We were lucky to catch up with Shontelle Flowers recently and have shared our conversation below.

Shontelle, appreciate you joining us today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your business sooner or later

That is a great question. I started when I was supposed to, but if I could have done it differently, I would not have started a business and pursued a degree simultaneously. Shortly after starting my business, I decided to pursue my doctorate in human behavior, which consumed a lot of my time.

When I launched FlowEsScents, I was an IT Business Analyst. I had just earned my master’s degree and wanted to make candles for fun-a hobby. I wasn’t looking to turn it into a business at the time. Still, things took off quickly, so suddenly, I was selling candles at markets, making event favors while also trying to prepare for doctoral residencies, conducting research, and writing a dissertation.

In hindsight, I wish I had just worked on a smaller scale business-wise instead of trying to sell several products simultaneously. I was selling up to ten different products, and each of those products was available in five or more scents. On top of that, I was making all of my products to order. It was wild. I was doing what I saw others doing and not doing what worked best for me.

Since then, I have learned how to work smarter, not harder, and show up for my business as my best self.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Shontelle Flowers, and I am the founder and CEO of FlowEsScents. We help women curate luxurious self-care experiences that help them destress, relax, and find their peace.

I sell handcrafted home and body care products such as soy candles, whipped Shea body butter, body serums, and soaps. We also offer fragrance bars where attendees have a fun and interactive experience learning about fragrance blending and where they can create their signature fragrances. We will also start offering candle-making classes in September 2023.

FlowEsScents was founded on the belief that all women should have permission to create the best versions of themselves, their spaces, and their communities. We’re here to help you destress, elevate your mood, and find your peace. Our luxurious self-care experiences are designed to help you feel your best; from candles that fill your space with a relaxing aroma to body butter that smooths and soothes, we have everything you need to relax and recharge.

I started FlowEsScents because I love candles, which have always been a source of stress relief. As I mentioned earlier, I worked in corporate, stressed out from the systemic issues, and in a highly hostile work environment. I faced daily. I needed an outlet, and candle-making was the exact remedy I needed. Making candles is a therapeutic process for me. I genuinely enjoy it. What sparked my interest in candle making was when I saw a family member’s candle that she made at a candle-making class. I was astounded when I discovered that people were making candles. However, I was in graduate school then, so I didn’t have time to take on a candle-making hobby, so I put it on hold.

Fast forward to 2015, I graduated from grad school, and social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram were taking off. I saw how other makers started candle businesses on platforms like Etsy selling their products. I was inspired and wanted to try my hand at candle-making. It’s one thing to love candles but another thing to make them, so I was curious if making candles was for me. I ordered a candle-making kit and made my first batch of candles, and I never looked back.

For the first year, I researched all I could about candles, perfected my craft, and gave my candles to co-workers, family, and friends for feedback. 2016, I launched my business, and it has been an amazing journey. I have learned so much about the candle and skincare business. I have grown so much as a business owner in the past seven years.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to unlearn was overthinking. I spent a lot of time overthinking to the point of not doing anything/procrastinating, and putting it off for another day has cost me money and time. I would get a great idea and then tell myself I would work on it soon but never would do it, and then months went by, and I have yet to act on it.

The backstory is that I have always been a perfectionist, and procrastination protected my ego. If I launch this product, will it sell? If I post this content, will my followers engage or respond to my call to action? If not, I would beat myself up and tell myself I didn’t do it right, so it was easier not to do it. Thankfully, having a good business coach/mentor has helped me shift from overthinking to action. Now, I put my best foot forward, and when overthinking tries to show up, I remind myself of what happens when I overthink too much and how it affects me and my business.

Many times, when we overthink an idea, we can lose momentum. The idea came to you for a reason, so why aren’t you acting on it? When we allow procrastination and overthinking to be the frontrunner of our business, someone else has already done it by the time we act on it. This doesn’t mean you should be in a race with someone else to launch a product or service, but overthinking and procrastination can also damage your business reputation and customer relationships. It’s best to act on things sooner than later.

Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.

Yes, I manufacture my products. I love working with my hands, so candle-making came relatively easy. Once I learned the basics of candle making and perfected that, it was like second nature to me. When I sell my candles at markets, one of the many questions I get is, “Do you make these yourself” I proudly say yes and let them know that my candles are handmade. I take pride in that. I put my heart and soul into what I do because I want my customers to know that I care about them, so I am intentional about all of the ingredients that go into my candles and skincare products.

The pandemic made it hard to find supplies because EVERYBODY was making candles (lol), which led to a vast supply issue with the vendors I was using. As I said, I am intentional regarding the materials I use in my products, so it was challenging because I had a massive influx of orders due to the heightened awareness of Black businesses following the murder of George Floyd, so my sales were higher than usual. Luckily, I stocked up on some of those things, but finding wicks and jars was crazy! One of the biggest lessons I learned from that was to have a list of at least three trusted vendors for all of my materials/ingredients and stock up on those.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.flowesscents.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/flowesscents
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Flowesscents/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shontelle-flowers-ms-4b749052/
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/flowesscents
• Other: Tiktok: @flowesscentscandles

Image Credits
Photo credit for photos #1, 2, 3 and 7 are Nazare English The other photos were taken by me.