Candle inventory software has to handle what makes a candle business hard to count: supplies bought in one unit and poured in another, wax by the 50 lb case and fragrance by the bottle, used by the ounce; a product list that multiplies, because every scent comes in every vessel; pours that take a whole set of supplies off the shelf at once; candles that cure before they're ready to sell; and a holiday season that has to be built months ahead. A spreadsheet can list it all, but it can't take 8.33 oz of wax and 0.67 oz of fragrance off stock every time you pour a jar. In the example below, 14 scents in three vessels make 42 candles to keep track of, built from three base recipes and 14 fragrances, and a customer's complaint about tunneling traces to one wick lot in two pours. Below is what the software has to track, how to keep 42 products manageable, a test week for any trial, and how TaroStack does it.
The short version
- Supplies in their own units: wax by the case, fragrance by the bottle, wicks by the hundred, used by the ounce or each.
- A recipe for every candle, built from a shared base per vessel plus a fragrance, so 42 products aren't 42 lists.
- Pours that take every supply off stock by lot, and give the candles a pour date.
- Curing candles kept apart from what's ready to sell.
- Jars, lids and wicks on a reorder list with suppliers' lead times, before the holiday build.
- A cost per candle from what you paid, and margins by scent and customer.
- TaroStack does all of that with recipes, batches, lots and holds, on every plan. More below.
What candle inventory software has to track
| What | Why it matters for a candle maker |
|---|---|
| Wax, fragrance, wicks, dye | Bought by the case or bottle, used by the ounce or each |
| Vessels, lids, labels, warning labels | Bought in minimums, with weeks of lead time for glass |
| A recipe for each candle | Wax, fragrance load, wick size and vessel for each size |
| Pours | Every supply off stock, by lot, at what you paid |
| Pour dates and curing | Candles that aren't ready to sell yet |
| Finished candles by scent and size | What's on the shelf for markets and shops |
| Cost per candle | Wax and fragrance prices move; the cost should follow |
| Shops and orders | Wholesale orders land weeks before the holidays |
The cost of one jar, worked out line by line, is in how to price homemade candles, and a spreadsheet version of this list, with recipes, is in candle business inventory spreadsheet.
42 candles from three bases
Lehua Glow, a made-up candle maker I use in these examples, pours 14 scents in a 9 oz jar, a 4 oz tin and a 16 oz two-wick jar: 42 products. Written as 42 separate lists, a change to the 9 oz wick size means editing 14 recipes. Written as three bases and 14 fragrances, it's one change:
| Base recipe | What's in it |
|---|---|
| 9 oz jar base | 8.33 oz wax, 1 wick (size 10), amber jar and lid, label, warning label |
| 4 oz tin base | 3.7 oz wax, 1 wick (size 6), tin, label, warning label |
| 16 oz two-wick base | 14.8 oz wax, 2 wicks (size 8), large jar and lid, label, warning label |
Each candle is then its base plus its fragrance at the load you've tested: the Plumeria 9 oz jar is the 9 oz base plus 0.67 oz of Plumeria fragrance. Sub-recipes like these are what keep a candle range manageable as it grows.
A worked example: a wick complaint
A shop calls: three customers say their Coconut Lime 9 oz candles are tunneling, burning down the middle and leaving wax on the sides. The pour dates on the labels are October 2 and October 6.
| Question | The answer, from the records |
|---|---|
| Which pours? | CL9-1002 and CL9-1006, 24 candles each |
| What went into them? | Wax lot SW-0915, fragrance lot CL-0820, wick lot W10-0901 |
| What else used that wick lot? | Three other 9 oz pours, Plumeria and Pikake |
| Where did they go? | The shop, two market days, and 31 candles still on the shelf |
The other pours from that wick lot burn-test the same way, so the problem is the wick lot, not the Coconut Lime. The 31 candles on the shelf go on hold, the shop gets replacements, and the wick supplier gets the lot number. Without pour dates and lots, the answer would have been "some of the Coconut Lime", and every scent would have been suspect.
The holiday build
Candles are a gift, and in this series' candle business plan November and December bring in 38% of the year's sales. Glass can take weeks to arrive, so the jars for the holidays are ordered in late summer and the pouring starts early. How a candle business plans its year around that is in candle business plan, and how to work out when to start building is in seasonal inventory.
A test week for any trial
- Import your supplies and candles, and set up one base recipe per vessel with fragrance added on top.
- Receive a case of wax and a fragrance bottle with their lots, at a new price.
- Pour a batch and check that every supply came off by lot and the candles carry a pour date.
- Put the pour on hold to cure, and release it when it's ready.
- Sell through your store, and check the oldest pour went first.
- Trace a wick lot to every pour and customer.
- Check the reorder list for jars and lids against the supplier's lead time.
Where this stops working
The spreadsheet holds 42 candles and 30 supplies, and none of them move unless someone types. A Saturday of pouring means dozens of edits, or none, and by November the wax on the sheet and the wax in the storeroom disagree by a case. When a shop asks about a batch, the pour date is on the label and nowhere else.
How TaroStack does it
TaroStack is built for makers whose products are made from other things, with recipes, batches and lots at the center.
Recipes with bases. Each candle is a recipe, with sub-recipes for each vessel's base, so a wick change is made once. Units convert: buy wax by the 50 lb case, pour by the ounce; buy wicks by the hundred, use them by the each.
Pours that keep the books. Recording a pour takes every supply off stock from the lots used, first-expired-first-out by default, notes them on the batch, and puts the candles into a lot with its pour date and a cost from what you paid, divided by the candles that came out good. A curing batch can sit on hold, apart from what's available to sell, until it's released.
And the season, in hand. The reorder list shows jars, lids and wicks in days of cover against each supplier's real lead time and minimum. Margins are reported by product and by customer, and stock that isn't moving shows how long since it last went out, so the scent to retire is visible. One report traces any supply lot to every pour and customer. Connect your Shopify store or Square, and we set it up with you.
| The job | Spreadsheet | In TaroStack |
|---|---|---|
| A wick change for 14 scents | 14 edits | One base sub-recipe |
| A Saturday of pouring | Dozens of edits, or none | Each pour takes its supplies off, by lot |
| Curing candles | Mixed in with the ready ones | On hold until released |
| A wick lot complaint | Which pours? Unknown | One report, lot to pour to customer |
Recipes with sub-recipes, batches, lots, holds and the reorder list are on every plan, from $49 a month. The first 30 days are free, with no credit card. If you'd like a hand setting up, ask, and we'll do it with you.