Selling Candlelight

Baltimoresun.com:

Tammy Martin, a stay-at-home mom with an education background, moved to Maryland from Massachusetts and attended a PartyLite show to get to know her neighbors. PartyLite shows are house parties where candles and accessories are sold to friends and family. Martin needed to find a job, but wanted to remain at home with her young children. After the candle party, she decided to sign up to be a saleswoman. She received a starter kit of candles and committed to scheduling six parties.

“I needed to replace an income. Once I got into the business, that first month, I made $2,000 and I never looked back. The second month I put my heart and soul into this business.”

In the next six weeks, she made $10,000, building up enough momentum to remain a stay-at-home mom. She has since moved up through the ranks, recently being named a regional vice president.

Martin says she works an average of 15 hours a week but because she’s a manager, she takes a lot of telephone calls and e-mails from nine women who schedule parties around the region. She tries to maintain a flexible schedule, which means she typically works nights and weekends. While her hours are more manageable now, Martin acknowledged that getting the business started required her to approach it as a full-time job. She would hold four to five shows each week. In order to book that many shows, she would have to convince family members and friends to host a party and sell the candles to others. “You have to be a go-getter and you have to be willing to work for yourself. You have to have that initiative to be your own boss.”