Candle Accessories

The Yankee Candle Company is the largest U.S. manufacturer of scented candles. The company is located in South Deerfield, Massachusetts. more...

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History

Yankee Candle Company was started in South Hadley, Massachusetts when Michael Kittredge created his first scented candle from melted crayons, as a gift for his mother. Neighbors began expressing interest in buying his creations, and Kittredge began producing them in larger quantities. The company slowly expanded and moved to South Deerfield, Massachusetts in 1983.

After a cancer scare in 1993, Kittredge started handing the company over to a friend and employee. In 1998, he sold the company to New York based private equity company Forstmann Little for $500 million. Forstmann took the company public in 1999, and in 2001, hired Craig Rydin as a CEO. Rydin launched a major advertising campaign and the line was picked up by mass retailers Linens-N-Things and Bed, Bath and Beyond, pushing sales to their highest levels yet. Kittredge remains the company's chairman emeritus.

During the summer of 2006, Yankee Candle purchased Illuminations, a Petaluma, CA based, multi-channel retailer of high quality candles and home accessories. Although the two companies are similar, the names are separated, with Illuminations being aimed at a different demographic.

On February 6th, 2007, the company was acquired by the private equity group of Madison Dearborn Partners LLC for approximately $1.6 billion.

Flagship store

Yankee Candle's flagship store, off Routes 5 & 10 in South Deerfield, Mass, is one of New England's most popular tourist attractions. It features not only a selection of all available Yankee Candles but also kitchen and home accessories, New England crafts, gifts and collectibles, a toy shop, picnic grounds and a "Bavarian Christmas Village" filled with decorated Christmas trees and a toy train that runs through to Santa's Workshop, where animated elves and an 'assembly line' for wooden vehicles surround Santa Claus's desk. Visitors can dip their own candles in a specially equipped area and there is a candle making museum. The shop's award-winning Chandler's Tavern serves American cuisine and fine wines.

A second flagship store was opened in Williamsburg, VA in 2005. The store is 10,000 square feet and is about 1/3 the size of the South Deerfield, MA store.

Read more at Wikipedia.org