Thinking about selling candles, directly... with your own home-based business? Well then, you're in the right place.
In this article I'll be going over 10 candle direct sales companies that you can join today and hopefully make money selling candles and related products online, in person, via at-home parties, at events, etc.
What Is Direct Sales?
This is something that a lot of people get confused. Direct sales is simply the business model where a company has distributors sell their products directly to customers... no retail store selling here.
While direct sales companies often have a MLM (multi-level marketing) business model too, where distributors can make money by also recruiting in other distributors and building a team, this isn't always the case... and in this list you will see a few companies that offer direct sales opportunities but are not MLMs.
*Here's a more in-depth explanation about the difference between direct sales and MLM
Let's begin...
The List
This list is in no particular order, although the first up is easily one of the most popular choices.
1. Party Lite
PartyLite is one of the more well known direct sales candle companies out there, and for good reason. Their tradition dates back to 1909 with a schoolteacher named Mabel Baker who would made bayberry candles in her kitchen, which was in Cape Cod.
When it comes to candles, they have many varieties - multi-wick, tealight, votives, pillar, wooden wick, tapers, jar candles and more. Their signature 3-wick jar candles are some of the most best-selling. Other products include flameless fragrances like wax melts, sprays, essential oil diffusers, fragrance sticks, and more. The product line-up here is extensive, and because of this they have several product-lines focused on specific sub-niches, such as their After Dark Collection (sensual), Aromapure Collection, BeBalanced By PartyLite Collection (infused with essential oils) and more.
Their Sign Me Up Kit is the cheapest option for getting started at $49. This includes some products as well as sampling tools and literature.
Consultants earn anywhere from 25-38% on personal sales and can earn 7% commissions from team sales.
2. Scentsy
Scentsy doesn't sell your normal candles, but instead "wickless" candles as they call them. The company was started in 2004 and is based around selling scents, which fall into the categories of bakery, citrus, floral, fresh, fruity, spice and woods.
Their products include everything from wax bars and warmer dishes, to diffusers and essential oil mixes, sprays, scented laundry detergents and fabric softeners, lotions and body washes and more. Their wax bars are probably the most popular, and are what you could call their "core" product - these are their "wickless" candles.
Starter kits cost around $100 and include a bunch of samples, order forms, brochures, guides, etc.
Personal sales commissions range from 20-25%, and there are additional personal sales commission bonuses available on top of this. Consultants can also earn down multiple levels and down 3 generations (similar to levels).
3. Scent-Stations (Mia Bella's Gourmet Candles)
Scent-Stations (at scent-team.com) is home to Mia Bella's candles. There are two different websites listed above, but they are both for the same direct sales opportunity, which is selling the Mia Bella candles.
These candles are high quality and have a "homely" feel them. Everything is hand-poured and made of natural & renewable resources (not 100% soy - it doesn't hold the scents that great, so they tell us).
Products here consist of a large collection of jar candles, personalized jars, a flameless collection of wax melts, body care products, and even pie candles that look like small pies and give off the scents of blueberry pie, apple pie, key lime pie, etc.
This place's opportunity is a bit confusing. They offer 3 different ways to "join" and earn. 1 - The Autoship Program is the main focus, and this is where you can get discount products below wholesale prices and are set up with a company website to refer people to order from (monthly order requirement of $39.95). 2 - The "internet distributor program", which is just another name for their affiliate program, in which you only make money through online customer sales. 3 - Associate Program where you can purchase products at wholesales prices and sell them at mark-ups or refer people to a company website (no monthly order requirement here but the discount you get isn't as good as with the Autoship Program).
4. Pink Zebra
Pink Zebra mostly sells non-candle scent products, such as scented "sprinkles" of wax that can be used by themselves or added to their "simmering lights" or "simmering pots" products (which are different kinds of wax melters), but they also sell DIY glimmer candle kits.
They hold their products to very high standards and ensure all ingredients are of the best quality, which consist of soft soy wax, natural fragrance blends and eco-friendly dyes - and have everything tested to guaranteed this. All of their ingredients are eco-friendly and harvested through sustainable methods as well.
Their starter kits begin at $129.
Consultants earn 25% personal sales commissions with bonuses that give the possibility to earn up to 35%. Downline commissions can be earned down to 4 levels deep, earning 10% from personally sponsored consultants.
5. Sparklefly Candles
Sparklefly Candles was founded in 2011 by a mother who had a passion for creating candles, mainly to remember enjoyable past times - after all, they say a scent is the fastest way to bring up old memories.
Their products consist of candles, scented sparkle stones and "quote jars" that can be filled with scents and have inspirational quotes on them. Their product selection is quite small, so if you are looking for a large company with lots to sell then this probably isn't for you, however the quality is very good. You'll be happy to hear that they go the all natural and health route... using coconut wax, hemp wicks and other natural materials. You won't find artificial colors, paraffin, etc. here - not in any of their products.
Joining their consultant program isn't like most others. This is not a MLM and there is no recruiting other consultants. It's just a direct sales opportunity. Up to 25% commissions can be earned on all sales online. And, for the first 60 days you will be able to receive a 50% discount on product, followed by a 25% discount after that, which you could purchase and resell at mark-up prices.
There is no cost to join this program but they do have a $99 starter kit that might be worth the purchase - it will help people get started.
6. Jewelry Candles
The creation of this company was inspired by Charlie And The Chocolate Factory, and if you're looking for some unique candle products then this might be for you.
Jewelry Candles is famous for putting jewelry in their candles, as somewhat of a fun surprise. They have thousands of different styles of jewelry that they put in these candles, often small items like rings, and you never know what to expect. Additionally, they have "cash money candles" where buyers will find anywhere from $2 - $2,500 inside their candles. A total of nearly 70 scents are in their line-up and these are all 100% natural soy wax by the way. Besides candles, other products they sell include bath bombs, shampoos, soaps, wax melts, cards, and they even have "slimes" that are intended to be slung, punched, poked, smashed, etc. for stress relief - which they hide jewelry in.
Consultants earn 20% commissions on all sales through their representative site as well as a 20% discount on all purchases. This is another company that is involved in direct sales but is not a MLM. There is no recruiting other consultants. And some other good news is that you can really work at your own pace here - there are no quotas or minimums that you have to meet to stay active.
To join you'll have to buy a Rep-Kit, the cheapest option being only $19.95 for a replicated website.
7. Secret & Scents
Secret & Scents here is another candle direct sales company that puts jewelry in their candles.
All candles here are 100% natural soy, contain no artificial colors, and are hand-poured. Customers are able to choose what type of jewelry they want to be surprised with, along with the size, and the company handles the rest. There are several dozen different scents to choose from. Other products this company sells include a fairly good line-up of essential oils, soy wax tarts, and natural soaps.
Their compensation plan isn't very clear to the public. What they do tell us is that if you join as a consultant you'll be able to earn up to 30% commissions on your sales and your team members' sales. So what we do know is that this is a direct sales/MLM company - you can earn by recruiting in others and building a team.
Their lowest-cost starter kit is $99.95 and there are also optional add-on materials, such as personalized business cards.
8. JewelScent
As you can tell by the name, this is yet another company that sells jewelry candles. This company was founded in 2013 and its founders have deep roots in the jewelry industry, which makes sense.
Jewelry candles sold here include your normal-priced candles of this type, which range from $25-$35 typically, but they also have a Luxe Jewelry Candle collection that features hidden jewels ranging from $40-$7,500. Essential oils candles are also sold here, and other products include jewelry bath bombs, jewelry soaps, jewelry wax tarts and plain old jewelry (watches, bracelets, earrings, necklaces, etc.).
Personal sales commissions are 30% and they also offer team commissions going down 2 levels, meaning the people you recruit in and the people they recruit in - these commissions range from 7-10%
The cheapest option to join is with their Virtual Kit, which costs $20 and includes a replicated website and back-office.
9. Candle Divas
Candle Divas sells a variety of products, but the core focus here is on soy wax candles with fragrance oils and essential oils, all of which are hand-poured and have cotton wicks. These candles come in many forms... jelly jar candles, mason jar candles, candle tins, tealight candles, votive candles and more.
Other products include melts & tarts, essential oil room sprays, aromatherapy diffusers and essential oils, along with bath bombs, bath teas, scrubs, bath powders, and others.
Anyone can join their consultant program, which they simply call their affiliate program, and earn 25% commissions on personal sales, 5% commissions on direct downline sales (they call this level 2), and 3% commissions on level 3 downline sales.
The opportunity seems to be free to join.
10. MojiLife
This company sells what some people call wickless and flameless "candles", although they aren't really candles in the traditional sense... but rather are alternatives to candles - alternatives that won't potentially burn down your house.
Their main product is the AirMoji, which is a small fan-powered diffuser that disburses aroma from the fragrance pods that they also sell - wool fiber pods saturated with scents. There are a large variety of scents available - everything from Maui, to clothesline, wild rose, patchouli & birth, and many more. Additionally, they sell fresh cleaners, bath bombs, aromatherapy inhalers and sprays.
To join the opportunity it costs $88 for their Basic Distributor Kit. Then you will be able to receive commissions of 20-25% on personal sales as well as team commissions and generation commissions going down 4 levels.
What To Expect If You Join
There are pros and cons to joining direct sales businesses like these. The pros of it are that the work is flexible and that the startup costs are very low, but the cons are that these businesses are often much more difficult than they seem.
Take MLM businesses for example, of which many on the list are - and most direct sales companies are, in general. MLMs are notorious for being difficult to make money with, with very high failure rates. They are usually promoted in extravagant fashion and lead people to believe that if they join they will soon be able to live their dream lives... but reality is much different.
MLMs aren't illegal pyramid schemes, but they do have pyramid commission structures and are similar... and this is what makes them so difficult. It's great if you are on top collecting a bunch of commissions from team members beneath you, but the majority of participants will be on the bottom where it's usually a struggle.
Another Good Alternative
It's worth mentioning that another good alternative that exists is affiliate marketing, which in a nutshell is when you promote products online and earn commissions when you help make sales.
You can do this for just about any product/service you can think of, including candles. It's a work-at-home alternative that can be done completely online, so no bothering friends and family, which I know is a downside that many people don't like about direct sales.
The reason I mention this is because it's actually what I do to make a living online, and what I've been doing since 2015. I know from experience how it works and that it can be, if done right, a sustainable online business model.
If interested, I can't recommend the Wealthy Affiliate training program enough. This place provides all the training and tools needed to get started in this business, which you are going to want unless you already have a good amount of experience.
But anyways, if you are the type of person that wants to meet people face-to-face and build a team, then the MLM direct sales companies mentioned above would be more in-line with what you are looking for. And you may also want to check out the list of 40+ direct sales opportunities for women that I put together.
The choice is ultimately yours to make.
Let me know what you think about these candle direct sales companies in the comment section below. Is there another company I should add to the list? Let me know!