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Facts & Figures

About Candles

U.S. retail sales of candles are estimated at approximately
$2 billion annually, excluding sales of candle accessories.

Candles are used in 7 out of 10 U.S. households.

Candles generally can be categorized into 11 basic types: tapers, votives, pillars, container(or jar) candles, tealights, liturgical candles, outdoor candles, floating candles, novelty candles, utility candles, and birthday candles.

Manufacturer surveys show that more than 95% of all candles are purchased by women.

Votives, container candles and pillars are currently the most popular types of candles with American consumers.

Candle industry research indicates that the most important factors affecting candle sales are scent, color, cost and shape.

The retail price of a candle generally ranges from approximately 50¢ for a votive to $75 for a large pillar candle. Highly unusual or embellished artisan candles can be $200 or more.

Two-thirds of candle purchasers say they use candles once a week or more often.

About the Industry

There are more than 400 commercial, religious and institutional manufacturers of candles in the United States, in addition to scores of small craft producers for local, non-commercial use.

NCA member companies account for more than 90 percent of all candles made in the U.S.

Candles are principally sold in three types of retail outlets:

specialty or gift shops;

department and home décor stores;

mass merchandisers (discount stores, drug store chains, grocery stores, etc.)

Approximately 35% of candle sales occur during the Christmas/Holiday season. Non-seasonal business accounts for approximately 65% of candle sales.

Major U.S. candle manufacturers typically offer between 1,000 and 2,000 varieties of candles in their product lines.

More than 1 billion pounds of wax are used in producing the candles sold each year in the U.S.

It is estimated that more than 10,000 different candle scents are available to U.S. consumers.

Candle-User Preferences

Consumers are increasingly purchasing candles as a focal point for their home décor, and for aromatherapy-like relaxation and stress reduction.

Fragrance is by far the most important characteristic impacting candle purchases today, with three-fourths of candle buyers saying it is “extremely important" or "very important" in their selection of a candle.

The majority of U.S. consumers use their candles within a week of purchase.

Nine out of ten candle users say they use candles to make a room feel comfortable or cozy.

Candle users say they most frequently burn candles in the living room (42%), followed by the kitchen (18%) and the bedroom (13%).

Approximately one in five women say they use candles to decorate the yard, patio or other exterior areas, as well as the interior of their home.

Both men and women consider candles to be an always-acceptable and highly appreciated gift for a wide variety of occasions.

Candle purchasers say they view candles as an appropriate gift for the holidays (76%), as a house warming gift (74%), a hostess/dinner party gift (66%), a thank you (61%) and as adult birthday gifts (58%).

History of Candles

Candles have been used for light and to illuminate man's celebrations for more than 5,000 years, yet little is known about their origin.

It is often written that the first candles were developed by the Ancient Egyptians, who used rushlights or torches made by soaking the pithy core of reeds in melted animal fat. However, the rushlights had no wick like a true candle.

Early Wicked Candles

The Egyptians were using wicked candles in 3,000 B.C., but the ancient Romans are generally credited with developing the wicked candle before that time by dipping rolled papyrus repeatedly in melted tallow or beeswax. The resulting candles were used to light their homes, to aid travelers at night, and in religious ceremonies.

Historians have found evidence that many other early civilizations developed wicked candles using waxes made from available plants and insects. Early Chinese candles are said to have been molded in paper tubes, using rolled rice paper for the wick, and wax from an indigenous insect that was combined with seeds. In Japan, candles were made of wax extracted from tree nuts, while in India, candle wax was made by boiling the fruit of the cinnamon tree.

It is also known that candles played an important role in early religious ceremonies. Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights which centers on the lighting of candles, dates back to 165 B.C. There are several Biblical references to candles, and the Emperor Constantine is reported to have called for the use of candles during an Easter service in the 4th century.

Middle Ages

Most early Western cultures relied primarily on candles rendered from animal fat (tallow). A major improvement came in the Middle Ages, when beeswax candles were introduced in Europe. Unlike animal-based tallow, beeswax burned pure and cleanly, without producing a smoky flame. It also emitted a pleasant sweet smell rather than the foul, acrid odor of tallow. Beeswax candles were widely used for church ceremonies, but because they were expensive, few individuals other than the wealthy could afford to burn them in the home.

Tallow candles were the common household candle for Europeans, and by the 13th century, candlemaking had become a guild craft in England and France. The candlemakers (chandlers) went from house to house making candles from the kitchen fats saved for that purpose, or made and sold their own candles from small candle shops.

Colonial Times

Colonial women offered America's first contribution to candlemaking, when they discovered that boiling the grayish-green berries of bayberry bushes produced a sweet-smelling wax that burned cleanly. However, extracting the wax from the bayberries was extremely tedious. As a result, the popularity of bayberry candles soon diminished.

The growth of the whaling industry in the late 18th century brought the first major change in candlemaking since the Middle Ages, when spermaceti -- a wax obtained by crystallizing sperm whale oil -- became available in quantity. Like beeswax, the spermaceti wax did not elicit a repugnant odor when burned, and produced a significantly brighter light. It also was harder than either tallow or beeswax, so it wouldn't soften or bend in the summer heat. Historians note that the first "standard candles" were made from spermaceti wax.

19th Century Advances

Most of the major developments impacting contemporary candlemaking occurred during the 19th century. In the 1820s, French chemist Michel Eugene Chevreul discovered how to extract stearic acid from animal fatty acids. This lead to the development of stearin wax, which was hard, durable and burned cleanly. Stearin candles remain popular in Europe today.

In 1834, inventor Joseph Morgan helped to further the modern-day candle industry by developing a machine that allowed for continuous production of molded candles by using a cylinder with a movable piston to eject candles as they solidified. With the introduction of mechanized production, candles became an easily affordable commodity for the masses.

Paraffin wax was introduced in the 1850s, after chemists learned how to efficiently separate the naturally-occurring waxy substance from petroleum and refine it. Odorless and bluish-white in color, paraffin was a boon to candlemaking because it burned cleanly, consistently and was more economical to produce than any other candle fuel. Its only disadvantage was a low melting point. This was soon overcome by adding the harder stearic acid, which had become widely available. With the introduction of the light bulb in 1879, candlemaking began to decline.

The 20th Century

Candles enjoyed renewed popularity during the first half of the 20th century, when the growth of U.S. oil and meatpacking industries brought an increase in the byproducts that had become the basic ingredients of candles – paraffin and stearic acid.

The popularity of candles remained steady until the mid-1980s, when interest in candles as decorative items, mood-setters and gifts began to increase notably. Candles were suddenly available in a broad array of sizes, shapes and colors, and consumer interest in scented candles began to escalate.

The 1990s witnessed an unprecedented surge in the popularity of candles, and for the first time in more than a century, new types of candle waxes were being developed. In the U.S., agricultural chemists began to develop soybean wax, a softer and slower burning wax than paraffin. On the other side of the globe, efforts were underway to develop palm wax for use in candles.

Today's Candles

Candles have come a long way since their initial use. Although no longer man's major source of light, they continue to grow in popularity and use. Today, candles symbolize celebration, mark romance, soothe the senses, define ceremony, and accent home decors — casting a warm and lovely glow for all to enjoy.

Candle Care

There’s nothing tricky to taking care of your candles. A few simple rules and a little common sense are all it takes to keep your candles looking lovely.

Always store your candles in a cool, dark and dry place. Tapers or dinner candles should be stored flat to preventing warping.

Your can remove dust and fingerprints from a candle by gently rubbing the surface with a piece of nylon or a soft cloth. The cloth can be dry or slightly dampened with water.

Wax drippings can be removed from most candleholders by running hot water over them. Some home care experts prefer removing wax by first placing the candleholder in the freezer for an hour or so. This allows the wax to shrink and easily pop out when the candleholder is removed from the freezer.

Never use a knife or a sharp object to remove wax drippings from a glass votive holder. It might scratch or weaken the glass, causing it to break upon subsequent use.

Avoid burning candles in any glass item not specifically designed for candles. Glass candleholders are specifically manufactured to withstand the temperature changes that occur when burning a candle. Everyday glassware is not designed for burning candles.

Votive holders will clean more easily afterward if you add a few drops of water to the glass before inserting the candle. Caution: Don’t add more than a few drops of water and don’t add water unless you intend to burn the candle immediately afterward. Over time, a candle wick could absorb the water and won’t burn properly.

Avoid placing your candles where they will be directly exposed to sunlight or harsh indoor lighting, such as a spotlight. Candles may fade if they are left in bright light for an extended period of time.
source: NCA

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