Couple finds market for color-coded prayer candles
A Cebu bank employee and his wife found the inspiration for a small business during a vacation in Manila.
Rey Pagaduan and his wife Cynthia noticed colored candles being sold at a church.
“We were on a vacation. We like going around and visiting different churches in places that we visit. We happened to see these colored candles in St. Jude church near Malacañang Palace seven years ago,” said Cynthia.
They decided to bring samples home since this was not available in the local market.
“We did not intend it to be a business at first. We just wanted to share it with others in Cebu,” said Pagaduan.
The packs of “Miracle Candles” and “Petition Candles” come in seven to nine colors with a printed guide showing what color corresponds with a particular intention.
White is for purity and enlightenment; yellow for courage and strength; peach for success in studies; pink for spirit and joy, red for love, joy and peace; violet for hope and happiness; brown for good health and healing; blue for career and employment and green for financial help and business success.
The color choices, following the first samples they found in Manila, are not based on any church or religious teaching, but the themes help focus the prayer intention of the user, said Cynthia, who considers it a way to “add a little more faith” to the act of lighting a candle.
The couples invested P5,000 to buy stocks of colored candles from a supplier in Manila.
“I think this business is very much in line with our belief in God,” she said.
The couple still maintain their ful-time jobs— Rey as an information technology (IT) staffer in a bank and Cynthia in the Department of Health.
Over time they have established a network of dealers and store operators who order stocks of their novelty candles, which are now sold in Catholic bookstores in Cebu like Catholic Trade, St. Paul in SM City Cebu and Ayala Center Cebu outlets, and Sto. Rosario Book Ministry.
From a P5,000 initial investment, the Pagaduans stock up to P50,000 worth of candles to meet the demand.
Petition Candles sell for P20 a pack, which are smaller than the bigger Miracle Candles at P30 a pack.
The couple supplies stocks to resellers in Tacloban City, Ormoc City in Leyte, Cagayan de Oro and in San Fernando.
The demand goes up in June before the start of classes and before every national board and licensure exams.
“That could be because students light a candle when they pray, especially the peach candle, which is for success in studies and board exams.
“It’s not proven this will get results but we feel much better when we light a candle that we think is made for that purpose,” said Cynthia.
Monks in the Marian shrine in Simala, Sibonga town in south Cebu also offer their colored candles to visitors and pilgrims who go there to pray.
“The business is something we treat with utmost honesty because our product is something that symbolizes faith among Catholics,” said Cynthia.
The couple plans to expand to Mindanao when the situation is ripe.
“We’d like to meet resellers in these areas so that we can also supply them and make our products available to fellow Catholics in Mindanao,” said Cynthia.
The couple joined the Kapamilya Negosyo Na program of the University of San Carlos College of Commerce Alumni Association and ABS-CBN in 2010.
“We were one of the contest winners because we have a strong product. We think it has big potential to grow. That’s why we want to be aggressive about expanding to other areas soon,” said Cynthia.
