We recently connected with Tyra Wilson and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Tyra, thanks for joining us today. Along with taking care of clients, taking care of our team is one of the most important things we can do as leaders. Looking back on your journey, did you have a boss that was really great? Maybe you can tell us about that boss and what made them a wonderful person to work for?
When I worked for Venable, the largest law firm in MD from 2007 – 2013, Lisa Callahan was my direct supervisor. I loved everything about that job. The people, the hours, the work, the education and learned skills, I could go on. Some of my lasting relationships have come from Venable. While working for Venable, Lisa stood out to me as the best supervisor ever because she honestly cared. Because of her amazing and caring heart, I finally faced and acknowledged my mental issues. She would noticed that my work production wasn’t top notch like she’s known me to produce, so one day I came in, she pulled me to the side and told me that she’s noticed a lot of changes and advised that I speak with a professional in the EAP (employee assistance program) network. That was the first time I realized that I had mental trauma and during this time in my life, things were taking a turn for the worse. Instead of Lisa allowing me to fail and lose my position, she made sure I got the help that I needed and since then, I’ve owned the fact that I have mental traumas but instead of being a victim, I choose survival and found ways to cope. One of those ways were through aromatherapy and my love of home fragrance. Hence, a few years later, I decided to handmake vegan-friendly candles to assist with keeping my mental traumas at bay when coupled with other lifestyle changes. If it weren’t for Lisa, I would probably still be in denial about my mental traumas and like a lot of other people in the world, scared to address them. So thanks to Lisa Callahan for noticing my potential and making sure I put my best efforts forward, despite what is going on with my mental traumas.
Tyra, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Zenful Flames Candle Company is a small, home-based business located in Baltimore County, MD, founded by me, Tyra Wilson, in November 2021. During the day, I work as a paralegal at a law firm in PG County and in my downtime, I focus on my craft of being the best candle connoisseur in Maryland. I have been in the legal field for 20 years and have realized its time for a permanent change. I initially started making candles as a way to relieve stress and cope with mental trauma in 2017. But when the pandemic rolled around, it propelled my mental traumas into a frenzy! A little backstory: In 2013 I was officially diagnosed with having P.T.S.D. and Borderline Personality Disorder with an additional diagnosis of Anxiety and Bi-Polar I Depression in 2018. Before the pandemic, my usual way to cope was live music, dancing, traveling, outdoor exercise and aromatherapy (mainly lighting candles and incorporating fragrance into my living spaces) but as we got deeper into the pandemic, the more I succumbed to my mental traumas for about 6 months. Not wanting to continuously be a victim, but a survivor, I started to practice meditation and focused on healthier eating habits, working out at home, learning about healing crystals and all the positive energy they can manifest. So, after a few years of research, in Spring 2019 I brought my first soy wax candle making kit and fell in love with the craft. The process of candle making was so therapeutic. From melting the wax, blending the fragrances, and pouring the wax into the jars, every step has its own feel-good emotion that I get from it. Since then, I have jumped in headfirst testing various waxes, fragrance blends, vessel testing, further research and watching many YouTube “how to” videos. After a while, I decided to go into business for myself and share everything I learned during my ever-changing healing journey.
Although the road hasn’t been easy, it has been very fulfilling. From serious patience, discipline and problem-solving skills, if you’re adamant about becoming your own boss, those are necessary skills you must have. Not to mention determination, because it can get discouraging along the way. I’ve had a few trial and error moments that almost broke me down and made me want to quit but if you REALLY want it, those minor things are small pixels in the total picture. Yes, you may have to scale back on outings with friends, going out to eat, traveling, and just doing the basic fun things you’re used to doing when first starting out, but the more you learn, grow and understand how running a successful business works, there will be plenty of times to celebrate achievements and milestones in the future which will make the celebration much more rewarding. As I’ve gotten my company off the ground this past year, I can honestly say I now understand the saying “When you love what you do, you’ll never work again a day in your life,” because the more I learn about my craft and and open myself to networking with other entrepreneurs, I find myself in circles I wouldn’t have imagined being in just a year ago. Fulfilling is a word that comes to mind but it’s an understatement as to how I feel every day when I wake up and have to put work into my business and set deadlines, for myself, etc. My goal is to continue to work hard and utilize my resources so that I can quit my legal world and be my own boss full time within 1-2 years.
Our products include wax melts, candles, and candle accessories such as wax melt warmers, wick cutters and candle holders. I pride my company on offering clean and fresh products that are safe to use anywhere. I specifically chose coconut apricot wax because it’s known to be the most luxurious tier of waxes used to make candles. This particular wax creates very rich and smooth candles with great container adhesion. Coconut Crème wax also helps promote good burning characteristics, minimum smoking and soot when burning. I chose to use a wooden wick in my candles because they have been known for a producing a cleaner burn than most other candles and when coupled with the coconut wax, there’s no black flaming or soot build up around the burned wick when you put the candle out or go to relight. Wooden wicks are also known to give off a natural smell and do not introduce additional smoke into your space when burned. Although wooden wicks require a lot more maintenance and attention than cotton wicks, the ambiance it creates is well worth it!
I currently have 3 collections of candles that total 12 various scents:
Our Peace Collection is our cheapest tier candle but doesn’t skimp on quality! This collection of candles is colored using all-natural mica powder to give you a colorful addition to your space. The fragrances are Black Lavender, Citrus Explosion, ESP, Gentle Breeze, Sandalwood and Vanilla and Wine Down.
Our Flora Collection is the middle tier candle that adds an additional beauty with your aromatherapy with dried flowers melted on top to accompany the scent. These candles are not colored because the dried flowers are the stars of this collection. The fragrances in this collection are Ambers & Roses, Refined Gentleman and Tymeless Tranquility. When burned, the optics of this candle will give your living space a new “Fung shui” you may not have realized before in addition to the amazing scent it permeates throughout the room.
Our Higher Vibez Collection is our top tier and best-selling collection that offers a spiritual, healing additive to each candle. All scents are unisex and come in the 10-ounce jar only. The fragrances are Confidence, Intuition and Serenity. When burned, the stones radiate their spiritual emotion, in addition to the flower, offering a more non-traditional way of coping with the stresses of your day.
With the exception of the Higher Vibez collection, each fragrance has its own matching wax melt, and comes in an 8-ounce tin or a 10-ounce jar. Each fragrance comes with a scent card, explaining the top, middle and bottom notes of each fragrance and the aromatherapy value it offers.
What do you think sets you apart from others? My candle company differs from the others because from my research, most of the competitors just focus on creating many scents that smell good. Zenful Flames Candle Company is all about bridging the gap between mental health and aromatherapy and bringing awareness to those who may not know the correlations between the two and when coupled with other lifestyle changes, can make a world of difference in your life to elude stress and to just help reset your day in a feel-good way. Not only that, my candles and wax melts are vegan-friendly, pet-friendly and free of all toxins making them safe to enjoy everywhere.
What are you most proud of? To date, I am proud of myself for what I’ve accomplished as a whole. Less than 10 years ago, I was in a major depression and dealing with self-harm, suicidal thoughts, etc. I’m elated that with just a bit of understanding, guidance, and a few super supportive people in my corner, I’m more than proud to say I have turned my life around for the better and feel like there’s so much more to it than what I’ve been through over the years. I am determined to make my candle company a success and I no longer allow small disappointments to kill my overall big picture. Since I’ve started to survive my mental traumas and not become a victim to them, I have excelled in ways beyond belief and now that I’ve found something I love and am passionate about, I want to be to others what I am now for myself…an advocate, supporter, champion, and cheerleader for those who may be going through the same thing and need to know they are not alone and can come out of whatever mental traumas they are facing!
What are the main things you want potential clients/followers/fans to know about you/your brand/your work/ etc.? Zenful Flames Candle Company was built to bring awareness to those who may not know or understand the correlation between aromatherapy and mental health. I based my customer interactions based on all the things I’ve been frustrated about when it came to retail and customer service over the years and have made a promise to myself to make sure I offer the best customer service and problem-solving options to everyone whether you purchased a $5 wax melt warmer or a $5,000 wholesale order. I want to make every purchase feel like an experience, which in turn, I hope to translate to repeat customers. I also want my customers to know that whether you are battling with mental health and need a spiritual, aromatic boost or if you just need a scented pick-me-up to get you through the day, our collection of candles will surely cater to all your aromatherapy needs.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
I recall one event I did in Howard County. It was literally my first festival type event in a park so I wasn’t sure what to expect regarding set up, parking, etc. Leading up to the event, I THOUGHT I prepared for the unexpected, however, the day of the event, all of the preparation I did to assure a smooth event went out the window when my mom and I arrived to the grounds. 1st, when we pulled up, I realized that my site space was pretty far from where we were to unload and park. 2. as I unloaded the products, my dolly wheels didn’t fare well over the mulchy terrain and gravel and literally broke mid-way to my site space. I hadn’t eaten that morning so my “hangry” pains were also in full effect. The weather started off a little cool so that was another factor I wasn’t sure would hold for the full event, but eventually turned out to be a beautiful sunny day. Prior to the weather changing for the better, with all of the mishaps, I was about ready to call it quits but once I removed my emotions from everything, I realized that this was only the beginning and would probably be the LEAST of my entrepreneurial hiccups. So I gathered myself, took about 5 minutes to breathe and figure things out, re-evaluate and reset. The next thing I knew, my adrenaline had me lifting boxes, walking through the mulch and grass like I was built for this. Although this took much longer than expected and left very little time to set up my tent/display, I didn’t let that ruin my day, instead I pulled it together and got it done. The event turned out to be a huge success and I’ve gained additional opportunities from a few people who just passed my booth and loved my energy. So from that point on, I made it a point to not get frustrated when things don’t go as planned because you never know what could come out of it if you just keep going!
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
A lesson I had to unlearn was “introverted people can’t be successful.” I had to unlearn this because I am a person who protects my peace at all cost and will simply remove myself from situations when I don’t want to be bothered, which I noticed was usually 85% of the time. I used to pride myself on being a “certified” introvert, meaning I was okay with always being alone. I traveled alone, went out to eat alolne etc. And because of the pandemic, I have the option to work remotely a few days a week so when I’m working remotely I’m only around my 2 cats all day. I wouldn’t leave the house unless necessary. I’ve adapted this “anti-social” personality and only put forth the effort to be social if I felt it was genuine on the other end. Since unlearning this, I have found a great balance of extrovert/introvert. I can network with my woman’s group or visit family and be as extroverted as ever, but still can appreciate my “me time” and not feel completely exhausted when I interact with others. I’m in the best place I’ve ever been mentally and can truly say that if not for me taking the leap to create Zenful Flames Candle Company, I still wouldn’t be open to networking opportunities, traveling for business expos, business brunches, interviews, etc. due to my previous fear of having to force being an extrovert in certain groups, while compromising my “me time” in the process. Nowadays, I’m doing it all and I can’t recall a time I’ve been happier.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.zenfulflamescandles.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zenfulflamescandles/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZenfulFlamesCandles
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenful-flames-candle-co-llc-66a791142/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/zenful-flames-candle-company-catonsville?osq=zenful+flames
- Other: E-mail: [email protected]
Image Credits
Sewell Studios, LLC: Ashley