Today we’d like to introduce you to Julie Kesler
Hi Julie, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hi, I’m Julie Kesler! I’m the owner and founder of Second Life, a candle company based in Palms, Los Angeles.
How We Got Started:
I started making candles for two reasons: first, I fell in love with {insert big box candle supplier}’s line of bucket-sized hearth candles, but wasn’t able to splurge on the price of huge luxury candle, so I bet myself that I could do it cheaper on my own…and then proceeded to spend much, much more learning how to make huge candles. Second, I desperately needed a creative outlet and a hobby after spending the last who-knows-how-many-years in tech, operations, and business. I wanted something that was mine, and that I could enjoy without having a bunch of clutter everywhere (update: now the clutter I have everywhere is test candles and candle making supplies). I spent a couple of years perfecting the craft, eventually mastering the art of the Giant Candle. By then, regular-sized candles were a piece of cake, so I started making smaller candles for friends of mine and family members. Eventually, I decided to “get serious” and start selling online, and then graduated to markets and wholesale accounts.
Why “Second Life?” What’s behind the name?
I get asked frequently where the name Second Life comes from — it’s a little too specific to be your standard candle company name. There are two origins:
First, many of my candles are made with found items that I thrift or are gifted to me and I upcycle into candles. I love the idea of giving a second life to old things and reducing waste, making them useful and beautiful again. Secondly, while I was developing my skills and perfecting the craft, I was in a long and very difficult relationship that had drained me of my sense of self. Emerging from that phase felt like starting a whole new life, and starting a small business was a way of giving myself the opportunity to do things that I had longed to do but never felt that I could.
Both of these experiences are so personal and yet so common, the convergence of these two things around the time that I decided to go full-send on a business made “Second Life” feel like the core spirit of who I was and what I wanted to do with my entrepreneurial journey—finding beauty and connection in ways that would resonate with my values an community and combat loneliness. That seeking for connection became the core of our business, and shaped how we create experiences and energy that will bring people together.
Who Are We Now?
While I still daylight as a “real professional“ in the tech and operations space, I’ve loved having the opportunity to put my heart and soul into Second Life and see it hit new milestones. We’ve seen so much growth this year, and I’ve had the opportunity to dive into discovering our core customer base and meet people who resonate with our mission and facetious, irreverent sense of humor. We’ve been able to acquire some wholesale clients, as well as growing in the e-commerce and in-person sales spaces through markets and flea crawls, and have been loving the opportunity to get out in Los Angeles to see new places and meet new people at all of popups this year. We recently launched a new and improved website (secondlifecandles.co), and we’re working toward growing our following and online presence.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The biggest obstacle for us so far has been getting in front of the right people. Everyone we meet at markets and who purchases our products online loves them, and we’ve gotten rave reviews from our customers. However, as a small business with limited funding, we don’t have the cash to dump into book online advertising. Our following depends on a lot of word of mouth and the meager time I have to do social media activity. I’m really a team of one, despite all of the support that I get from family and friends who generously offer their help whenever they can, and building a business on a modest budget takes time, a heavy learning curve, and a lot of content creation that takes an unexpectedly enormous amount of time and creativity.
In addition to the struggles of growing a business, the candle space is a highly competitive and saturated market. People are particular about everything from vessels to labels to fragrances, and it’s a very personal thing to source a candle that you want visible and burning in your home. We’re learning to set ourselves apart from your everyday Etsy candlemaker by leaning more into our brand, who we are as a company, the things that we love, and finding a demographic resonates with us.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Our “Why”:
At Second Life Candles, we do what we do because we believe that embracing our shared experiences brings us closer together. By creating down-to-earth, handcrafted products with memory-provoking scents and a sense of humor, we aim to resonate with our community and build connections.
Mission Statement:
At Second Life Candles, we believe that shared experiences and levity are powerful tools for building community. Our mission is to create products and scents that bring people together and remind us all that life’s too short for loneliness.
Vision:
Our vision is to transform everyday objects into opportunities for connection. We aim to craft products that do more than burn—they build bonds and become a beloved part of people’s lives, a way to say “I see you” without having to say it.
More About Our Products:
What we’re most known for is our irreverent sense of humor and an eye for the unique. We can never leave a pun unturned or an entendre undoubled, and it shows in the way we brand and advertise, and what we sell.
1. Our bestseller and what we’re known most for is the “Shared Trauma” line. It’s our way to say “I see you” through what we know best– dark humor and lighting stuff on fire. Our tagline, “Misery isn’t sustainable, but at least your candles are,” is reflected in the care and quality we put into each one of these designed misery-fighter pieces. They’re power candles made with wood wicks, reusable 100%-recycled-glass containers, 100% soy wax, and burn for 100 hours. You’ll find pieces like “Covid 19,” “The Awful Boss,” “Layoffs,” and “Middle Child,” each candle is designed to see your trauma and give you a cure.
2. The most unique thing we make is *enormous* Hearth candles (100-300 oz). We mostly sell these wholesale and custom, but you can find them occasionally our site, and you can request them made special!
3. We also just launched our (smash hit!) line of massage candles, the “Double Entendre” series. Made by hand with all-natural ingredients, they’re great for some alone time, or some… “alone time.”
Each June we also do a PRIDE collection where we donate proceeds to LGBTQ+ charities, this year it was Project Q LA and we were able to donate over $60 from purchases to support youth experiencing homelessness. We love an opportunity to give back, and even though we’re a growing business with very small margins, we take pride in helping build up our community through charities and small business wherever we can.
Other Services we Offer
– Custom candle design and refill
– Wholesale and bulk orders
– White label (our candles, your brand),
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
What we’ve learned about our product is that people crave something they can relate to. Most of our target demographic isn’t out there looking for the candliest-candle (if they were, they’d go to a generic home goods store). They’re looking for something that they can relate to, one that tells a story, one that resonates with them in a way that most run-of-the-mill wax-and-wick concoctions don’t touch. The way we do this as a brand isn’t by mimicking the branding, voice, and aesthetic of all the other (albeit awesome) candle companies out there, or by claiming luxury status so we can sell at a higher dollar cost. How we get there is by being our most genuine and listening to what matters to and resonates with people in ways that other brands aren’t. Nothing is as satisfying as seeing folks walk up to our table and watching the lightbulb that goes off once they connect the Shared Trauma line to each of the candle names, or getting the “that’s a huge f***** candle” when they see one of our Hearth pieces. That’s when we know it’s worth all the work.
Pricing:
- Hearth candles: $80-300
- Shared Trauma Candles: $24
- Double Entendre Massage candles: $16-44
- Bespoke Candles: $3-80
Contact Info:
- Website: https://secondlifecandles.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/second_life_candles/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@secondlifecandles
Image Credits
Kat Hanegraaf
