We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Marie Edwards a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Marie thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What was the most important lesson/experience you had in a job that has helped you as a business owner?

I’m a veteran as well as a former teacher, so I’ve taken quite a few of the lessons that I’ve learned in those two fields and applied them to owning this business. The Army and teaching taught me to be persistent, innovative, and how to problem solve, which all of those traits were essential after buying Sweet Wick Candle Company this past summer. In the military, you have to have a “can do” attitude and be able to problem solve in order to accomplish tasks/missions.

With all of the “snags” that I ran across being a new business owner, persistence, innovation, and problem solving skills have been necessary in finding solutions to the issues that come up on a regular basis. I’ve looked forward to the challenges that I’ve encountered, as they’ve allowed me to really be creative in finding ways to solve them. The sense of accomplishment that I get when I look at how much I’ve learned in the few months that I’ve owned Sweet Wick is immense. I don’t know if I would have had the courage to take on all of the challenges of buying a business if I didn’t have the confidence that was instilled in me by my experiences in the military and in the teaching field.

Marie, 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 was an EOD Technician (bomb squad) in the US Army as well as the Army National Guard for over 13 years. I deployed for OIF in 2006, and ETS’ed out of the military in 2008. I then became a teacher in 2008 and left the field in December 2020. I have a 28 year old daughter, a 12 year old son, a very supportive husband, and two needy dogs.

After taking a little break, I was beginning to get bored around the house, so I started looking for part-time work which would allow me some schedule flexibility. I saw a post on Facebook for a position at this candle company, so I sent a message to come in and apply. That’s how I started working part-time at Sweet Wick Candle Company in September 2021. I began with tying charms on the candles, and then, in a few weeks, worked my way up to pouring the candles.

I started thinking about what I would want to know if I were the owner, so I developed spreadsheets to show different aspects of the production side of the house. I also wanted to make the process as efficient as possible, so I tried different strategies to increase accountability and productivity.

Sweet Wick Candle Company provides quality, luxury, 100% soy wax candles in a beautiful, reusable vessel. I offer the ability to customize the candles by adding charms as well as custom labeling, which can help promote a shop. I also have some shops that request a specific fragrance which I work to get duplicated and provide them with a truly custom product.

Sweet Wick candles are 100% hand-poured to order in small batches, so customers are always getting the freshest candles possible. Once the order is received, I work to get it poured and shipped as quickly as possible. I’m very proud of the quality of my candles and the service that my customers receive.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I joined the military when I was 17 years old. My parents had to sign off on my joining the Army, my mom was very reluctant, but my dad and I were able to convince her. I graduated high school and the following month I was in basic training. I initially thought that I was going to make a career out of the military. I loved my job and the structure and discipline that the Army provided, but ended up ETS’ing for personal reasons after my first term of service.

I then went to college and got my degree in education and started teaching for a couple of years. I ended up missing the military, and ended up joining the Florida Army National Guard. I started as a traditional guardsman (weekend warrior), and then applied for the full-time position at my unit. I was AGR (full-time) for a few years and then we deployed in support of OIF in 2006. After we came back from deployment, I felt that it was in the best interest of my family that I ETS (end of service) from the national guard and become a civilian. So I went back to teaching. I taught at the elementary and middle school until December of 2020. I took a few months off, started getting bored, and then decided that I wanted a part-time job, which led me to working at Sweet Wick Candle Company.

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

To buy Sweet Wick, I had to get a home equity line of credit (HELOC). I had some savings that I also used in order to replenish stock. I know, not very exciting :)

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sweetwickcandlecompany.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sweetwickcandle/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SweetWick/