Angelica Ramos
Contributing Writer
CHRISTIANSBURG- The Chandlerie in downtown Christiansburg is celebrating one year of being brick-and-mortar.
Friday, May 2 and Saturday, May 3, The Chandlerie, located at 127 North Franklin St. in Christiansburg will celebrate their first full year since their doors opened. The Chandlerie is a newer addition to the developing downtown area. Owner and Chandler Astleigh Hill started making candles in the summer of 2016 from her home and over time grew her small business to the store front she has now. The Chandlerie offers hand-poured wood wick candles, home decor, puzzles and candle pouring workshops for the community.
Hill’s mission is to provide a connection between the sense of smell and memories. Her goal is to provide a product that connects with consumers and the community by using scent as a segue into memory making.
“A scent can trigger a reaction or a particular memory,” Hill said, “with memory recall and nostalgia.”
Small businesses have been working together to revitalize Downtown Christiansburg with the goal of making it the place to be in Christiansburg. Businesses like The Chandlerie want to restore the vibrancy of downtown to a hub for residents and passers-by. Small businesses popping up in Christiansburg, like Hill’s, are focusing on building community engagement and connecting one on one with residents.
“Christiansburg is very family oriented and having a space that is a family space,” Hill said, “There are so many things you might not think to do as a family that I am excited to introduce to the community. Engaging your community and getting to know each other branches out in terms of connections.”
The Chandlerie offers a Sip and Shop event every first Friday of the month from April to September, which not only allows the community to physically be in the space, but also sign up and participate in candle workshops. The candle workshops are offered Tuesdays and Thursdays through Saturdays at the storefront in Downtown Christiansburg. This is a new event for the business, as the flagship Sip and Shop was Friday, April 5, 2024. May 3, 2024 will be the second one, coinciding with their first anniversary and allowing for more opportunity to engage with the community.
“It feels like such an honor to have a place where people are excited to be,” Hill said, “It’s cool to feel rallied behind.”
Hill looks forward to continuing to watch her business and family grow together after this first successful year. As Downtown revitalizes and grows, she would like to begin offering artisan workshops with other small businesses that might not have a brick-and-mortar location yet, have holiday themed shopping events, and maybe move onto Main Street with more space to grow.
“I would love to be part of the bigger flourishing picture of downtown,” Hill says, “A business that has maybe helped inspire other businesses. A place where people are inspired to come in. I would love for my business to be a light in the community (pun-intended).”