Online candle shop: sell candles across Canada

Gift buyers, people decorating their homes, and customers ordering for birthdays, weddings and the holiday season.

You earn the difference between what you pay for the candles and your selling price, plus extra from gift sets and shipping upgrades.

• Product photography on a phone
• Social media and simple online marketing
• Packing carefully and keeping stock records

• Check whether you need a home-based business licence from your municipality
• Check GST/HST, and provincial sales tax where it applies, once you pass the small supplier threshold
• Candles are fragile and can melt in summer heat or freeze in winter, so test your packaging and shipping
• Check Canadian labelling rules for candles, including bilingual labelling for products you sell, and ask your supplier for safety information
• Business insurance that covers product liability, since candles carry a fire risk

Startup costs are typically estimated at around $800 to $4,000, depending on whether you stock candles from makers or wholesalers or source your own range, plus packaging, photography and website costs.

Monthly revenue is typically estimated at around $300 to $3,000, depending on your range, how well you market it and how busy gift seasons are. The estimate assumes at least about 6 hours a week.

Things to check: any home-based business licence from your municipality, GST/HST and provincial sales tax once you pass the small supplier threshold, Canadian labelling rules including bilingual labelling, supplier safety information, and product liability insurance.