An attractive idea of \u200b\u200bself-earning is making candles at home as a business. Even a beginner will be able to understand its features and technological process, and the owners' reviews confirm that with an established sales of products, it is possible to reach full payback within the first months.
Today, candles are considered pretty popular item. After all, they are purchased as a gift, to decorate the interior, to create a romantic atmosphere. Ordinary household needs and use in churches have also not lost their popularity. The demand for such products is only increasing, and if you can attract a buyer with an original product, then your project is guaranteed to succeed.
Benefits of this business
Making candles at home has a number of advantages, which make such an undertaking attractive:
- The cost of materials for manufacturing is quite low.
- The technology is simple and accessible to any beginner.
- At the same time, you can show your imagination, realize your creative potential and create original and unique products.
- There is a wide range of niches to choose from.
- Registration of a business is simple and does not require large tax deductions.
- High rates of profitability.
- You can do this business in the form of a home business or aim for large-scale production in the format of a mini-factory.
Of course, there are also disadvantages. For example, start-up entrepreneurs may have difficulty selling finished goods, especially if the competition in the chosen region is quite high.
Are documents required?
It is believed that when making candles at home, it is not necessary to register even as an individual entrepreneur. As an artisan, you can file an annual income tax return and make standard deductions. But since you also need to think about selling products, it is advisable to register as an entrepreneur or entity. In this case, you as a supplier of goods will be more trustworthy.
The taxation regime can be chosen according to a simplified system, and to reduce deductions, do not forget to enter all purchased equipment in financial statements and put it on depreciation.
It is also important to register the enterprise in the following regulatory services:
- Pension Fund;
- statistical bodies;
- sanitary and epidemiological station in case of opening a separate workshop or plant;
- fire inspection.
Variety of candles
Even at the stage of business planning, you need to think about what kind of products you are going to offer customers. There are a lot of options and they all require their own approach:
- Church - will diverge well if there are a lot of temples, churches nearby. They are used for official purposes, put by parishioners during prayer, set for holidays, weddings, etc. Each procedure requires its own shape, shade, and even the raw materials used.
- Household - usually made from paraffin and have the same standard shade without the admixture of flavors and dyes. Are in demand in countryside.
- Decorative - differ in originality of form and shade. To create them, they use different materials and try to make them unique. Often purchased as a gift or to decorate the house, restaurants, rooms, etc. this species candles is characterized handmade and correspondingly high cost.
- Dining rooms are a cross between household and decorative options. They can be of different shapes and shades, but simple materials are used for their production.
- Tablets - when wax or paraffin is poured into special small aluminum sleeves. They are often used to decorate and create a special atmosphere in a room. There is always a demand for them.
- Carved candles are made on the basis of ordinary ones, but at the same time they are dipped in colored paraffin for additional processing and providing the required patterns.
- Ice openwork is a separate kind of decorative candles. The technology of their manufacture is distinguished by the addition of pieces of ice, due to which unusual openwork forms are created.
- Colored cubes - during the solidification of wax or paraffin, the product is cut into pieces and then mixed again. After several such procedures, cubes of different shades are poured into the mold and, when burned, they create a unique effect.
- You can make scented candles that have an unobtrusive pleasant smell. This is achieved by adding essential oil to melted paraffin.
room
Experienced entrepreneurs who create candles with their own hands say that doing it in the kitchen at home is wrong. It is advisable to equip at least a small garage for production. Even if you make candles by hand, without special machines and equipment, you need to properly equip workspace:
- the size of the room should be about 10-15 square meters. m.;
- divide it into a working area and a warehouse for finished products;
- provide good ventilation;
- make sure that the temperature is constant so that it is 18-20 degrees, since such a material does not tolerate drops, and at elevated values, the entire product will deteriorate.
For storage, it is desirable to install convenient and free racks so that the products do not come into contact with each other. In the manufacture of confectionery varieties, it is necessary to additionally disinfect all surfaces using kitchen tools.
Technological process
Making a candle with your own hands is quite easy. It does not even require special equipment or hire other employees. The whole process goes through the following stages:
- We prepare the desired shape. You can buy it in specialized stores or make it yourself from improvised materials.
- A wick is installed in the center. If a voluminous candle is supposed, then it is advisable to connect several threads (2-4 pieces) to each other and fix them at the end with a paper clip or an iron stick.
- The paraffin or other base used is melted. This should be done strictly in a water bath, since direct contact with fire can ignite it. If a solid material is crushed, the melting process will be greatly accelerated.
- When a liquid state is reached, dyes, flavors and other additives that are supposed to be used for decoration can be added to the base. Stir the resulting mixture with a wooden stick.
- The finished liquid base is poured into molds. For safety reasons, be sure to use oven mitts, gloves and towels, as hot paraffin causes burns if it comes into contact with the skin.
- After a few hours, the product hardens and is ready for the final decoration.
More detailed or varied techniques for creating candles at home can be learned with the help of videos and other master classes, of which there are a lot today. Before you start organizing a business, it is advisable to master the appropriate method and make a few things for yourself.
So, you can understand if this thing works and what the final result looks like. If this is not possible, then you can purchase ready-made simple candles and only deal with their decoration.
What will be required?
Depending on the scale of production and the selected product options, different materials and equipment will be needed. For home-made, it is desirable to have:
- raw materials for the base;
- forms;
- utensils for melting paraffin (for example, pots);
- a wick made of cotton thread;
- and wooden rods for fixing it;
- thin knives for carving and giving patterns;
- stove;
- stationery for decoration;
- for dyes, wax children's crayons are used;
- and essential oils for fragrance.
If you are going to organize a small workshop, then you need to purchase expensive equipment:
- Candle machine.
- Tank for melting raw materials.
- Extruder press.
- Packing machine.
- Hand stamps.
- Thermometer.
- Matrices.
As a basis, you can use:
- Paraffin - as the cheapest and most popular material.
- Stearin - provides the candle with a long burning time. Most often used for carvings. This fatty substance is added to the paraffin base to improve its characteristics.
- Beeswax, soy wax and foundation – natural and ecological pure product. Gives off a light, pleasant fragrance when used.
- Gel is a transparent jelly-like substance. Used to fill glass molds. Differs in high cost.
Be sure to stock up on enough cotton thread for the wicks, aluminum sleeves, decoration materials, and packaging to give the candles a marketable appearance.
Sales channels
If manufacturing is not particularly difficult, then for a novice entrepreneur, selling finished products may be the most difficult. To this end, you need to study the market in advance, evaluate competitors, and find permanent points of sale of goods. Usually candles are sold through the following channels:
- Stationary souvenir shops.
- Hardware stores or department stores.
- Social networks.
- Internet shops.
- specialized forums.
- Delivered directly to restaurants and hotels.
- Collaborate with churches and others religious organizations.
- design studios, etc.
Financial calculations
When creating a real mini-factory for the production of candles, considerable investments will be required.
| Expenses | Cost, in rubles | |
| 1 | candle machine | 300 000 |
| 2 | Finished forms | 35 000 |
| 3 | Wick (for 3000 items) | 1 000 |
| 4 | Paraffin | 31 500 |
| 5 | Workshop rent | 10 000 |
| 6 | Utilities | 12 000 |
| 7 | Employee salary | 15 000 |
| 8 | Equipment installation | 20 000 |
| Total: | 424 500 |
These figures assume the production of 3000 table candles. Usually they are sold for 40 rubles apiece. So, with a good sale of goods, the revenue will be 120 thousand rubles. Then you will only need to pay for the material and monthly expenses, so the payback of the business will come in 3-4 months.
If you make decorative candles at home, then the costs will be minimal. It will be necessary to purchase only materials for their creation and decoration, which will be included in the cost of production. Therefore, after the first sale of the goods, you will fully return your investments and receive a net profit.
When planning the financial component, it should be taken into account that household, church and table varieties cost 15-50 rubles per unit. But decorative, flavored, gel and other options are priced much higher and can be sold from 150 rubles apiece or more. The profitability of the business will depend on your investment and the final price for the product.
Video: making decorative candles at home.
Great idea for your own small business, which is suitable for a novice entrepreneur - is the production of church candles. It seems that everyone understands that a wax candle is in sufficient demand in church shops and parishes to ensure the relevance of candle production for many years to come, because a candle is a symbol of religious faith.
Manufacture and sale of candles as a small home business can bring tangible income to the family budget, and a well-organized home production will quickly grow into a large-scale project, increasing working capital and net profit several times.
You can start a business in your own apartment or garage. There are no space requirements at this stage. Of course, when the project grows and the enterprise needs to be officially registered, you will have to take care of compliance with the rules for industrial premises.
If you are focused on a long-term perspective of work and plan to engage in full-scale production and economic activities, then it makes sense to immediately register as an individual entrepreneur or legal entity.
A mini-factory for the production of church candles will be located in a small area. Premises of 30 sq. m will be more than enough. As a workshop, you can use your own garage or rent an area in the industrial area.
You can make candles for the church all year round, but for this, the workshop must be warm and dry. In addition, Rospotrebnadzor and municipal supervisory structures zealously protect working conditions at work, even if you are the only employee. Workplaces should be light, spacious enough, and there should not be an excess of concentration in the air chemical substances Otherwise, the enterprise will be suspended and an administrative fine will be imposed.
When repair work indoors are completed, you can proceed to purchase equipment.
Machines and molds for the production of candles
Although the market industrial equipment automatic machines for production are very popular; at many micro enterprises, candles are still made by casting using special molds. This does not mean that the cost of factory equipment is exorbitant, just that this technology is very effective and cheap.
If you are not ready to immediately invest a significant amount in your business, then use manual labor technology. In this case, you will need metal molds of different sizes. It is advisable to purchase a set of molds to ensure the continuous production of candles.
The technology of using forms is very simple. They are lubricated with oil, wicks are pulled inside the cylinders, the metal is heated to the required temperature of 40-60 degrees, and then melted wax or paraffin is poured. Depending on the size and material of the candles, when they are cooled, it is necessary to observe temperature regimes. This is important for obtaining a quality product.
The main disadvantage of this method is limited production volumes. Using mold casting, it is difficult to expand the sales market and withstand competition. For successful development businesses will need to switch to automatic production on machine tools.
Machines for the manufacture of paraffin candles are many times more productive than manual production. If you intend to occupy a significant part of the church candle market in the region, and there really is such an opportunity, then do not hesitate to purchase a machine.
The most productive drum type machine. The principle of its operation is to repeatedly pull the wick through a bath of molten paraffin. Depending on the speed of rotation of the drums, the required thickness of the candles is achieved, which are automatically cut on a special machine. Such a machine is quite large and requires a separate room.
A much more compact, but less productive machine, works on the principle of squeezing molten paraffin mass through a mold. The paraffin "sausage" is immediately cooled by a water system and cut into the desired size. The advantage of the installation is the possibility of using nozzles of different shapes. This will expand the range of church cylindrical candles with decorative ones, for example, in the form of polyhedrons and stars. However, this will require supplementing the raw material base with dyes for paraffin.
The cost of raw materials for the production of candles
Church candles are made from paraffin or wax. A cotton thread is used as a wick. This is the main raw material, and it has to be purchased regularly. Paraffin brand P-2 will cost 130-180 rubles. for 1 kg. Cotton wick costs from 25 rubles. per metre. Candles are packaged in carton boxes, or bundles of candles are tied with paper tape. The cost of packaging material is very insignificant.
Profitability of activities
How much an automated candle factory will bring depends on your marketing skills, since the actual possible production volumes of the machine are very large, and if you work in two shifts, you can produce several hundred thousand candles per day. If you manage to fully occupy the market in the region, then the profit will be enormous, and the initial investment will pay off in a month and a half of work! Thanks to low purchase prices for raw materials and high production volumes, profitability successful business can reach 1500%! Rarely what company can boast of such figures.
As you can see, the production of church candles, which starts as a home business, with a competent approach, may well become not only the main source of income, but also a source of financial independence, prosperity and wealth.
A small light can always remove bad and sad thoughts from the head, and its light is so sincere: any conversation or confession by candlelight has some special aura and creates a truly unusual atmosphere.
Perhaps, just for this reason, a candle has long been considered an excellent gift that can bring not only aesthetic pleasure, but also practical application.
How to make candles with your own hands at home: is it possible?
Naturally, such a thing as a candle can be purchased at a gift shop, because there you can always find many different variations of candles, but if you want to make a gift doubly pleasant, it is better to make it yourself. I would like to devote this article to the topic of how to make candles with your own hands at home.
In fact, making candles at home is not as difficult as it might seem at first, and if you approach this issue correctly, you will realize that in reality everything is quite simple here.
As confirmation, one can cite the fact that people who decide to engage in the production of candles are gradually drawn into it, and for them this is no longer just an income, but also an interesting and an exciting activity. The more often you practice this business, the better you get finished products.
Making candles with your own hands at home does not require a lot of money, so in addition to the pleasure that you get from the manufacturing process itself, you will also be able to save a lot.
Making candles at home: the necessary materials
Before proceeding directly to the manufacture of the product itself, it is necessary to determine the necessary materials that will help create the necessary shape for our product. For this, an ordinary pan is suitable, which we need to create a water bath.
We also need some other container in which we will melt paraffin or wax. As a container, it is better to take some unnecessary dishes, since at the end of the process it will be extremely difficult to get rid of adhering wax.
If we take into account that the vessel must be refractory, then we are unlikely to be able to find a better ordinary tin can. So, we take a tin can, bend its edge so that a small spout appears (wax will pour through it).
As for the raw materials themselves, wax, paraffin or specialized helium can be bought at a specialized store or ordered online.
If you decide to start creating a candle for the first time, we recommend starting with paraffin, since wax is much more difficult to work with, it is less light and pliable material. You can also start with old homemade cinders or buy ordinary household candles.
Next, you need to take care of the material from which the wick will be made. Often, 100% cotton paper threads are used for this, as they do not have an unpleasant odor and burn out much longer. Also for this purpose, we recommend trying floss (threads of different colors), finding them is quite simple and they look very interesting on a candle.
To give the candle an unusual character and color, make decor for them and give the product a certain tone and shade. Such candles will delight you and those around you not only with their warmth, but also with their beauty and unusual appearance.
To give the product the desired color, use children's wax crayons, it is better to choose softer options, since they dissolve better and color the melted mass more evenly. Some people use lipstick and eye shadow for this, this is also a good option if you don't mind sacrificing cosmetics.
There is another common option - staining with special pigments in the form of tablets. They come in a variety of colors and shades, so with their help you can make absolutely any color scheme for the product.
Before you determine how to make candles with your own hands at home, you need to decide not only on the materials, but also on their competent use. This, for example, concerns the wick, you need to learn how to twist it correctly, because it depends on how long and brightly the candle will burn.
For example, if you are going to use paraffin or gel, then it is better to use thin, tightly woven threads for these materials. For wax candles, it is better to take a thickened wick, woven with a “pigtail”, with not too tight threads.
You also need to worry about special forms, because the main shape and appearance of the product will depend on them. Here it is best to use dishes that you do not really need, that can withstand elevated temperatures. For this, containers of yogurt, creams, bottles, small bubbles and so on are suitable.
To give the product not only an attractive appearance, but also a pleasant aromatic content, add a few drops of essential oil to the total mass, the aroma of which is similar to the appearance of your candle. For example, the smell of lime or mint is perfect for a light green shade of the product, while vanilla or berry scents need warmer shades.
How to make candles with your own hands at home: technology step by step
So we come to the most important point: the process of making candles at home. For example, we will consider the option of making candles on wax.
Preparing wax for melting
First, decide on the type of wax on which the candle will be prepared. Keep in mind that wax can irritate some people, so take it seriously.
The most popular today is soy wax, because it is easy to work with, it is environmentally friendly and burns more slowly than other types.
Before you get started, prepare your workplace. To do this, lay newspapers on the work surface, prepare cardboard and towels. You should also always keep warm soapy water nearby, it will come in handy in case you spill wax.
Prepare an ordinary water bath, the same as you do during cooking.
Attention! It is impossible to melt wax on direct fire. The melting process must be slow, otherwise it may burn out and evaporate.
Pour half a saucepan of water and put a smaller saucepan on top of it, you will need it to melt the wax. Do not forget that it is almost impossible to clean the wax, so use dishes you do not need.
Lay the wax on a board and cut or plan it. The smaller the pieces, the easier it will be to work with.
Wax melting
Put the pieces of wax or shavings in a small saucepan, and set the fire to high. When the water boils, it will begin to gradually melt the wax, do not slow down the fire.
Use a thermometer to check the temperature of the wax. A pastry thermometer or a meat thermometer is suitable for this.
Depending on the type of wax, it melts at different temperatures.
Consider the main types:
paraffin wax melts at 50–60 °C;
bee - within 62.7–79.4 ° C;
old candles - 85 ° C (before using them, do not forget to remove the old wick with tongs).
Then you need to add the flavoring to the melted wax, select the flavor at your discretion. Flavors are sold in all craft stores. To determine the right amount of flavor, read the instructions, then stir well.
After that, according to the instructions, you need to add the right amount of dye. Ordinary food colorings are not suitable in this case, since they are water-based. It is better to opt for oily dyes or special dyes for candles. You need to add dyes until the mixture acquires the desired color, after which the mixture must be stirred.
wax casting
Place the wick in the very center of the candle mold. The wick must be fixed at two points outside the mold so that the fixation is in the very center. For convenience, you can attach the wick to a pencil or pen, and then move it to the center. After setting the wick in the right place, fill the mold with wax. If there is a long clip, you can use it. Pinch the wick in the very center of the form, while it should be long enough so that you can lean on the entire form.
After that, you need to pour the melted wax into the prepared molds. You need to pour slowly so that the wax does not spill, while you need to make sure that the wick is securely fixed in one position.
Important! If you're using beeswax, remember that it shrinks a bit when it cools, so keep this in mind when pouring your moulds.
Each type of candle has its own cooling:
paraffin candles need 24 hours to cool;
soy will be enough for 4-5 hours;
candles on beeswax require at least 6 hours, the best solution is to leave them all night;
2-3 hours are enough for old candles.
The last steps are left - remove the product from the mold and cut off the wick, leaving no more than 7 mm from the source of the candle. This length will provide your candle with the desired fire height. If the wick is left too long, the fire will be too big.
That's it, your homemade candle is ready, light it and enjoy!
In this article:
The candle manufacturing business is very profitable and pays off, and for this it is not at all necessary to be an oligarch, invest huge sums of money and create large plant. It will be quite enough to purchase the necessary raw materials from such factories - paraffin, which is a waste product for them.
For starters, it would be better to learn how to make candles at home. This is a great opportunity to experiment in this type of business without investing a lot of money. And if the result meets your expectations, you can safely proceed to the production of candles on professional equipment.
Making candles at home
Unlike traditional household candles, decorative candles require imagination and creativity. creativity. Consider an example of a step-by-step technology for making a decorative striped candle.
To create an original multilayer candle, we need:
- 2 metal containers of different diameters;
- gas or electric stove;
- paraffin;
- wick (sold separately or made from cotton thread);
- candle molds (silicon, metal, plastic, rubber or homemade);
- dye and flavor (can be replaced with wax crayons and essential oils);
- thermometer;
- plasticine;
- skewers or toothpicks (for fastening the wick).
If it is not possible to purchase paraffin from suppliers, then you can order it on the Internet or use old household candles. You can also borrow a wick from them.
For the production of candles, we need to melt the paraffin in a water bath to a temperature of 85 C (carefully monitor the heating, as paraffin is explosive at 200 degrees!), Add dye, flavoring to it and stir thoroughly until completely dissolved.
Lubricate the form first sunflower oil, and soak the wick for 5 minutes in paraffin. Then you need to pass the wick through the hole in the form, tie a toothpick on one side, and fix it with plasticine on the other side.
After that, you can start pouring the molten paraffin into the mold to the required height.
While the first layer of the future candle will cool down, we prepare a paraffin mass of a different color, which we pour over the cooled layer.
So, alternating dyes and flavors, we continue to pour the mass until it is completely filled in the form.
In the process of solidification, voids may form into which it is necessary to carefully add the remaining paraffin. After the final hardening, you can remove the candle (pull the fixing stick or wick), to facilitate the process, you can put the mold in the refrigerator for 8 minutes. For final completion, you need to cut the wick to 5 mm and cut off the mounting stick.
candle making technology
There are two ways to make candles: casting and pressing, and the second option needs special equipment. And the injection method is more economical and does not require the purchase of machines. Let's take a closer look at both production options.
With casting method the molten paraffin mass is poured into molds, and during the cooling process it must be topped up to prevent the formation of voids. To reduce labor intensity, it is advisable to use a machine for automatic production.
With the pressing method a semi-automatic press machine (candle machine) is used. Paraffin or wax turns into a candle tape, into which a wick is inserted through a spinneret (special hole). After that, the candles are cut off from the common candle strip, cooled and packaged.
Manufacturers of church candles do not experience sales problems.
Yes and myself manufacturing process quite simple, and its components are:
- machine - press,
- wick,
- raw materials (wax or paraffin).
Dry raw materials are placed in a press, where a ribbon is formed under high pressure, into the center of which a wick is drawn. And from the extrusion head of the machine comes a ready-made candle of enormous length, which falls on the cutting machine to give it the desired size. Next, the candles are removed from the tray and begin to pack.
Concerning carved candles, then their indisputable advantage is market depletion. This segment is not yet occupied, there is a small number of competitors, and the product is not yet sold in retail chains.
To make a carved candle, we need paraffin blanks with a wick, which are cast using molds.
Then carefully stir the molten paraffin in the containers of the machine, to which various dyes are added. An important condition technological process is to maintain a constant temperature of colored paraffin (75-90 degrees). The workpiece must be dipped into containers with colored paraffin, and with each new layer it must be lowered into cold water (to cool and solidify the top layer).
The color scheme is purely individual, but it will be better to alternate the white layer with the color one. After building up the desired volume of the candle, we begin to cut out the patterns.
This must be done quickly, in 15 minutes, otherwise it will become too hard.
With a sharp knife we make cuts and bend the ends.
We bend the first layer in one direction, and the next in the opposite direction.
When the candle is completely ready, we cut a recess around the wick and take out the paraffin that has accumulated there (to prevent dripping during combustion). To give the candle stability, it must be quickly placed on a hot surface. At the very end, we dip the candle in acrylic varnish to fix the finish.
Candle making business plan
Costs for personnel, equipment, etc.
To start production activities a room with an area of at least 15 square meters with good ventilation is required. It will contain a warehouse for storing raw materials and finished products, and the production line itself.
Let's assume that the cost of monthly rent will be $1,000 - 30,517 rubles. Communal payments- 10,000 rubles monthly. It is also necessary to register by law, choosing the organizational and legal form of doing business. An average of 50,000 rubles will be required to complete the relevant documents.
Concerning personnel, then at the very beginning of the activity, 2 auxiliary workers will be enough for us. Wage they will be 30,000 rubles a month.
Equipment costs for automated production candles will be about 300,000 rubles. But you can save a lot if you buy a used machine, but in this case it is advisable to have an adjuster in mind, who, if necessary, can fix problems in the process.
Estimated output - 5,000 candles per month, weighing 16 grams each. Average market price for 1 kg. paraffin is 70 rubles. For the manufacture of the intended batch, we need 800 kg. paraffin. (5000 x 0.16 kg.), and the costs will be 56,000 rubles (70 rubles / kg. x 800 kg.).
For 500 meters of wick, we will have to spend 1000 rubles, and the cost of purchasing dyes will be 240 rubles (1500 rubles / kg x 0.16 kg.)
Thus, to start the production line, it is necessary to purchase raw materials ( variable costs) in the amount of 57,240 rubles, and the total costs will be 477,757 rubles.
Now let's evaluate the payback of the project
At a price of 70 rubles per 1 candle, our profit will be 350,000 rubles per month, and therefore this business will pay off in about 3 months, but subject to 100% sales of products.
Calculation of net profit
Starting from the 2nd month, the expenses will amount to 177,757 rubles (excluding one-time equipment costs), respectively, production will cease to be unprofitable, and the profit will be 172,243 rubles.
Income tax (20%) - 34,449 rubles. BUT net profit, for own needs and further development of production, will be equal to 137,794 rubles.
The essence of business is increasing profitability, so working with potential buyers is extremely important even at the beginning of production activities. Finished products can be sold to restaurants, cafes, souvenir shops, medical centers with aromatherapy services. You can also arrange direct deliveries to wedding salons or start selling online. For the emergence of a permanent clientele, it would be wiser to sell finished manufactured products cheaper than a similar product from intermediaries. Well, over time, and especially on New Year's holidays, you can raise the price to a reasonable limit.
If you decide to arrange own production candles, then you should solve two main tasks: 1. Find a market for candles 2. Find a room for production and purchase the appropriate equipment. If everything is clear with the second point, then there may be certain problems with the organization of sales ...
The main competitor, a monopolist in the candle market, is the ROC enterprise in Sofrino. it largest enterprise not only in the vastness of Russia, but also beyond its borders. The company melts about 10 tons of candles daily. This amount is enough to supply almost all the dioceses of the country. Also in Sofrino, up to 200 kg of artistic and worldly candles are made. The company manufactures products not only for the Russian, but also for the European market. Therefore, all orders from the plant are scheduled a year in advance. So, the scope for activity in this field is preserved for many other small industries.
A few words about church candles - the most purchased type of candles
The main size of candles supplied for the needs of churches is from 15 to 30 cm in height. From 400 grams of paraffin, 20 church candles 30 cm high or 40 candles 15 cm high can be melted. The burning time of such candles is from 2 to 3.5 hours. The range of many candle factories includes the production of remote and deacon candles, which weigh about 1 kg each.
Candles are sold in packs of 50 to 500 pieces (depending on the thickness of the candle). The most common quantity for designating a batch is kilograms. It's easier to count that way. One pack weighs 2 kg, and how many units are in it depends on the type and size of the candle.
The average wholesale price for candles 30 cm high and 9.6 mm in diameter is 7.3 rubles. a piece. It turns out that one package (300 pieces) will cost 2190 rubles.
Calculating the profitability of a business will also not cause difficulties. The purchase price of paraffin is about 20 rubles, the wick costs 1 ruble. per metre. With a selling price of finished candles of 45 rubles. per kilogram, the markup is more than 100%.
Production technology
The technology for the production of church candles is very simple. It can be described briefly: the wick is passed through a bath of hot paraffin, in the air the paraffin instantly solidifies. It turns out a long candle, which is wound on a large drum. Then it is cut into separate fragments, sorted and packed.
The main employees of candle production are sorters and packers. If with automatic machine only one operator can handle it, then dozens of workers are required to pack the goods (depending on the scale of the production itself).
“One shift has to pack up to one and a half tons of candles. All work is done by hand,” says Valentina Tarasova, an employee of the Sofrinsky plant.
Equipment
There are several options for organizing a candle business: on manual equipment and on automatic. The first option is suitable for novice entrepreneurs who do not have a large start-up capital. On the Internet you can find a lot of offers for the supply of special molds for pouring candles. With the help of such forms, you can open your own mini-production at home.
You can purchase a ready-made set from the White Candle Yard company. The company is implementing a new product for Russia for home production candles - a semi-finished product. The kit includes colored gelatinous paraffin - gel, wicks and fragrances. The manufacturing technology of the product is banal: the gel is melted on the stove, poured into a glass container of arbitrary shape, into which the wick is first inserted - the candle is ready!
The purchase of an automatic line will allow organizing a full-fledged industrial business. The price of a production line can reach several hundred thousand USD. Drum lines are the most common. The productivity of such a machine is up to 100 kg of No. 20 candles per hour. But the production speed can be adjusted as needed. The great advantage of automatic production is that only one operator is needed to maintain the line. Additional labor is needed only for product packaging:
Raw material issue
The purchase of raw materials is another difficulty that the organizer of the case may face. In our country, only six types of paraffin suitable for making candles are produced. Therefore, in order to give products the appropriate characteristics, manufacturers have to purchase special paraffin additives abroad. If you do not use additives, candles are of poor quality (paraffin quickly melts or crumbles before use). According to these features, it is possible to distinguish the products of certified and clandestine industries. Underground workshops rarely use paraffin additives, so their product is cheaper, but also of very poor quality.
Candle production has one big advantage - no waste. If the candle for some reason did not work out, then it is simply sent for remelting.
How to organize the sale of candles?
In the face of fierce competition, it is important to decide on the sale of products at the stage of business planning. Festive candles can be delivered to specialized stores (gift shops) by prior arrangement with the owners outlets. So you can sell goods through a group in social networks:
Or post information on Avito or other bulletin boards:
In this case, merchants and resellers will come to you.
Church candles are more difficult to sell, as each church already works with some kind of supplier. Can help here personal connections or the best terms of delivery (terms, quality, price). If you are a manufacturer, and not an ordinary reseller, then you always win in price.
