A CANDLE company set up during the pandemic is now thriving - after a chance discovery from the director of a hotel group led to a successful collaboration.

Fellside Candle Co was commissioned to create a special candle for The Falls Spa near Keswick after one of the directors from parent company, Lake District Hotels, spotted the business on Instagram.

Now the relationship is moving from strength to strength, with the product proving to be so popular that a third order has been placed.

Dani Hope, a director at Lake District Hotels said: “We’re so pleased with the response from guests to our Falls Spa candles. The first batch we ordered sold out far more quickly than we had anticipated.

“The fact we have been able to create this product whilst collaborating with and supporting a local business just 18 miles away is great. I’m really keen to build more relationships with local suppliers and would invite anyone who thinks they have a product we would be interested in to get in touch.”

Fellside Candle Co is owned and operated by Gail Hailes, who creates her candles in a hut on Mosser Fell near the family farm on the outskirts of Cockermouth in Cumbria.

She started the business last October after deciding she wanted to turn her passion into something more tangible.

The Falls Spa candle’s scent has top notes of pine, eucalyptus, thyme and sea salt and is followed by a floral heart of rose, lily, jasmine and lilac. The candle has a wooden wick and the pot is made from jesmonite, a sustainable, non-toxic material.

Every candle comes with a plantable label that is impregnated with seeds - so once the candle has burned, fresh life is breathed into the pot as it takes on a new meaning.

Gail, who previously worked as a graphic designer, said: “It is difficult to put a price on the value of a partnership with a company the size of Lake District Hotels.

“I am one woman, who has set out on a journey and for Fellside Candle Co to have taken off in the way it has, and to get the attention we are because of our relationship with Lake District Hotels, is amazing.”

The candles, which burn for 50-plus hours, are £24 each and would make wonderful Christmas gifts. They are available exclusively from The Falls Spa.