Today’s stay at home moms do a lot more than just stay at home and take care of her children. For one, there is a whole breed of them setting up creative ventures on their own and making a name for themselves. One such example is Soumya Dhruvakumar, owner of Twilight Creations.
“I gave up my IT job after my daughter was born and that was six years ago. I always wanted to do something on my own, at my own pace, without disturbing my family life. It was around then that I read an article about actor Twinkle Khanna’s candle studio. That’s what got me interested in candle making. I did a lot of research online about it and took up a course from AWAKE, a women’s empowerment organisation. I began to make candles and people around seemed to like them,” the entrepreneur-mother narrates.
However, it was in October 2010 that she officially started Twilight Creations. Their range of products includes regular candles, floating candles, gel candles and designer pillar candles. “The good thing is that candles don’t need an occasion. People always love having candles around their living space. We get orders for return gifts for occasions like birthdays, baby showers, and house warming ceremonies. We also make candles with invitations on them for weddings and anniversaries and receive regular orders from a few hotels for candlelight dinners. Diwali, Christmas and Valentines are always celebrated with candles,” Soumya informs.
Products at Twilight Creations are priced anywhere between Rs. 45 and Rs. 1,000. Customers usually place orders through Soumya’s business Facebook page (www.facebook.com/twicreations) and some of her products are also available on a few online stores.
What she finds stands out about her venture is that “Our customers have a wide range of choices according to their taste and budget. We use chemicals to a bare minimum and the fragrances are all imported and non-allergic. Customisation also sees clients coming back with more orders.”
Throwing light on her journey as an entrepreneur, Soumya says: “I have always tried to be innovative and come up with designs that are not so common in the market. So, it needs a lot of research, constant learning and interaction with the suppliers. Importing good quality materials is a challenge here.
If a candle is all shining, burning without soot, with a beautiful aroma, it’s because of the quality raw materials we import from around the world.”
Of late, Soumya has been working on interesting candle projects. “Photo Candles are the in thing right now. We emboss desired photos and designs on wax shells and t-light candles are lit inside them. This brightens up the photos on the candle. I call them ‘Forever’ candles as the wax shells don’t melt. The Buddha candles are one of my favourites. These are created using imported silicone moulds. Again these are made into wax shells and holders, and don’t melt.
In the near future, “I want to bring in more designs and varieties of candles and start my own candle boutique,” she wraps up.
This column features those who choose to veer off the beaten track.
