KITRI Spotlight: Sarah Bell

Making a move from the corporate ladder to building her own natural candle brand, Sarah Bell was inspired by her search for a cleaner fragrance when creating Evermore in 2014, with sustainability at the heart of the brand.

We caught up with Sarah to find out more about her brand story and her plans for the festive holiday.

I started making candles as gifts for friends and family back in 2013 and they went down really well. I discovered all about the different types of waxes and fragrances that can be used in candles and was shocked to find that so many of the big brands used paraffin wax, which is bad for the environment and bad for our health when burnt in the home. I made it my mission to provide safe, clean and honest ingredients in all of our products from pesticide-free plant-based waxes to essential oils and toxin-free fragrances. At the time, I’d reached a point in my career where I knew that climbing the corporate ladder wasn’t for me, and that’s when I caught the bug for doing my own thing. My passion project quickly grew into a small business, and I’ve never looked back.

As an independent company, you have a lot of highs and lows in equal measure. The biggest challenge for me when I started my business was learning how difficult it is to manage my own time. You really don’t know until you’re in it just how many elements there are to a running business. Five years on and may biggest challenges now come in the shape of warehouse moves and supply chain issues, sometimes I find myself lost in excel spreadsheets wondering how I got there! In terms of greatest successes, we recently collaborated with Mulberry on a limited edition candle for Christmas. I’ve always been a huge fan of Mulberry and to collaborate with one of the UK’s most iconic brands is a dream come true. We also launched on Net-a-Porter this year as part of their Net-Sustain platform, which I’m hugely proud of.

I actually have a baby due around Christmas, so I'm currently preparing to go on maternity leave; both exciting and slightly scary when you run your own business! A lot of my time recently has been spent making sure everything is in order before I sign off. Whether the baby has arrived by Christmas Day or not, I imagine I'll be very much cosying up at home spending time with my family - I can’t wait!

I love the new Leona Green Colourblock Jacket. The bright pops of colour give the trusty leather jacket a fresh twist and I can’t wait to wear it with a chunky jumper underneath. I also really love the Mila Velvet Red Over Shirt, perfect for Christmas!

Sarah is wearing the Leona Green Colourblock Faux Leather Coat.

 
What’s up next for Evermore?

Lots! We have an exciting collaboration in the pipeline on our packaging for early next year, which we’re all very excited about. We also have a new candle planned in for next year alongside a new product line - more to be revealed very soon!