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

Suzanne, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?

Luhrs Wicked Wicks started as an idea in 2018. I, Suzzie Luhrs have always been a candle hoarder and once, mostly as a joke (so I took it) my husband and father said that I should start a candle business. Fast forward to 2020. The COVID pandemic hit and my husband Erik’s developmentally disabled Aunt, MaryEllen came to live with us from Connecticut.
MaryEllen had lived in Torrington, CT her entire life. Due to her disability she had to have a state worker. This person would drive her to the grocery store and doctors appointments. She would make sure she kept her apartment clean and was doing the things she needed to do for her personal health. Once the lockdowns started this person locked down as well. Suddenly MaryEllen was basically stranded and the only family she had remaining were very elderly and unable to care for her. The decision was then made for her to move down to Charlotte to be with her oldest brother, my father-in-law and us.
Upon first arriving it was obviously a difficult transition but MaryEllen was adapting well due to her new role as “Aunite” to me and Erik’s two children, Maddox and Rilyn.
In August 2020 there was a major shift in all of our lives when my father passed away suddenly due to COVID. It affected everyone. I think that would be the first kick that we needed to wake up and do something different. That being a stay-at-home mom & Aunite wasn’t enough.
Soon after MaryEllen began to grow depressed. When living in Torrington she always worked. Being Auntie was great but she needed something more to throw herself into. Something to feel productive and honestly, I did too.
It was at this point that Erik decided that we would make a feeble attempt and semi-joke into something real. He was the one who really started this journey and keeps me going. We wouldn’t be here without him.
In December 2020, Luhrs Wicked Wicks sold our first candle.
We started with the mission to one day employee people with disabities.
One market at a time we grew.
Our jars changed.
Our labels changed.
Our look changed.
But our mission stayed the same, to promote handiCAPABILITY.
In June of 2021 we had a very difficult reality set in when we began on the road that would end in our daughter, Rilyn, being diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder level 3 .
Thats when we had a focus shift and “Candles with a Cause” was born. Candles with a mission to spread autism awareness and promote community with those affected by autism. To become a candle company that could one day employ individuals with autism.
After a seemingly impossible series of events, including Erik beginning to work for Choate Construction, Erik came to meet Rudy Toms, one of the founders of Autism Strong Foundation. To say that this family and this foundation walks the walk is an understatement. They eat, sleep, and breathe autism support. Because of this foundation families who would otherwise struggle, or not be able to get critical therapies for their autistic children are able to do so, and for anyone who knows autism, early intervention is key.
As a company our “why we started” can be explained with one name: MaryEllen Luhrs.
Our “why” we keep going can be explained with one name: Rilyn Luhrs.
And “why” we get up and grind, “why” we spend hours in the candle shop after dark, and “why” we spend our weekends working even though we have 7:00-5:00 jobs? Those names are endless.

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?

A bit about us? We are located in Huntersville, NC, and we make everything in our home candle shop. We have 5 retail locations that carry our products, including Wentworth & Fenn, Davidson Provision Company, Dearness Gardens, & 2 Fresh Market Produce Shops (Denver & Hickory.)
We started in December 2020 so we are about to celebrate our 2 year anniversary!
We are passionate about Autism Awareness and education and you will see that as a theme with us wherever we go. Our foundation of choice is Autism Strong Foundation, a Charlotte-based foundation that provides scholarships for families so they are about to afford therapies for their autistic children.

We sell:
Soy Candles (8oz & 12oz)
We off custom candle scents for clients wanting a fragrance unique to them!
Goat’s Milk Soaps
& Linen Sprays

We are very proud of how long our candles last, how cleanly they burn, and strongly they smell.
One of my favorite things we do is create custom scents for clients. At Dearness Gardens we created “Dearness Ancient Bay” and for Wentworth & Fenn we made “WF Bourbon Cream Pie.” These fragrances are exclusively sold at their retail locations and the scent was created just for them!

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

At Luhrs Wicked Wicks we manufacture all of our own products from our home candle workshop! There was definitely a long learning period.
The first candles I ever made were 2 years before Wicked Wicks started. I thought you could just melt some wax, throw some fragrance oil in there, glue a wick in a jar and you’re done.
Easy right?
WRONG!
Those 2018 candles were AWFUL. I was an AWFUL candle maker and always would be, or so I told myself.
Fast forward to 2020 and Erik said we needed to give candle-making another go. But….. I’m an AWFUL candle maker?! No one would ever buy a second candle from me after they mistakenly bought a first.
We did research. Watched YouTube videos. So. Many. YouTube. Videos.
I got burned.
Made messes.
Took a chance and sold a candle.
One mediocre candle turned into 2 and I learned about fragrance load.
Two mediocre candles turned into 4 pretty good candles and I learned about hot throw, wick testing, and burn time.
Four pretty good candles turned into REORDERS, 100 candles, a brand, and GOOD candles.
Now here we are, about to celebrate 2 years in business with thousands of AMAZING candles sold! (literally THOUSANDS!)
We make a product people love and that we are incredibly proud of.
The proof is in the pudding, so they say.
and by pudding I mean a crap load of killer candles sold by KILLER candle makers,

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

When it comes to hand-made soy candles it is a very competitive market. There are new businesses popping up every day and at every artisan/pop-up market, you go to. So how did we build our reputation and become a soy candle vendor sought out by customers, invited by venues, and requested by retailers?
Quality, commitment, consistency, customer service, and hard work.
I don’t think there is any secret. To BUILD you have to work.
We go out and grind. Talking to every customer about every aspect of our candle and who we are as a business. Creating a product that speaks for itself when you get the kind of customer who isn’t looking for a conversation.
Getting vulnerable and sharing our story. Taking it down to the bare bone and letting the world see us as we are. A family affected by Autism and disability trying to make as much of a difference as we can.

Buy a candle, see and smell the difference. Hear our story, see how you can make a difference.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.luhrswickedwicks.com
• Instagram: @luhrswickedwicks
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/luhrswickedwicks704

Image Credits
Emily Cloutier Photography