MAIDEN History Part 2 – The Pre-Maiden Days

As told by Josh.

If you’ve followed us for a while, you might know that we went by another name for many years. We’ll get to that shortly, but what you probably won’t know we had a different name even before then. A short-lived ill-fated name…

For the first few markets we did, we traded as Flicker. And you might think, hey, that’s a great name for candle company. It was, but due to our own blunder we sullied it for ourselves and had to change.

To try and start a brand image for ourselves, we purchased a rubber stamp to print the new business name we were so proud of onto our paper bags. The rubber stamp was the name in capitals (FLICKER) with a small flame above the ‘I’ to resemble a candle. Excellent logo! However, large rubber stamps are not the most precise medium… When printed, the L and the I in the logo blended together to more resemble a U. So after one shame-filled day when we realised the error and had to watch a lovely old lady leave our stall and walk off with a profane paper bag, we decided on a fresh start.

We only had to look down to the bottom of our garden for inspiration for the next name, to the shed where Mum created the first Curve candles: the shed we dubbed the ‘WackyShack’. So, we became WackyShack Candles. Perhaps the name we had when many of you discovered our candles.

Now, though, let’s just go back a step to the Curve candle itself. Starting to make these candles was not simply a case of ordering a mould online and voila! Instead, a whole new method of candle making needed to be employed. This involved inventing the physical method of making them without conventional moulds (how to form their shape from molten wax); experimenting with wax recipes to create the right colour, opacity and rigidity for the candles; then testing to find the right wick type and size to not only burn cleanly but also create channels of exactly the right width into the Curve. Needless to say, this was no mean feat and took many years to perfect.

At first, Mum made to no set designs. Each session in the WackyShack produced a batch of unique Curve designs, many of which have been refined into our current line of designs. Some, however, didn’t make it but taught us some valuable lessons. Lessons such as making a Curve covered in pebbles all over will look interesting but will plink and plonk pebbles regularly whilst burning. Also, if you don’t get the correct distance between the floral decorations on the front, the candle will burn down fast… very fast, in a spectacular blaze of glory.

Then, with all these lessons learned, we started selling our Curves on Bridport market in the late 2000’s, followed by memorable markets in Emsworth and Ayrlesford. In time, we outgrew the shed at the bottom of the garden and took up residence in the Old School building, which was conveniently situated next door.

This move gave us the space to increase production and attend the Winchester Cathedral Christmas Market for the first time. (See picture below of our first stand with myself looking thoroughly enamored with the whole thing. Don’t worry, I have since grown to enjoy our candles much more…)

But in July 2012, something happened which would force our hand and push us into the future. Our village flooded. Floodwater tore up the road and found its way into the house and into the workshop. This resulted in two things. The first was that the original parquet flooring throughout the old school building was ruined. There was no way around it; it needed to come up, dry out and be laid again. So, we needed to get out and find somewhere else.

The second was that after months of deliberation, the flooding encouraged Mum to finally hand in her notice at her full-time job as visual merchandiser, one she’d held for 23 years. The business had been steadily growing busier and, with new premises, much more time would need to be dedicated to it.

The flooding, although traumatic at the time, forced us to take the business more seriously. We moved into larger premises and then had much more time to dedicate to it. With this new serious attitude, we felt it was time to update our branding to something reflecting that. So it was goodbye WackyShack, hello Maiden.