Scent of Success
Timing has been crucial for Ribble Valley couple Carl and Kirsty Elmer, who have launched a series of beautiful signature scents for their Delilah Chloe products
For entrepreneurial husband and wife team, Carl and Kirsty Elmer, lockdown couldn’t have come at a better time.
The duo, from Mellor, had just launched a new online business, Delilah Chloe, at a time when people were stuck at home looking to buy beautiful interiors accessories online.
Carl and Kirsty developed Delilah Chloe in order to introduce fragranced candles, wax melts and reed diffusers with the ethos of staying close to their Lancashire roots.
“It was always our aim to introduce a brand of our own so earlier this year we decided to launch Delilah Chloe,” recalls Carl, who also works as a sales director for an e-com company.
“We started off with candles, wax melts and went on to introduce reed diffusers and it went so well as lots of people were looking to treat themselves during lockdown.”
The new artisan home fragrance brand, having unveiled its debut collection of versatile scents, has now also introduced home plug-ins along with fragranced handwash.
“We like to keep everything within a 20-mile radius when we source products and fragrance oils,” says Carl.
All the candles are made in Ramsbottom from 100 per cent luxurious coconut and soy wax, the fragrances are devised by Carl and Kirsty from fragrance oils and the candles are vegan and toxin free.
Inspired by the couples’ five-year-old daughter, the brand has deliberately been developed with an ethos that is eco-conscious: “We try to be eco-conscious in everything we do,” explains Carl, who with Kirsty, develops the ideas for the different fragrances.
“We try to not use any plastic and source everything locally where possible. When we are thinking of fragrances, we always have a scene in our heads. For instance we have just developed After Hours, which is more of a male cologne-inspired fragrance, featuring top notes of sweet tobacco and base notes of oak, ebony, incense and musk – it’s a very warm fragrance and perfect as the nights begin to draw in!”
Kirsty adds: “Sweet tobacco is currently one of the most sought-after scents in the home fragrance industry, so our After Hours candle is really popular.”
Other fragrances developed by Carl and Kirsty, who works as a graphic and web designer, include Seven Seas fragranced with bergamot, orange and amber offering the ultimate escapism with visions of a beautiful coastal shoreline.
“Kirsty was imagining a spa day when she suggested Serenity, a combination of lemon grass and ginger, created for total relaxation,” explains Carl.
Other fragrances include Botanical with vanilla, plum and patchouli conjuring up summer days and Islands which features citrus notes, with lime, mandarin and vetiver teamed with basil.
“We have got to know our fragrances pretty well,” says Carl. “When we think of new combinations the artisans who make the candles, send us samples to test out. We are now looking to develop a bath range with bath salts and bath bombs to complement the home fragrances.”
To date Delilah Chloe is enjoying considerable success with their signature scented products that feature online as well as in local stockists including Loom Loft at Barrow near Clitheroe.
Looking to the future they are hoping to grow the business: “At the moment Kirsty and I are putting together the reed diffusers and plug-ins at home on the kitchen table, so we will be looking for dedicated premises soon – and we hope that will propel the company further.
“We have a business plan, which is quite ambitious – at the moment it’s working brilliantly and we are really enjoying what we do.
“The candles and products we make speak for themselves, they are really beautiful fragrances.”
