TAMPA, Fla. — A young entrepreneur is making a name for herself — with candles.

Meagan Grace, 21, recently opened Wax ’N Vibes — located in a strip mall on the 2900 block of West Cypress Street in Tampa — where she now teaches the art of candle-making.

“This is my baby,” she said. “This is my baby.”

Grace is part of a growing number of African Americans who have opened their own businesses in Black communities since the pandemic started. Grace said it wasn’t the pandemic that sparked the entrepreneurial flame. It was her grandfather who encouraged her when she was 15 to move toward her passion. 

“He was like my first sale,” Grace said.

Grace learned to make candles by watching YouTube videos. Then she started selling her own products online to people as far away as South Korea, adding funny labels to the jars to stand out from the rest.

“And those are like my big selling candles,” she said. “A lot of people love them.”

Then, Grace had a dream about having her own candle-making store. 

With the help of her family, she was able to make that dream a reality.

“I’m really thankful for this building actually,” Grace said. “I’m really thankful for it.”

And she’s thankful for her grandfather’s inspiration.

He passed away before she opened the store in west Tampa.

Grace said her dream now is to be happy and to help others.

Since the pandemic, she’s already helped several of her friends start businesses as well.