Divya Gupta: Illuminating Hearts and Homes Through Handcrafted Fragrances

Meet Divya Gupta, the resilient candlemaker who turned her passion into a soothing art form, crafting fragrances that warm hearts and homes.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your family?

My name is Divya Gupta. I am a 39-year-old woman born in Jalandhar, Punjab. Married to a software engineer and mother of a naughty 11-year-old boy. I currently live with my small and beautiful family in Ghaziabad.

I am an MBA degree holder and I worked as a corporate manager at the ICICI bank for around 6 years. I left my job after having my son.

I am an avid reader and I love traveling. I enjoy baking and I also used to write food blogs on momspresso.

Have you had any formal training or family business?

No, I didn’t have any formal training since I belong to a service class working for private sector. Therefore, starting a business on my own was a novice idea and having my own venture was really challenging for me.

How did you come up with the idea for your business, and what was the process of turning that idea into a reality?

In November 2022, I lost my dear mother to cancer and it was too sudden for me to digest. After that, for many months I was unable to cope.

My mother was full of energy and so inspiring. She was my biggest support system. She always appreciated anything I did.

It was a dark phase and I needed a ray of hope that motivates me to cope with this situation. My mother was a people person and her soothing presence and aura were so enticing that nobody remained untouched by it.

I don’t know from where and how I started reading and watching videos of candle making. And then one day I started candle making.

Then the idea of selling scented candles popped up in my mind and spreading the same aura and fragrance among the people started by lighting the candles.

Eventually, my sister-in-law, sister and a good friend of mine also joined me. We did a lot of brainstorming sessions ultimately bringing this idea to reality. It required a lot of patience, hard-work, research, and trials.

Love for my mother is irreplaceable but my venture in the name of my mother helps me keep moving.

How have you grown as a leader since starting your company, and what have been some of the key lessons you've learned along the way?

I have played a leadership role during my tenure in a corporate job. So soaking myself in a leadership role was not difficult.

Yes, I have grown a lot after I thought of starting a venture. Also, I have learned a lot from people who helped me in any way in my whole journey.

The key lesson that I learned is that if you stay focused on your goal you will achieve it. You will run into problems but you need to keep pushing towards your goal.

It is the motive behind the venture is strong enough that helps a lot.

Can you tell us about a time when you faced a major setback or failure in your business, and how you overcame it?

I will not call it a major setback but when I started this venture I decided on a date but it turned out we were lagging behind but with the help of my whole team we eventually managed everything including photoshoots, packaging, delivery etc.

How do you stay motivated and focused on your goals, especially during challenging times?

Since the reason behind launching this venture is so close to my heart it is enough for me to stay motivated. Also, belief in myself and having faith in my capabilities keep me motivated and help me keep going.

How do you balance your personal life with the demands of running a business?

For me my personal life is always my priority however at the same time it is my family and the support that they provide helps me in managing both aspects of my life.

What are your plans for the future of your business, and how do you see yourself evolving as a founder and leader?

The plan is to add more variety of products in the portfolio keeping in mind customer’s preferences.

Since candle-making is a very competitive market I need to ensure that I come up with unique products and variations to keep the brand popular among buyers.

If you could go back in time and give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be?

I honestly think I should have started this venture a lot earlier when my mother was still with me. Now that I have started this venture I can feel that I always had this quality to do something on my own however it is never too late to learn anything.

What's the most unconventional thing you've done to grow your business, and what was the result?

I will not call it the most unconventional thing but when I started this venture I literally reached out to everyone in my and my husband’s friend circle and told them about my business and then persuaded them to buy the candles.

Like, explain to them how candles can fit into their household.

What's the most important lesson you've learned from a failure, and how have you applied it to your business?

I learned that when you are trying something new or learning something you are sure to run into problems.

As I am new to the business of candle making I ran into a lot of problems initially.

Honestly speaking there was a time I was worried whether I would be able to do this or not.

However, I didn’t lose hope and kept myself motivated and went on to fixing those problems.

What's the most meaningful compliment or feedback you've ever received from a customer, and why did it resonate with you?

For me as a founder all customer reviews are equally important as they keep me motivated and help me keep adding value to my products.

Having said that first review is always special.

It was the first recognition of my work. That’s the most meaningful compliment or feedback that I received from a customer.

Also, any feedback regarding aroma, coziness and homely feeling after lighting the candle feels like fulfilment of my mission of spreading fragrance and aura of beloved mother everywhere.

If you had to choose one thing that makes your company truly unique and sets it apart from the competition, what would it be, and why?

One thing that sets my venture apart from the competition is that all my candles are hand-poured by myself with a lot of care. I personally deal with all my customers to know them better and their use of candles so that I can give them the best recommendation based on their needs.

Find Divya Gupta on Social Media:

Instagram - SadhnaCandles

Hope you enjoyed reading Divya Gupta’s story!

Do write to us if you'd like to share your story with the women community of SOROR - The Sister's Edit.

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