Jodyann Morgan liked her job as a safety guard for sports activities and leisure manufacturers. “I used to be capable of see all of my favourite artists carry out whereas being profitable,” she says. Considered one of her job highlights was when she labored as a safety guard at a Rihanna live performance. “Seeing her up shut was superb,” Morgan remembers.

Since she liked her job, Morgan didn’t anticipate having a second profession. However now she’s the founder and proprietor of a candle and planter firm referred to as CTOAN Co. The acronym stands for “Can’t Consider a Title.” So, how does somebody go from sustaining security at occasions to crafting planters and candles?

It began with looking for a stress-reducing pastime 

Morgan’s profession transition started in 2020, as she struggled to deal with the violence associated to the protests throughout that point. “The world was simply chaotic at the moment, and I wanted a pastime that I used to be capable of do, from the consolation of my residence,” she says. After discussing several types of anxiety-relieving hobbies along with her therapist, she determined to create candles. “I purchased an Amazon package to make candles, after which I posted [the candles] on social media,” she says. “Individuals actually appreciated them.”

On a whim, Morgan posted an image of one in all her candles on Instagram with a caption saying, “Does anybody wish to purchase my candle?” She was stunned to see that a few individuals responded that they really wished to purchase it. She then felt like she was at a crossroads. 

Ought to she promote her candles or proceed creating them as a soothing pastime? She finally determined she wished to promote them and opted to personal a enterprise. “I went to the financial institution and bought a enterprise debit card, after which [it] type of grew from there,” she explains.

Self-funding her pastime led to quitting her full-time job

Morgan self-funded her firm and by no means borrowed cash. The enterprise debit card was used to separate her private and enterprise funds. Morgan’s enterprise grew shortly. The official begin date of her on-line enterprise was Nov. 13, 2021. By March of 2022, solely 4 months later, she says, “I used to be capable of give up my full-time job,” since she was incomes extra working at her candle enterprise than from her day job.

“I used to be making $15.74 an hour [as a security guard], and final yr I used to be paying my staff $20 an hour. I by no means made $20 an hour ever in my life,” she says, apart from the occasional extra time. At the moment, two part-time staff work for her within the basement of her residence the place her enterprise relies.

At first, she solely offered candles, however then added planters to her product line. She explains that she loves nature and incorporates it into her residing house by way of a number of houseplants. Her love of crops is why she added planters to the merchandise that she sells. Morgan plans to develop her enterprise past candles and planters sooner or later. “I joke typically and say that I wish to be a fats, black Martha Stewart,” she says. 

Celebrating self-love whereas filling a niche within the market

Morgan’s web site states, “My physique candles have fun the human type, in all of its glory. Designed from a totally gender-neutral perspective, there are not any feminine or male candles right here, simply candles celebrating the human type.” 

She explains it was vital to showcase completely different physique varieties as a result of, “a big inhabitants of the world is plus sized, however there’s actually no artwork that celebrates that.” When she initially wished to buy candle molds, many of the molds represented our bodies that mirrored magnificence stereotypes. “I wished to be completely different. I additionally wished to showcase the sensible physique type with all the usual cellulite and wrinkles that ordinary human our bodies get.”

The response to her creations has been optimistic. One buyer informed Morgan she wished this kind of artwork was obtainable when she was rising up. One other particular person wrote a evaluation on her web site saying, “I like having the ability to have artwork in my residence that appears like me.” Her Instagram web page at present has over 44,000 followers and is full of optimistic feedback and quite a few views of her reels.

One reel shows the lighting of Chanukah candles (which might be her designs), and it acquired over 94,000 views and virtually 7,000 likes. A few of her reels give a glimpse behind the scenes of her candle-making course of. Morgan creates the candle molds, and her planters are printed by an area firm utilizing a 3D printer.

Seeing the world in colour in her new position 

Apart from physique positivity, Morgan loves utilizing vibrant colours to create her candles and planters. “Working in safety for thus lengthy, I wasn’t capable of specific myself by way of my colours, as a result of we have been at all times sporting a uniform,” she says. “I would like to have the ability to showcase how a lot I like colours by way of my firm, and I attempt to change colours for every assortment.”

Morgan says crucial facet of her firm is, “to present again.” She donates a portion of her earnings to nonprofits and mutual support. “My firm’s been round for over two years now, and we’ve been capable of donate $10,000 to mutual support and nonprofits,” she says. Morgan has chosen completely different organizations to donate to, whose focus is on individuals of colour, the queer neighborhood, the transgender regulation venture and different related causes.

Embracing the unknown to take an opportunity on your self

In case you are hoping to show your pastime right into a enterprise, Morgan means that you must “be prepared for individuals to say no to you.” She additionally says, “In the event you can settle for the unknown, then you possibly can go far.” She then provides that the method of beginning a enterprise will probably be difficult, and much like a curler coaster journey—so it’s vital to have an excellent help system.

The primary message she hopes individuals obtain from her merchandise is to like your self. “On the finish of the day, it’s all about self-love and self-determination. Actually, we simply need individuals to like themselves and really feel like they’ve a neighborhood to help them,” she says.

Photograph by Kelly McKenna Patterson.