We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Special Watkins. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Special below.

Special , appreciate you joining us today. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

As a creative, I am the happiest. I was happy prior to being a creative as a Case Manager but nothing beats the position, I’ve created for myself as a business owner. At this point in my journey, there’s no looking back and I don’t wish to return back to the 9-5 lifestyle. We’ve been groomed to believe that having a 9-5 is the only route to success or the only way to have security but I believe otherwise .

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I started the candle making journey back in January 2019 – as far as I could remember at least. It all started because I was working in case management FT and in graduate school FT and had no time for selfcare. I had no time for socializing, myself, and limited time to spend with my family and friends. Although I didn’t have much time outside, i had plenty of time inside and would burn so many candles from TJ MAXX, HomeGoods, and Marshalls which became very expensive. So, I decided that I needed to learn myself to save money and have the ability to have whichever scent I’d like at my own convenience. I researched on YouTube and had trouble with scent formulation and realized i needed to create my own formula; that took me 8 months. I finally got it together and a few months after the pandemic started and we were required to stay home which helped me really have tunnel vision for my business as it was developing and focus on marketing my products. I did that and launched online on May 2, 2022, and did an IG LIVE launch session and everything sold out in TWO DAYS!

After selling products online and attending pop up shops and markets, I decided to start doing candle making workshops because I had NEVER seen it before. That same year, I launched the candle making workshops. We were the first company to start what’s now a trending activity. Our workshops took off and were selling out each weekend and we then transitioned into opening a Brick & Mortar storefront for our candle making workshops and products.

When it comes to Scents by The Company, we’re different and what we offer is hard to mimic. We’re not your typical candle company because aside from providing products we’re providing a service that our customers LOVE. They get to socialize, network, and connect with others all while making candles. At Scents by The Company, we’re also building a community by offering candle trainings to developing candle makers who are struggling in their candle making journey.

We’re helping our candle trainees solve their issues of wicking their candles, selecting the proper wax, scent formulation, how to select the perfect supply vendors, temperature requirements for specific waxes, and how to troubleshoot when candle creating.

We’re building community, providing business mentoring, and training up and coming candle makers with our proven candle formula that will provide them the skills, confidence, and strategy needed to launch their candle brands.

When it comes to candle training & mentorship, choose Scents by The Company
When it comes to home products that are rich in scent, safe, and quality, choose Scents by The Company
When it comes to having the ultimate candle making experience, choose Scents by The Company

The thing we say about SBTC is that it’s MORE than just a candle brand because you get to : CREATE . LEARN . EXPERIENCE here at SBTC

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Resilience is something you need to embrace as a business owner. Things are forever changing and sometimes for the good and sometimes for the worst.

Earlier this year there was a situation that required me to have to leave my brick and mortar. This was the hardest thing I had to do after investing so much money and time. This was the hardest time of my life, and I felt my lowest. There were so many things going on at once and feeling so alone. I cried every day for two weeks straight and I felt like everything
I worked for was being ripped from me and the thought of rebuilding was crazy.

During this time of leaving the mall location I had and then leaving my storefront and trying to find another location within the next few weeks was a struggle; on top of that, no longer having a team to help out during this entire transition made it even worse.

I knew I needed a break to regroup but I also knew that I didn’t necessarily have the luxury of taking a break to regroup because I needed my workshops to continue. SO, guess what I did? I cried my way through it while also taking the time to search for new location while also finding a way to adjust from having two locations with a team of employees to now having no team and returning back to a soloprenuer with a business that has grown beyond that point .

So within that time, I was capable of bouncing back and not allowing the sudden changes of no longer having a team / employee’s to be the downfall of what I’ve built . I found a new location , strategized, and restructured what was needed for us to continue on without our community &customers not being affected by the changes.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media is a huge platform and should be used for sure. I was able to build my community by staying active. People like to see who’s behind the brand and interact with you and your products. When Ifirst started online, to be honest i wasn’t very active until a few months before I was about to launch . Three months before launching I would post non stop on my business page and my personal page to get everyone hyped about the products I was launching . Also , at this time I knew nothing about marketing like I do now. I was literally just posting everyday on my stories and on my feed ; I was even on FB . I took it as far as also manually texting everyone in my contact list ( I I knew nothing about sms marketing at the time) so I was doing it manually .

Now days, I post even more. I also go live very frequently which gives existing and new followers the chance to meet me via the internet , ask questions about the products , and actually see it in real time opposed to stock images. My audience loves that , it makes them feel more connected.

Also, many times people are so shy and afraid to show up online. I always say that if you’re afraid to show up online and talk about your products, you’re going to have hard time being successful in the e- commerce world.

When it comes to social media , you need as many people to see your videos so that they gain awareness about your brand / product . After that , you need to keep them engaged to actually want to follow you and then join your email list . Building your social media presence should go deeper than just your following count . It’s about building a relationship with prospective customers. If you’re not showing up online there’s no way for them to discover your brand / product which limits you as the business in developing a relationship and trust with prospective customers

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.scentsbythecompany.com/
• Instagram: @scentsbythecompany
• Facebook: Scents by The Company
• Twitter: @scentsbythecomp

Image Credits
Kelsy Price – Photographer