Natural fragrance brand Skylar proved shoppers were willing to buy fragrances online without sampling first. Now the direct-to-consumer self-care brand is branching into the home category with candles.According to Skylar’s founder Cat Chen, customers have been requesting for some time candles mirroring the brand’s four core fragrances: Arrow, Coral, Isle and Meadow. “We listen to our consumers, since the demand was there for a candle collection featuring the signature scents we decided to make it our next venture,” she shared.But adding the candles, which retail for $38, to Skylar’s lineup also presents a value-priced introduction for new consumers to sample the existing fragrances. For Mother’s Day, Skylar will also offer sharp-priced bundle deals with the candles and fragrances. Traditionally core price point for the fragrances is $78.“We are really into self-care and that’s not only physical, but emotionally and mentally, too. So many women we talked to associate candles with their home rituals and relaxation,” explained Chen, who was formerly at the Honest Co. as vice president of operations. She sees big opportunity in the $3.5 billion candle category. “With one in four Millennial women purchasing 10 or more candles every year, the market is ripe for innovation. Our whole approach to new product development is very customer and community driven. There is an increasing desire for clean product alternatives that are also efficacious and indulgent,” she said. To that end, the candles are clean-burning, feature a non-lead wick and are composed of a blend of petrochemical-free, naturally derived and sustainably sourced coconut and soy wax.Supported by its $3 million series seed capital investment last December, Chen has other new categories in the pipeline including bath and body to match the fragrances. Although physical distribution could be on the radar, for now she said the company prefers direct-to-consumer where it can communicate directly with its customer base.

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