From architect to candle maker: How redundancy helped Northampton man to launch successful business

A local man who was made redundant from an industry he had been working in for a decade has taken the opportunity to turn his hobby into a successful business.

Adam Ribano, from Abington, worked as an architect until he was made redundant at the beginning of lockdown.

The 32-year-old was unable to claim support due to savings for his summer 2020 wedding that has now been postponed, so he needed a way to make money.

For two years prior to being made redundant, Adam had been making candles as a hobby that he would give to friends and family and had even started selling in Vintage Guru.

With time on his hands, he turned to his hobby and began making more candles in his spare bedroom, as well as working on the business side of the venture.

Now his candles, named PANDA Botanicals, are sold in around 13 shops across Europe, including in Paris.

Adam said: “I originally started candle making because I wanted a creative outlet and something that wouldn’t cost a lot to get started.

“After I was made redundant, I had to throw myself into something.

“When I had more time on my hands I started to make it look a bit nicer and spoke to people around Northampton.”

Once Adam successfully managed to get his products, which are based on fragrances from around the world, into two additional shops locally, he started expanding into independent shops across the country including as far as Yorkshire, as well as wholesalers, before getting orders from Spain, Germany and France.

With fragrances such as a Thai bamboo and coconut and British strawberry and sparkling wine, the brand ‘celebrates nature all over the world’ with products that are vegan.

The glass jars are also made from recycled products, are recyclable and can be used as a drinking glass or plant pot once they have been cleaned out.

Ten percent of the company’s profits are also donated to organisations that protect the environment and endangered animals, such as the panda, which is partly where the name came from, but also partly from Adam’s finance, Amanda, being nicknamed ‘Panda’ by her family.

Adam added: “Covid has been really terrible in many ways, but it has forced people to think outside of the box a bit and adapt to the way of the world.

“I like being my own boss again and the company is going well, so hopefully it will keep going in that direction.”

Find out more about the brand on the PANDA Botanicals website.

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