Named after our daughter Ziya, which quite beautifully means light. For a brand built around candles, no name seemed more perfect.

Ziya Artisanal Candles was founded not from a business plan, but from a deep, persistent love for making things by hand. My journey into candle making began as a personal pursuit alongside a career in sustainable transport and urban mobility. I loved that work, but I always needed this too: the kind of making that asks you to slow down, pay attention, and use your senses.

A large part of this journey has been self-led: learning, unlearning, studying techniques, understanding the chemistry of wax, testing materials, and spending more time and money than I would like to admit getting things wrong before getting them right. That knowledge is what I teach.