My name is Tara, and together with my husband and our son, we run Southern Timeless Candles, a small family-owned candle studio in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

For the past two years, our family has poured our hearts into creating something special here — a place where visitors and locals can step away from the crowds, slow down, create something with their own hands, and take home a memory they made themselves.

Our studio is tucked away from the main Parkway, so we have always had to work a little harder to get people through our doors. Even so, we've been incredibly fortunate to have customers who have found us, supported us, shared our business with others, and believed in what we're building.

But right now, we're at a crossroads.

We don't want to simply keep trying to survive month to month. We need to make meaningful changes that will help our space attract more customers, create more revenue, and give this family business a real opportunity to become sustainable.

That's why we're asking for your help.

Our goal is to upgrade and improve our existing candle studio with improvements such as new flooring, fresh paint, better lighting, an upgraded customer area, and other changes that will make the space more inviting and help us create an experience that people want to seek out while visiting Gatlinburg.

We also need help with essential operating expenses, including rent, utilities, supplies, inventory, and the costs of keeping the business running while we make these improvements.

This isn't about creating something extravagant.

It's about giving a small family business the chance to become what we've always believed it could be.

And right now, the need is urgent.

Without the ability to make these improvements and get the business on stronger financial footing, we are facing the very real possibility that we may not be able to keep our doors open.

That is incredibly difficult for us to say.

We have put two years of work, time, creativity, and love into Southern Timeless Candles. We've watched families make candles together, couples create custom fragrances, bridal parties celebrate, and visitors leave with something they made themselves rather than another souvenir picked up from a shelf.

We don't want that to end.

Every contribution — whether it's $10, $25, $50, or more — can help us take another step forward. And if you aren't able to contribute financially, sharing this fundraiser with someone who loves Gatlinburg, supports small businesses, or believes in family-owned businesses means just as much to us.

We're not asking for help because we want to build something bigger just for the sake of being bigger.

We're asking because we believe Southern Timeless Candles has something worth saving and something worth growing.

We want to stay here. We want to improve this space. We want to continue creating experiences and memories for the people who visit Gatlinburg.

But we need our community's help to get there.

Thank you for taking the time to read our story, for supporting small businesses, and for believing that sometimes a little help at the right moment can make all the difference.

With gratitude,

Tara

Southern Timeless Candles

Gatlinburg, Tennessee