Meet Kristy Miller the owner and creator of The Scented Market. Kristy is a mom of three boys, a wife to a loving husband, and owner of two English Bulldogs named Dozer & Gucci.
Where does Kristy Miller’s story begin? It all started when Kristy had had a love of candles for years and literally woke up out of bed one morning and decided to turn her love into her work. After much discussion in her household she decided to move forward with The Scented Market.
Kristy Miller runs this business with hard work and pride, hand pouring each candle and tying each piece of twine with love.
Tell us about The Scented Market, what makes it so unique?
The Scented Market prides itself on the quality and style of our candles (Not to mention the rest of the line). Offered in over 45 scents, we truly do have a candle for anyone or anything. Our candles are made to suit ANY home and style! We make custom candles for events, business’, conferences, weddings – pretty much anything you can think of!
What motivated you to start your company?
I have owned a business since the age of 19 years old. Eventually I got married and started popping out babies. At this time my 1st business was running so smoothly that I actually started The Scented Market because I was looking for a new challenge. Something to inspire me and take up some of my time. Something that fuelled my passion. Then one night – are you ready for this? I had a dream. I woke up from a night’s sleep with the name “The Scented Market” already picked out.
Why did you want to start The Scented Market?
I’ve always cared about my health and what was in my home. After having kids, I started to care even more – I remember candles burning in my house and black soot sticking to my walls and ceiling. I thought to myself, what are we breathing in? I then set out to make candles that were chemical free, a cleaner, healthier option for my family and my home!
What are you most proud of as an entrepreneur?
I am most proud of the quality of my product. I spent months ruining candles, countless hours of my time and money making candles just to throw them in the trash – until that one day when I found the perfect recipe. I am proud of every single candle that leaves my store, because I know I’m sending people home with something they’ll love!
How does the company prevent counterfeiting?
As a small business, it’s extremely important to keep our suppliers and recipes confidential. I’ve been through it all, from customers straight up emailing me asking for the recipe to breaking in to my garbage bins with headlamps to find bottle with supplier labels on them. How do I prevent it? How can I? I am extremely careful with who I hire, I have NDA’s and Non-Competes all over the place. But that still doesn’t stop people from finding new ways to intrude, what helps me sleep at night is the fact that the recipes are mine, and only mine.
Who are your ideal customers and why?
Candles and bath & body products is definitely a female dominated industry! My customers are over 85% women!
What are the company’s plans in the next 5 years?
The Scented Market is growing faster than I could have ever imagined, I could have never have predicted where I/ this business is today. What’s to come in the next 5 years? I’m sure anything I have planned in my head will be completely changed in the years to come, all I can tell you is I want to make The Scented Market available all across the globe, breaking into the United States while opening as many stores as we can!
How has the business grown to be where it is now? What has contributed to your success?
When I started this business, I spent several hours a day curating content for The Scented Markets social media. I was so dedicated to building an online presence for the business and it absolutely contributes to the The Scented Market’s success.Engaging with customers on a daily basis and giving them as close to as in person connection as I possibly can!
What type of products are your best sellers to your customers?
At the end of the day, candles are the bread & butter of this company! We hand pour 100% natural soy wax candles with oil fragrance that is free of parabens and phthalates. It is what started this business, and although we have developed some amazing collections over the years, candles have held that #1 spot!
Which styles and scents are you really excited about for fall and winter 2021 are there any future plans you can share with us?
We are launching Holiday Gift Sets on November 1st and they are SO good, we designed one for everyone and I am so excited to share them with you! Not to mention a brand new scent or two..
What challenges do you face in your work?
The competition! There are some amazing brands out there. I love to support candle makers and creators who are passionate about their products (we actually carry some local candle creators in store). But I also have to constantly look 10 steps ahead while also looking back to see who’s trying to re-create what I’ve done. It’s a challenge to create new paths and channels for the business that continue to represent the brand and it’s image.
If you had one piece of advice to someone just starting out, what would it be?
To look at your numbers, they will tell you exactly what you need to know if you look close enough. Then make sure you have people around you who are smarter than you – and if you’re the smartest one in the room, find a new room. Dream big, and make you dream happen – but don’t forget the importance of connection and relationships while doing so!
What sacrifices have you had to make during life?
Oh my gosh. The last 3 years of my life (20 if you count my 1st business too). Myself and my family has had to make major sacrifice to make this business happen. It was a HUGE family decision when talking about this possibility. For the last 3 years, I’ve missed weddings, family events, parties/ gatherings, my kids school performances, every single weekend of the last 3 years has been at a trade show or going over the books in my basement. But that dedication and sacrifice got the business to where it is today, to the point where I can afford to hire a team to help me and allow myself to take a *slight* amount of time off. An entrepreneurs brain will never shut off at 5pm, there has not been one day in the last 3 years where I haven’t been working on my business. But it’s so worth it to me! What can I say, I love it!
![From Music to Perfume: How did your background as a music teacher influence your transition into perfumery, and how do you incorporate your musical sensibilities into creating fragrances? I’ve always thought in terms of metaphors, and music has many that can be related to perfumery! Beyond just thinking in terms of top, middle and base notes [soprano/alto/tenor in choir], I approach each fragrant idea as a composition. When documenting my ideas, song structures often come to mind. As the scent brief is visited, I meditate on what the fragrance should convey - do I want to create an accord or a “chord” of fragrance note combinations? Do I want an a capella soloist (a particular ingredient to stand out more than others?) Many of my thoughts regarding song composition transfers to my scent formulation process, with me treating each note as an intentional soliloquy at some point.
Brand Origin: What inspired you to start Pink MahogHany in 2005, and how has your vision for the brand evolved since its inception?
An avid lover of all things pleasantly scented (with slight modesty), looking back in retrospect, it’s no huge surprise that I’ve created an indie perfume house with just an idea to provide unique options for those who may be sensitive to unnecessary pungency. Initially, I just wanted to evaluate various blends to note their aroma profiles when “played” together…it wasn’t until I had friends and family asking if I knew of brands that catered to those who may be on the more olfactory sensitive side, that I really began to take my research more seriously. In the almost 20 years that Pink MahogHany has been in existence, our micro visions for the brand have evolved to larger territory. Where Pink MahogHany used to only be a personal brand, we are now also a bespoke formulation service provider to other indie brands seeking unique fragrance offerings for their products. These products range from (but are not limited to) perfumes, candles, body butters and lip balms. Ingredient Transparency: You emphasize transparency and the use of desirable ingredients in your products. How do you select your ingredients, and what challenges have you faced in maintaining this standard?
Being an indie brand often comes with a set of assumptions and misconceptions - one of them being more negative than positive as it relates to ingredients used. There is a lot of “fluff” in the industry with labeling falsification. Because fragrance formulas are a trade secret, not every molecular breakdown of a material has to be noted on the ingredient label (it would be incredibly long), but we at Pink MahogHany™️ adhere strongly to the IFRA [International Fragrance Regulatory Association] regulations that state for common and potential allergens to be listed on our ingredient label. We’ve taken this a step further to also include these ingredients listed on our website to promote further transparency, all while protecting our intellectual property. Unfortunately, we’ve had companies to unethically sell lesser expensive “dupes” of our artisan perfumes, so as a way to create a better authenticity stamp, we make it our duty to be honest about our claims. If our perfume says “Rose Bulgaria”, it is in fact just that and not a component of rose being passed off as the source material. Collaborations and Custom Scents: Can you share more about your work with private label clients? What excites you most about creating custom scent solutions for other indie brands? I could easily sum this up in one word and say “Funding.” True, there is money out there, but I’m always thinking outside the box. Having a program that has an “Each One Fund One” mentality doesn’t exist (that I’ve been made aware of). Bootstrapping can be quite the challenge, even when you’ve reached the 6-figure mark annually. Competition to be seen and set apart is extremely high, so having quality packaging and branding is a must. There are lots of factors to consider, though when desiring to make upgrades. If there were a unique, tier-geared funding operation available, it would help perfume brands offset packaging and bulk material costs in the beginning stages.
Industry Challenges: What are some of the biggest challenges you've faced as an independent fragrance house, and how have you overcome them to grow your brand? As the brand continues on the path of organic growth, I would like to expand our reach into schools, offering perfumery as an arts elective for middle and high school. I’d love to partner with botanists, farmers and horticulturists directly to grow and source raw materials for the students to work with in the creation of tinctures. My passion is getting back to nature as best as possible, as nature was my first “scent experience” as a child. We would also love to witness our fragrance creations being used to scent model homes, our focus diffuser blends being used in automobile dealerships as well as partner with Air Bnb and boutique hotels that specialize in highlighting minority, indie brands. Personal Journey: How has your personal experience, particularly as a divorced mother and someone who has experienced the loss of a child, shaped your approach to life and your work in perfumery?
Because I homeschool my twin sons, we are together a lot more than most, so one thing we all do is have moments of sharing where a neutral “floor” is laid to converse about anything. Though they are quite communicative by nature, I realize that sometimes I can be in work mode so much that it spills over into what should be our quality time. My sons see the authentic me and learn how to communicate through seeing authenticity. I’ve learned not to feel as if I have to be the epitome of perfection but allow them to see my imperfections vulnerably but with discernment. Having had two traumatic experiences pretty close together has taught me how to truly slow down and enjoy the simplicities of life - igniting a spiritual aspect that I’ve always carried but never fully explored…until Kenji’s sudden passing (2018.) Grief has a way of catapulting us into a quest for more meaningfulness in both life and business. After Kenji’s passing and my processing through the initial stages of grief, I was able to incorporate our spiritual bond into Pink MahogHany by way of essential oil diffuser blends for both focus and sleep and most recently aromatic perfume elixirs. It’s been quite the process channeling the void of his physical presence, but I also have peace knowing he can be honored in a great way through scent. I noticed once I began to be more open and receptive to spiritual signs, synchs and “winks”, more ideas began to flow. It’s been this way since his transition. Emotional Expression: Fragrance is often tied to memories and emotions. How does your personal life influence the fragrances you create, and do you have a particular scent that holds special meaning to you? My creative process is much more alchemic now, and I include Kenji by talking out loud to him, believe it or not. I’m a firm believer that when our loved ones transition from the physical plane, they are still present - just in another form. I choose to keep his memory alive by not pretending he never existed (even if for a brief period of time). I am working (slowly) on a book and accompanying fragrance, but I know it will require me to revisit some memories I’m not quite ready for, so until then, his big brothers will launch their debut fragrance, The Peaceful Tiger (they chose the name.) I’ve learned that even in what we consider “small things”, our transitioned loved ones want to be recognized and acknowledged. When the twins and I designed their fragrance label (with a designer out of the country that didn’t know anything about me personally), we had issues with the graphic - so much so that the designer asked if they could rework the design. When they sent the proof for approval, the Tiger was not only younger but sleeping, with an uncanny, angelic resemblance to baby Kenji! Becoming more aware and being more sensitive to my intention for launching a fragrance has definitely made room for more divine situations like these to occur. Healing Through Scent: In what ways has creating fragrances been a form of healing or expression for you, especially after the loss of your son, Kenji Mwamba? I know my sons may not necessarily want to be perfumers, but they definitely have an entrepreneurial heart. My desire is that whatever they decide to pursue (acting, script-writing, music or architecture), they know that anything is possible with the right amount of determination, grit, belief and immersion. One reason I chose to homeschool is so they could enjoy learning without restraint and have ample time to devote to their own separate passions and it still be fun. They know Pink MahogHany is theirs if they want it (many, many years from now - lol), and we are already discussing business structures for whatever they choose their role to be once I retire. Work-Life Balance: How do you find balance between your professional responsibilities and personal well-being, and what self-care practices do you prioritize? I’m not just a perfumer; I’m also a consumer, and self-care is huge for me. I often take salt baths to reset my energy and clear my mind after being around large groups of people or free a long day. I’m a habitual perfume sampler, and I have so many to choose from to wear as my “nightcap.” Even if just for 10-15 minutes, I cherish each moment I’m able to have some “me-time.” When time and co-parenting schedules permit, I’m definitely on a flight somewhere to indulge in some delicious food and mouth-watering mocktails!](https://www.womenontopp.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IMG_3812-1200x720.jpeg)
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