About Us

Established in 2017
WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO

At Jules + Gem we know that you want to have a wholesome, balanced life. To do that, ongoing self-care is essential. The problem is life has so many demands and has been increasingly challenging, which makes you feel the pressure to do more...this can be completely overwhelming. We believe you deserve an escape - a space and time just for you - wherever you are.

That’s why at Jules + Gem we carefully select and blend fragrances that fill homes, spaces, offices with aromas that remind people of happy memories in Hawaii.

We’ve helped over 5000 customers transform their space with unique smells and scents of Hawaii - creating an island escape no matter where you are in the world.

You can even find our products in some of the top resorts here in Hawaii.

Don’t make your self-care optional, instead treat yourself with the gift of self-care - a personal getaway wherever you are.

WHO WE ARE
We are a Hawai‘i lifestyle brand that handcrafts clean and natural hand-poured soy coconut wax candles along with other bath and body products. At Jules + Gem Hawaii, we pride ourselves on being locally handmade.  All our products are hand-poured in small batches by our amazing team at our warehouse in Honolulu, Hawaii.  
We strive to be environmentally friendly by using a natural soy wax blend and non-harmful fragrance oils in our candles.  Our fragrances are blended to be perfectly balanced, and we carefully select our notes to best resemble our homegrown fruits and flowers–Guava Nectar smells exactly like freshly picked guava!  We also offer other home fragrance products including reed diffusers and room sprays for those who want to savor the scent without the stress of blowing out a candle. 
OUR STORY
Founded in 2016, we officially launched our online shop in April 2017.  Since then, we have grown our e-commerce and wholesale business.

 

MEET OUR OWNER

Lana Gronwald, owner of Jules + Gem Hawaii

Since I was a young girl, I always enjoyed crafting.   Every day after school, I would walk to the local park where my mother signed me up for arts + crafts classes.  We did various projects from ceramics to painting to making cards.  I always looked forward to bringing my completed projects home to share with my family.  I didn’t realize how much I loved making things until I finished college and began my career.  I realized then, that in order for me to be happy I would need to work in a creative environment producing something tangible.  Furthermore, since I was in my MBA program, I knew I eventually wanted to start my own business.  I searched for business ideas while working different customer service and marketing jobs, and this is where my Jules + Gem journey began. 
A Romantic Date Turned Business
I have loved candles for as long as I can remember. I first began making candles after my husband bought me a candle making kit as a gift. He thought it would be a great couples activity to do–which it was. We followed the directions and made our first candles but unfortunately, it didn't work out very well. They looked horrible and you could barely smell the fragrance! After that, we decided that maybe candle making wasn't our thing and we were just meant to buy candles. 
Then one day, I decided to try my hand at candle making again and surprisingly, it went pretty well.  I did some research and through trial and error, perfected my candles to what you see today.  After waiting to start a business of my own for over a year, the candles showed themselves to me and I knew that this is what I wanted to do. Personally, the candle-making process is relaxing and the thought of my candles burning in different places around the world makes me smile. 
From Flavor to Fragrance
Born and raised in Hawai‘i, I wanted my candles to be reflective of my island home. During the years I spent time away from home, I always found myself longing to go back.  I missed the ocean, the sand between my toes and most of all the food! Growing up in the islands, food was always a part of every activity–eating guava and lilikoi right off the trails while hiking, cold pineapple and mango at the beach, and eating home-cooked meals with my family. These flavors from my childhood inspired the fragrances I chose to blend into my candles.  For people who leave Hawaii, I hope that my candles bring them joy and evoke memories of being home.  
Our Victoria Collection features our top fruit fragrances: Guava Nectar, Passion Fruit + Mint, Mango + Papaya, and our top floral fragrances: White Gardenia, Pakalana and Puakenikeni.  These scents of Hawai‘i can be appreciated all year long.  We also carry seasonal candles during different times of the year like our Lychee, Tangerine + White Birch, and our popular holiday fragrance, Coconut Christmas Tree.  
We hope you enjoy our products just as much as we do making them.  Our goal is to help transform your space into a tropical escape, a place just for you, to relax and take time for your self.  You are worth it.  
Love,
Lana Gronwald
Jules + Gem Hawaii