From Candles to Body Care: A Simple Way to Grow Sales & Keep Customers Coming Back
If you’ve built a candle business, you already know how powerful scents can be. A great scent can bring back memories, create a cozy atmosphere, or boost someone’s mood. But have you ever thought about how those same scents could go beyond candles?
What if your customers could wear, wash, or refresh themselves with their favourite fragrances—not just smell them in their homes?
Adding body care products like lotions, body wash, shampoo, and pillow mists is a simple and smart way to grow your business. You don’t need a chemistry degree or a whole new brand—just the right ingredients, a plan, and the scents you already use in your candles.
This guide will break it down in an easy-to-follow way so you can start expanding your product line without stress. Let’s get started!
Why Adding Body Care to Your Business is a Smart Move
1. Your Customers Already Love Your Scents
When people buy a candle, they aren’t just buying wax—they’re buying a feeling. They want their home to feel warm, inviting, fresh, or luxurious. Now, imagine if they could take that scent with them everywhere.
✔ A customer who adores your Salted Caramel Latte candle? They’d love a matching lotion that smells like warm vanilla, caramel, and a hint of espresso.
✔ Someone who keeps rebuying your Fresh Linen candle? They’d love a fabric and pillow mist to keep that crisp, clean scent on their sheets.
✔ A fan of your Eucalyptus & Mint candle? A shampoo and conditioner with the same refreshing, spa-like scent would be an instant hit.
Your customers already love your scents—so why not give them more ways to enjoy them?
2. Body Care Products Sell Faster (and More Often!)
One big difference between candles and body care? How fast people use them up.
✔ A candle lasts weeks, maybe even months.
✔ Lotion? Used daily after a shower.
✔ Body wash? Gone within a few weeks.
✔ Shampoo and conditioner? A regular must-have.
Since body care products run out faster, customers need to restock more often—which means more repeat sales for you.
3. It Helps You Sell More—Without Needing New Customers
Instead of spending all your time finding new customers, body care products help you sell more to the ones you already have.
✔ Larger orders: A customer might buy just one candle—but if you offer a candle and a matching body lotion, they’re more likely to buy both.
✔ Gift bundles: “Relaxation Gift Set” with a lavender candle, a body lotion, and a pillow mist.
✔ A full experience: Instead of just lighting a candle, they can wear the scent, use it in the shower, and refresh their sheets with it.
Many successful candle businesses have expanded into body care and seen increased customer loyalty and higher order values. Why? Because customers love to repurchase their favorite scents in multiple forms!
💡 More products = higher order values and happier customers.
How to Expand from Candles to Body Care (Step-by-Step Guide)
Step 1: Start Simple – Pick One or Two Products to Test
Expanding doesn’t mean launching an entire skincare line overnight! Start small with just one or two body care products that pair well with your best-selling candle scents.
✔ Lotion – A must-have for silky, hydrated skin, perfect for scents like Vanilla Bean, Amber & Honey, or Cashmere Musk.
✔ Body Wash – Turns shower time into a spa experience, ideal for fresh, uplifting scents like Lemon Verbena, Aloe & Green Tea, or Cucumber Melon.
✔ Shampoo & Conditioner – Makes hair smell amazing all day, best with invigorating scents like Rosemary Mint, Coconut & Lime, or Fresh Citrus Burst.
✔ Pillow & Linen Mist – A few spritzes of relaxation before bed, perfect for calming scents like Lavender & Chamomile, White Tea & Bergamot, or Cozy Cashmere.
💡 Tip: Use pre-made bases (like those from Village Craft & Candle) to keep things simple. This way, you can focus on customizing the scent and branding rather than formulating from scratch.
Step 2: Match Your Scents to Your Candles
Make it easy for customers to find their favourite scents across multiple products.
| Candle Scent | Best Body Care Match |
|---|---|
| Cozy Maple Butter | Moisturizing Lotion + Hand Cream |
| Ocean Air & Driftwood | Body Wash + Shampoo & Conditioner Set |
| Warm Vanilla Sugar | Body Lotion + Pillow & Linen Mist |
| Herbal Citrus Grove | Shampoo & Conditioner + Hand Soap |
💡 Tip: Think about seasonal collections. A cozy Pumpkin Chai Latte lotion in the fall? A Cool Peppermint Frost body wash for winter? Limited editions drive more sales!
Step 3: Use Pre-Made Bases for an Easy Start
You don’t need to be an expert in body care formulations. Start with high-quality pre-made bases and focus on customizing the scent and branding.
-
Where to get them? Village Craft & Candle offers high-quality lotion, body wash, and shampoo bases that are easy to customize with fragrance and essential oils.
-
Body-safe scents only! Not all fragrance oils used in candles are safe for skin. Always check if a fragrance oil is skin-safe before using it in body products.
Step 4: Market Your New Products in a Way That Excites Customers
If you just add body care to your website and hope people notice, you’re missing a huge opportuni
ty! Instead, build excitement around your new products.
- Offer bundle deals: “Get a Vanilla Candle & Matching Lotion for $X!”
- Create themed scent collections: “Cozy Comfort Set” with a candle, lotion, and pillow mist.
- Show how they work together: Share self-care routines on social media: “Light your Relaxation Candle, apply your matching lotion, and spritz your sheets with a pillow mist.”
- Seasonal launches: Limited-time scents like Pumpkin Spice Latte for fall or Sun-Kissed Coconut for summer create urgency and excitement.
Final Thoughts: Why You Should Start Today
Expanding your product line from candles to body care is one of the easiest ways to grow your business. You already have the scents and the customers—all you need is the right body care bases to get started.
✨ The best part? You don’t need a huge budget or a complicated setup. With pre-made bases, premium fragrance oils, and a little creativity, you can launch your body care line quickly and profitably.
🛒 Need premium lotion bases, fragrance oils, or body wash bases? Check out Village Craft & Candle for everything you need to expand your product line!
🔥 Which scent would YOU love to see in both a candle and a body care product?
💡 Tip: Try launching ONE lotion or body wash using your best-selling scent this month.
Fragrance Oils and Health Products Our fragrance oils are intended for external use in candles, diffusers, and some cosmetic applications. They are not to be ingested, inhaled, or applied directly to skin without proper dilution. Health Canada requires a Natural Product Number (NPN) for the sale of any product making health claims or intended for therapeutic use. It is your responsibility to ensure your final product formulation complies with all applicable regulations and obtains the necessary NPN certification before sale.
Fragrance oils, when incorporated into health products, may require additional safety testing to ensure their suitability and interaction with other ingredients. We strongly recommend conducting independent testing by a qualified laboratory to confirm the safety and efficacy of your final product formulation. By purchasing this product, you agree to assume all responsibility for its proper use and application. We shall not be held liable for any misuse, claims, or damages resulting from the use of this fragrance oil in a health product.
