and I enjoyed all my co-workers. My co-workers became my friends during my time there. After nine cold months in Wisconsin, in May I packed up the car with Tobin in the passenger seat, and we picked up my sister in Chicago and drove back to Baltimore. Thankfully, I went back to working full-time in HR at the credit union and moved back in with my parents, until Tobin and I could find our own place.
I am thankful for those nine months in Wisconsin and for making the decision to move. Although I did not end up staying there, I learned so much about myself during that short time. I moved because I saw more growth opportunities for me back in Baltimore and I missed my family and friends. I made important decisions and looking back – it all was meant to be. During that time, I really grew up. I trained a puppy, realized human resources was the career path I wanted to pursue, and was even closer to my family and friends. I really appreciate my time in Wisconsin because I felt so close to my family and friends, more than ever before. Especially my parents, because when you move out and are on your own you appreciate the things your parents did for you, even the little things. Life becomes real; fast. I am so blessed to have great parents. I talked to them multiple times a day and they were there for me when I decided to move back to Baltimore. They have always supported and encouraged me in all my decisions. When I look back on my move to Wisconsin, I look at it positively. Life pivots usually stem from big decisions. I think sometimes it is worth the risk. I look back and think, I would rather go and say I tried than regret not going.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jwheyandco.com
- Instagram: @jwheyandco
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephtatkinson/
- Other: TikTok: @jwheyandco
Image Credits
Jacob Hicks