Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeannine Escobar.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Although I was born and raised in Miami, I’ve spent the past decade living in London, England and later New York City. Shortly after earning a Master’s of Art from Goldsmiths, University of London, I freelanced as a creative consultant before landing a role at a publishing company where I worked on innovative digital projects for magazines and even led a team to launch an app that went to no. 1 in its first week. In spite of having this flourishing career with media brands, I found myself desirous of knowledge about time-honored approaches to well-being. This was way before wellness was even a buzzword. Many weekends I would hop on a train and head to the picturesque English countryside to learn about herbalism and other healing modalities, like flower essences from The Bach Centre. Learning about the molecular structure and function of plants and its effect on the human system intrigued me. Growing up surrounded by Latin and Caribbean influences, my household always adhered to more natural remedies, often picking seasonal herbs from our garden to cure common aliments like sore throats or headaches. This level of medicinal conscientiousness is something I may have taken for granted in my adolescence but later acknowledged its many virtues.
While living abroad, traveling to other countries became a bi-weekly ritual, where I could take in new vistas and customs after an easy one to two hour flight. Stops into supermarkets and pharmacies were always a must in any new city. My curiosity for how other people approached their well-being and even their guilty pleasures encouraged me to explore questions like, “Why do they eat this? What does this do?” as well as buying heaps of things I couldn’t decipher beyond the illustration until I returned home. Many of the things I encountered during my travels remain a source of inspiration today.
In an ongoing quest for better living, I launched micro-scale investigations into the products I frequently used. Like many I enjoyed candles, but at this point I began each morning with yoga or meditation alongside a lit candle and would again light a candle after work in the evenings. To my surprise, I discovered the multitude of toxins found in some candles on the market, which in turn, severely impacts the air quality in a space. These toxins often lead to lung issues and even neurological developmental issues in young ones.
On a weekend getaway to Portugal, I met the descendent of one of the oldest candle houses in Europe and we spoke at large about her family’s business and was moved by our exchange. When I returned to London after that trip, I briefly trained with a chandler (a candle maker), but it wouldn’t be until my husband and I moved to NYC that I began experimenting with making candles with my unique formulas and blends. During the day, my clients in fashion, beauty, tech, and wellness counted on my international expertise in branding and market strategy for creative direction and execution. In the evenings, I would close off our tiny kitchen and sterilize all the surfaces in order to produce a small batch of candles, experimenting with a new blend of oils each night. The process became a personal moving meditation and a way to delineate the time I had spent running around the city and returning to myself at home. This period coincided with a deeper dive into more personal development and spiritual practices. When one of the city’s chicest yoga studios began carrying the candles in their retail space, I knew there may be something special here.
Later I studied aromatherapy with the New York Institute of Aromatic Studies where I began to understand the beauty of ethical harvests and comprehensive formulations, which radically enhanced the candle-making process. Last year, I returned to Miami and decided to give this passion a go by setting up a proper workshop space in Little River, and fortunately, it has been so well-received by the burgeoning conscious living community. Just last week, I moved into a new studio in the Design District and having ample space to create is exciting as well as rewarding.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Although it’s sometimes difficult to ascertain a level of clarity during trials, any presented challenges have only strengthened my resolve. There were plenty of times I considered quitting simply because I felt governed by the career in digital media I’d diligently built for the past decade. Now I can recognize that life was simply inviting me to consider new pathways.
There’s always space to grow into new identities, adopt previously unconsidered roles, and expand the fields of potential. Now I have the unique opportunity to continue working with select clients on brand strategy as well as spending my days creating, experimenting, and working on custom scent projects, among other ventures. While it’s an unusual work dichotomy, it’s one that I find personally gratifying.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Buena Vista Candle Co. story. Tell us more about the business.
Buena Vista Candle Co. handcrafts aroma therapeutic candles using organic soy wax blended with the finest essential oils and flower essences. Aromatherapeutic means that the sense of smell is activated in order to comfort the body, mind, and its subtle fields. Scent is extremely personal and psychologically potent – it has the ability to elicit memories and mentally transport without taking a single step. The olfactory, the system of smell, is vastly underutilized in healing modalities and can work wonders in restoring bodily balance. One comment often received is that the aromas of Buena Vista Candles are unlike many previously experience. It is extremely humbling to know that my customers have an opportunity to create new memories and scent associations through Buena Vista Candles.
It’s a company priority to source only ethically harvested essential oils to avoid degenerating the ecosystem. All essential oils are not created equal and I take great pride in examining GC/SM reports, which is a lab report that provides a breakdown of the molecular composition in a batch of essential oils. Many consumers are unaware that some mass-market essential oils contain thinners, which I avoid to ensure that quality remains at the forefront. Each candle is designed to burn cleanly by only using the finest ingredients available.
Many candle lovers are surprised to discover that their beloved candles emit harmful toxins. When burning a candle that lacks transparency about its ingredients, it’s always advised that a window is kept open or an air-cleansing plant is kept in the space to avoid ingesting air pollutants.
Lighting a candle is a ritual humanity has engaged in for a variety of reasons for millennia. Whether it was for the necessity of light or honoring a sacred moment, lighting a candle has been a part of daily life. On a metaphysical level, I feel connected to my ancestors and use candles in my daily meditation practice. Since I hand pour each candle, it’s essential that I find time to be centered prior to creating as the candles are very responsive to energy.
Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I hesitate to attribute luck as a guiding force, but serendipitous events have contributed to favorable outcomes whenever I have been ready to receive. For instance, I had outgrown my studio in Little River and shared an ideal criteria for the new studio with a friend. A week later I met an artist who was my neighbor at the Market for Makers in the Design District and she casually mentioned she had a studio in a building nearby. We exchanged contact details and a few days later I saw the space and was signing a new lease agreement for a bright and airy studio shortly thereafter. My willingness to ask for a dreamy and spacious studio opened the portal of opportunity.
It all begins with a clearly defined intention, followed by the courage to articulate the desire, and allowing the Divine Hand to take care of the details.
Pricing:
- Candles range between $12 to $35
Contact Info:
- Address: Buena Vista Candle Co.
20 NE 41 Street
Studio 4A Miami, FL 33137 - Website: http://www.buenavistacandles.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buenavistacandles/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BuenaVistaCandles/
Image Credit:
Chris Lauder / @thearmachian
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