When Perthshire couple Gordon and Georgina Robertson were preparing to tie the knot in 2019, they had gone over budget.
The increasing costs meant the end Georgina’s idea of having bespoke candles as favours for guests.
That was, until she stepped in to make them herself.
The candles proved so popular, the couple threw themselves into candle making as a business.
Gordon explained how Ivy and Twine was created.
“We’d gone over budget and my wife had always wanted to do bespoke candles for the wedding.
“We got quotes and it was really expensive, so she decided to make them.
“We gave them to the bridal party and some friends and they asked where they could buy the candles.
“My mum said ‘why don’t you see if you can make it a business?”
Covid was a ‘really scary’ period
From there, the couple booked in to the Scottish Trade Show and picked up a handful of stockists.
Their business was all running smoothly until March 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic meant all the shops who had agreed to stock Ivy and Twine candles were now shut.
Gordon, 31, added: “Our whole business is wholesale and supporting shops so when Covid hit our business went to zero.
“It was really scary.”
A video posted by Georgina on social media site TikTok went viral – with thousands of views overnight – which brought the Kinross couple unexpected business.
@ivyandtwine Small business check ✅🌿 #candles #candlemaking #fyp #foryou #smallbusiness #scottish #fy
Gordon said: “Georgina had been making some TikTok videos and one just blew up. From there we were getting hundreds of orders a day.
“Then it blew up in the US. We were going to bed, then waking up with the equivalent of three weeks’ turnover in one night.
“That was amazing – we were very lucky.”
‘The best thing we ever did’
The orders have just kept coming, and earlier this year the couple moved their production from their home into a 3,000 sq ft warehouse in Glenrothes.
That has, Gordon said, made a big difference.
“Georgina made everything from the kitchen and she was then bringing it to the living room for me to label and box,” he added.
“You look back now and wonder how we managed. Things have snowballed for us.
“Before lockdown we had 12 or 15 stores we sold through, now we’re selling just shy of 100 stores all over the UK.
“My wife still makes everything herself – that was 6,000 units last month.
“The two of us are doing 100-hour weeks and have been for months.
“Getting this unit has been the best thing we ever did. You can’t switch off at home.”
Looking to the future, Gordon hopes it’s not long before they are able to take on a member of staff.
‘I am incredibly proud’
And there’s a longer-term plan to grow the business across the Atlantic.
Gordon said: “In the next two years we want to look at getting into the States.
“It’s too expensive to ship to the US. We need to get a quantity over there and get someone to look after the shipping for us.”
Reflecting on the journey, Gordon has been delighted with their progress.
But he reserved special praise for his wife.
“When you look back to where we started, if you told me two years down the line we’d be selling all over the UK, especially through the pandemic, I wouldn’t have believed you.
“To get to where we are now is incredible and the vast majority of it is through my wife.
“I’m incredibly proud of what she’s done.”