Melt Lab Candles
Your Harmony of Scents
Rethinking the conventional life cycle of a candle to create more mindful solution from manufacturing, use, and through end of life.
Spring 2021//In Partnership with Johannes Lu
14-week project on designing a sustainable solution for candles. The product solution resulted in a new brand and retail system that allows for more user customization and interaction.
The Candle Industry Continues to Grow
Snug Candle Holder by Völker’s studio with the Granits Barbany,
U.S. retail sales of candle products are estimated at approximately $3.14 billion annually. The global candle market accounted for USD 8.38 billion in 2018 and is expected to reach around USD 13.72 billion by 2026.
There is a need to consider the possible impacts of this highly consumed product.
Rethinking how we interact with candles.
Reevaluating the methods of candle use and manufacturing through an ethical lens, Melt Lab offers a unique system that invites customers to interact with a mindful design in a beautiful way.
Our User-Centered Goals
01.
Designing a candle that creates a warm ambiance and helps with stress relief and meditation within the home environment.
02.
Designing for candle enthusiasts that value both the look of the candle and the scent of the candle.
03.
Creating a sustainable, reusable, and recyclable candle with a retail experience that promotes the idea of sustainability while making it fun and engaging.
Melt Lab Components
01 Modular Wax Pieces
A solution that allows consumers to layer different scents so that scent can change over time. Creates a sculptural form that can be proudly displayed in the home. The assembly and disassembly system promotes sustainable disposal and re-use of candle components.
02 Forever Bases
The base of the candle is the consumer’s eternal friend. Once purchased, consumers can always use their base to hold their candles. The construction of each base allows for easy disassembly at the end of a candle’s life.
03 New Retail Experience
In a Melt Lab shop, customers can enjoy the experience of picking out candles and testing stacks in their specially designed baskets.
04 Life Cycle Analysis For Ethical Considerations
In order to understand existing processes and material sourcing, we have conducted an LCA on a benchmark product. We selected Mia’s Co Candles since they offer simple, affordable, and supposedly ethical candles. Our Melt Lab solution is inspired by our insights from the benchmark LCA but is fairly different. We have conducted a qualitative comparison by creating an LCA for Melt Lab. Upon realizing some large differences, we see room for further improvement.
Customers Assemble their Own Candle
Melt lab candles are designed to be customizable to suit each individual.
Wax Forms
Each wax piece has its own scent and color.
Disk Forms
Sphere Forms
Assembly steps
Place aluminum wick holder in the base slot.
Stick the wooden wick in the wich holder.
The base and wick are ready for the wax blocks to slide in.
Pack Out
All of the components are assembled at home.
Experience Changing Scents over time
The stacked wax allows for consumers to stack different scents of wax, so that as the wax melts, the scents will shift over time.
Base Options
Bases come in different recycled materials
For those who want a warm mood. These ceramic bases are domed in the center to contain wax flow.
For those who love industrial styles.
The juxtaposition of both. These ceramic plates are domed in the center to contain wax flow.
Melt Lab is dedicated to providing a unique customer experience. Melt Lab has an ecosystem that connects every aspect of the brand together, from headquarters to distributors, to stores, and to customer's homes. Transportation, cash flow, order of operation, and the flow of information are all part of the Melt Lab ecosystem diagram.
Shop System
Consumers can shop for candles while using the
baskets to stack their selections.
Open Lab
Consumers can view or even join the making process of our candles.
Re-Used Wax Terrazzo Candles
Wax can be collected from the base of finished candles and brought back to the shop. The new candle will be made in the open lab while the consumer can participate or shop.
Scent Menu
We source as locally as possible with certain exceptions.
Our Beeswax is sourced locally, but our Coconut wax is sourced from the Philippines because of its sustainable practices. They established the Sustainable Certified Coconut Oil (SCNO) supply chain, which is, a socially responsible, environmentally safe, and economically viable supply chain. We made sure to avoid scents such as sandalwood and frankincense due to their endangerment. Instead, we found a range of scents from plain to peppermint so that anyone can find a scent they love.
Each scent has its own color
We made sure to include a full range of colors that relate to our scents so that customers can enjoy creative options.
A new candle retail experience promoting conscious behaviors among consumers.
Next Steps:
No product is perfectly sustainable in every way.
Following the conclusion of the project, I see areas of improvement. Some changes that I would be making are the candle scents in the new LCA, the form of the candle bases, and possibly looking into a solution for those who are concerned with the wax pieces falling out while melting. I also see potential in using the by-product or our wax, coconut shell fibers, for the packaging. Weaving this material to create bags is possible, so maybe instead of limiting it to a box, customers can put their box in coconut fiber knit bags.
For the LCA, I will be switching from the Lemon scent to either the Tonka bean or Linaloe tree scents in order to use the scent with the furthest transportation distance as a representation of the improved Okala score.
With the candle bases, I see potential in creating a deeper dome in the ceramic bases while also increasing its general surface area in order to prevent any wax from leaking out.
Regarding the possibility of the wax pieces falling while the candle burns, there may be more experimentation needed. In the candle proof of concept previously conducted, the wax pieces were stable and did not fall. However, since they were plain cylinder disks instead of spheres, they may be worth more trials.