Not Just Candle Talk: Burn the Rules. Build Your Legacy
This isn’t your average business podcast.
Not Just Candle Talk is the unapologetic, unfiltered audio home for ambitious entrepreneurs, creatives, and side-hustlers ready to do business on their own terms — no fluff, no fake motivation.
Founded on real experience and raw truth, this podcast dives into the real-life challenges behind the candle business and beyond. Whether you’re just starting out or scaling your empire, every episode is packed with lessons, strategies, and mindset shifts to help you build a business and a life you don’t need to escape from.
Hey, I’m Toni, and I know what it’s like to start from scratch.
When I launched my candle business, I had big dreams but limited resources — no investors, no fancy marketing team, just grit, Google, and a lot of trial and error. I built my brand from the ground up, burned out more times than I can count, and learned to pivot, scale, and get smart about what really makes money in this game.
Not Just Candle Talk was born out of my journey — the highs, the hustle, the hard lessons — and the deep desire to have conversations no one else is having in entrepreneurship. The stuff beyond the surface. The why behind the work.
This Podcast Is For You If…
- You’re tired of overnight success stories with no receipts.
- You want to make real money while staying true to yourself.
- You believe business can be both profitable and purposeful.
- You’re building your brand while managing your real life.
Not Just Candle Talk: Burn the Rules. Build Your Legacy
The Lost Receipt: A Story of Dreams,Debt and Redemption in Business
Have you ever felt like you're pouring everything into your business but getting nothing in return? Today's story will resonate deeply with anyone who's experienced entrepreneurial burnout.
Meet Nina, a 34-year-old candle maker who started Wicken Flame with just $500 and a dream. Her initial success quickly gave way to the harsh realities of business ownership—shelves full of product, an empty bank account, and that devastating moment when she whispered to herself: "I think I'm done." The lost receipt she holds becomes more than just proof of a wasted purchase; it's the physical manifestation of her burnout and doubt.
What makes Nina's story powerful isn't just her struggle but her path to renewal. Through an unexpected conversation with her elderly neighbor June, she discovers she doesn't need permission to restart—she just needs a plan. We break down exactly how Nina turned things around: analyzing her finances without judgment, pausing activities that weren't converting, using authentic storytelling to rebuild customer connections, and implementing systems that prevented future chaos.
The statistics are sobering—43% of small business owners question whether they'll survive another year. Yet Nina's journey reminds us that survival doesn't require viral success or overnight millions. Her victory came in paying off debt, building a waitlist of customers who valued her work, and finding joy in her craft again. That lost receipt? It now hangs framed in her studio, a reminder that every setback contains wisdom if we're willing to see it.
What's your lost receipt moment? What almost made you quit? Share this episode with a fellow entrepreneur who might need their own mug of metaphorical tea today. Remember, it's okay to feel lost in business—it's just not okay to stay there.
Collect all free downloadable checklist and access to other items including the featured Stanley on the go tumblers. https://linktr.ee/notjustcandletalk
Hello, hello world. Welcome back to Not Just Candle Talk, where passion meets profit and the hustle gets real. I'm your host, and today's episode is unlike any other. We're going to take you on a journey, a story one that mirrors so many entrepreneurial paths, twists with hope, hunted by doubt and wrapped in the question we've all asked ourselves Is this really worth it? This is the Lost Receipt. Let's get into it.
Speaker 1:Nina was 34, owner of Wiccan Flame, a boutique candle business tucked in the corner of a Brooklyn co-op. She started with a $500 tax refund a dream and 12 YouTube videos on how to pour soy wax without cracking the jar. Her first launch, a hit, sold out in two days. She cried in the kitchen packaging orders with shipping tape stuck to her elbow. But now it's year three and she's holding a faded receipt. Once she can't remember printing a reminder of money spent but no product, no return, a metaphor for the burnout that was creeping in. You ever felt like this Pouring money, time and faith into something that no longer pours back? This is where our fiction meets your fact. Let's pause here, because Nina's not alone. According to a 2024 report by Forbes, 43 percent of small business owners say they've. They're not sure if they're, if they will survive another 12 months. Another 12 months. Cash flow issues, marketing fatigue, poor systems and personal burnout are the biggest corporates. Like Nina, you might be buying tools you never use, launching sales you can't fulfill, or hiring help before your systems are ready, or hiring help before your systems are ready. It feels like progress, but it's chaos in disguise.
Speaker 1:Nina sat at her studio floor, receipts spread like tarot cards. She whispered I think I'm done, not out loud, but in that voice we only use in silence. Her shelves were full, but her bank account was not. She had 200 candles and no audience. No sales plan, no automation, just good vibes and burnout. Then there came a knock at the door. Her neighbor, her neighbor June, an 82-year-old herbalist, held a steaming cup. I made this for you. You look like you're fighting ghosts. Nina smiled How'd you know? June replied because I've lost my receipts too. Child, the world owes us nothing but peace. That's always yours to take back. And just like that, nina didn't quit, not because things got easier, but because she realized she didn't need permission to restart. She just needed a plan.
Speaker 1:So let's talk about that moment, the restart. Here's what to do. If your business feels like Nina. Put your bank account statements. Pull your bank account statements. Identify where the leaks are. Don't cry over wasted money. Learn from it. Number two pause anything that isn't converting Things like courses, ads, subscriptions. Get lean and focus. Number three Use storytelling. Share your real story. People connect with honesty. You're not just selling a product, you're building trust. Number four what do you do monthly, weekly and daily? Automate where you can Systemize, where you can Systemize where you can.
Speaker 1:Six months later, nina's shop reopened Same candles, new energy. Every box includes a handwritten note Thank you for choosing peace too. She didn't go viral. She didn't become a millionaire overnight, but she paid off her debt, she built a wait list and she smiled more. And that lost receipt is framed in her studio right now, a reminder.
Speaker 1:Every loss has a lesson. Every receipt has a reason. So what's your lost receipt? What moment almost made you quit? Let today be your June. Let this story be your mug of tea. Let not just candle talk. Remind you it's okay to feel lost. It's not okay to stay there. So if this story hits home, share it with a fellow entrepreneur.
Speaker 1:Ok, I just wanted to tell this quick story because it's important. Like like episodes I've done before, of course, I always say it's OK to to restart, it's OK to refocus, ok, it's OK to do all those things that you need to do to keep yourself grounded in your journey. It's okay to do those things. No one says you can't and you don't need permission from anyone for you to do the things that you need to do for self-improvement, business-wise, that you need to do for self-improvement business-wise, because we all get lost in this journey just a little bit. It's always good to refocus and find out what works, what doesn't work, and because it's always a learning journey, never forget that You're not going to be at peak at all times and that's okay, but the thing is you have to keep going.
Speaker 1:I just wanted to tell this story because everybody has that lost receipt and it's always good to go back and and try to reflect on it, and sometimes you just need that person, that one person, to come into your life and uh and and a different version or an eye-popping version of yourself. So I just wanted to hit on this story and, like I said, if this resonates with you as a business owner, please share it with someone else, it with someone else and, as always, until next time, keep the flame lit even when the wax runs low. Thank you so much for listening. See you next time. Bye.