David Wilden, director of Bramble Bay Candle Co says he is seeing massive changes in the gift and homewares industry and believes many retailers and wholesalers will cease to exist over the next five years.
“The gift industry in particular is finding current trends difficult, and with the younger folk tending not to spend money on gifts but more so using gift cards, social media messages or experiences as their choice of gift,” he says.
Wilden believes this trend will continue for some time to come, and suggests for anyone thinking of starting a business in this industry to think long and hard before jumping in.
“However, if you do choose this industry, then it is very important to have a unique product or brand. Make sure that you have the funds to continue to develop product as you need to develop it.
Inspired by a love of natural candles and home fragrances as well as the frustration of paying high prices for products that frequently failed to live up to expectations, Bramble Bay Candle Co made its debut in late 2014 as part of Serenity Imports Australia, which had been launched earlier that year when it acquired Crystal Carvings Australia.
“Candles create an ambience and help promote a feeling of wellbeing which also nicely complements our natural crystal jewellery. To increase brand identity, Serenity Imports slipped into the background in December 2018 when we re-branded and commenced trading as Bramble Bay Co.
“We believe that having your own IP brand is essential for success. Building a brand, marketing it and supporting your customers with ongoing products, releases and extensions is paramount in today’s environment. Our customers are always looking for something new, fresh and exciting for their customers, so it is important to continue to develop new ranges, range extensions and collections. We believe that this is one of the most important factors for success in the modern market. Offering fantastic customer service, understanding your customers’ needs and producing Australia made products certainly helps.”
Good growth in the global candle and home fragrance markets is still being reported and this should continue for some time yet, says Wilden. Here are some of the trends we should look out for:
● More consumers are moving from traditional pillar candles to jar candles and we are seeing a moderate market shift to electronic fragrance diffusers rather than traditional reed diffusers.
● The other significant trend is for consumers to purchase products online, in particular the younger generation. This is an area that retailers must start to understand and get tech savvy to participate in this market, or they will miss the boat.
● Our choice has been to cater for different demographics with specific product collections. Décor, vessels and home furnishings are part of the current trends in the market. We have young, fresh, fun fragrances which tend to be more popular with younger consumers and for everyday household use, and the more sophisticated and refined higher-end perfume-grade fragrances in elegant packaging and vessels to appeal to the more refined tastes.
Want to read more? Check out the full article in our candles & home fragrance digital magazine, which is out now!
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