Hypebeast Flea: cent.ldn

Founded by Hayley Mack in 2020, cent.ldn is leading the way for British candle production.

Going from woman in business to businesswoman cent’s bespoke candle designs double as home decor, delivering olfactory experiences from sculptural football helmets, basketballs, stereos, and more — providing sustainable, sensory offerings that are perfect for contemporary homes.

Check out our conversation with cent.ldn ahead of Hypebeast Flea below. Tickets to Hypebeast Flea are free! Don’t forget to sign up here now.

Hypebeast: Explain your brand to people who may not know you yet.

cent.ldn: At cent.ldn, we’ve turned candle-making into an art form, creating unique designs that make people say, “Holy sh*t is that a candle?!”.

We’re inspired by street culture, sports, music, and fashion, creating candles that look like iconic objects from that retro JVC RC M90 Boombox on the cover for LL Cool J’s 1985 album, Radio, to the Benetton B186 Formula 1 Car.

We’ve teamed up with legends like Sir Elton John to recreate his famous platform boots and adidas to immortalize world-class footballers in candle form. We take storytelling seriously, and each candle brings something truly unique to the table. Our designs are only limited by imagination, and every candle is hand-poured and crafted right here at our home in London.

Along with a new take on designs, we believe the candle industry, in its current form, is outdated. Most established brands still use harmful kinds of paraffin in production, and most consumers don’t know about this. We use 100% natural ingredients across our product range and have a zero-waste, sustainable production process.

What’s the journey been like from starting your brand, to where you are today?

Starting cent.ldn was never a conscious decision for me. Like so many, during the pandemic, I was made redundant from my role in brand marketing. I loved my job, but without the culture and atmosphere of being around the people that made that job so exciting, I knew I needed to take my shot at doing something for myself.

Candles were just part of my daily routine at that point, but it wasn’t until I tried pouring my first candle into a glass that I actually found a passion for it. I don’t think there was a specific reason why I tried it, and my first attempt was terrible, but I loved the process and became hooked. I began to play around with pouring candles into different shapes and objects, and in the blink of an eye, cent.ldn was born.

Launching a brand, especially as a female entrepreneur, was a challenging experience, yet one that’s been full of learning and development for me. When starting the business, I was reluctant to position myself publicly as the founder. Coming from a working environment heavily dominated by male stakeholders, I naively felt that consumers would perceive the brand better if it was led by a male. Once I began finding confidence in my craft and building expertise in my field, I realized there was no one better than me at presenting the brand. The journey has been as much about growing myself as it has about the products we make.

We continually refine the luxury experience of owning a cent.ldn candle and the customer experience that comes with it, but in terms of my day-to-day, I’m still grafting as hard as ever, except now I have a team in the studio, wholesale, and marketing to support me. The difference going into year three is feeling comfort in knowing that I’m meant to be doing this.

Flea is going to be hosted for the first time in the UK. How does the UK’s creative community inspire you and your brand?

cent.ldn is about brand & community building first. London is in our name, and the UK’s creative community is why we exist. Our London-themed collection was built hand in hand with six females from various creative backgrounds & towns across London. We partnered with them to develop six bespoke scents and packaging artworks for each candle to truly represent the essence of the area they call home. I need to shout them out as they are all incredible & believed in the brand from day one!

What have you got planned at Hypebeast Flea?

We’re working hard to build up our inventory to bring to Flea. Each candle takes one day to make, and I’ve loved being back in the studio to help make these.

We’ve also got a special limited edition 3D candle drop
We’ll be running giveaways throughout the day so be sure to drop by!

What other vendors are you looking forward to checking out at Hypebeast Flea?

The list is crazy! Our friends at Soho Yacht Club always deliver, can’t wait to see those guys! Johnny Hoxton and Milk & Honey, I can’t wait.