Meet Mina Starks | Luxury Candle Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mina Starks and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Stir And Mixxes is a luxury hand-poured soy candle business that was birthed from grief. The loss of my mom forced me to find ways to cope. Once I noticed certain things were helping me, I wanted to help others too. My Mother’s Eyes grief boxes were created and one of the items in the boxes were candles. I was buying them at various places and noticed they didn’t last or that you could barely smell them when lit. I didnt want them to be a representation of my boxes, so I told my husband to lets try to make them ourselves. We tested and tested, stirred and mixed fragrances and viola..Stir and Mixxes was created. We are the Sir and Mrs. of Stir And Mixxes. What was even more interesting, was that it was prophesized to us that we would have a flourishing candle business. We were awarded a scholarship to start our business on the same day that we had decided to start trying to make candles. So this business is bigger than us, this is God’s business.

The thing that sets us apart is we are always creating, and developing new scents and products with others in mind. We are a selfless business. Everything we do is intentional. Our packaging is meant to wow you when you open it. Its luxurious and bold. Our items in our grief to joy boxes are thoughtful and heartfelt. They are meant to provide comfort. Then there are the amazing gifts you receive when you purchase from us, even those are intentional.

An inch of progression is farther than a mile of intention. This is the motto I live by and believe it has gotten me to where I am today. You have to celebrate every inch of progress. Those small steps add up to bigger steps and before long you have accomplished way more than you thought. It’s not a marathon, you’ll get there just trust the process.

It was not easy getting where I am thus far. Being an Entrepenuer can be challenging. There was always that part of, “Do you go back to the corporate world, or continue to bet on yourself and your dream?” I was in corporate for many years with a great salary and stability. It was easy to just go back to what felt comfortable and safe, but at what cost? My freedom? My happiness? I always felt caged in corporate, like I was never able to fully be me, so I left. There were a lot of sleepless nights because you have so many ideas running through your head, but may not know how to execute them. Then there is frustration from wanting to invest things into our business and take it to the next level, but unable to financially because business may have been slow. Working with your spouse can also be challenging at times because you have to learn how to separate business from marriage. Being that there are 2 bosses, we had to learn that sometimes someone has to be the employee…

I’m most proud of the growth of our business in such a short amount of time. People are recognizing us and our brand. We have gotten purchases from high profile clients and celebrities, in addition to radio, and magazine spots. I kept pushing back starting the business because I wanted to perfect it and I didn’t think we were ready. Witnessing these accomplishments, taught me a valuable lesson. You might not have the full picture, just start painting it.

I would like people to know that our brand is all about bringing joyful, meaningful experiences to others through our products. Everytime you receive anything with StirAndMixxes attached to it, your better believe it was made with nothing but Love.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Well first off, I’m a foodie so you better believe we are going to eat some great food and catch up with some great conversation. Despite all the hoopla around the Atlanta food scene right now, there are really some geat gems. I love cajun food so we are defintely going to Gumbeaux and the Louisiana Bistreaux. We would get dressed and head over to St. James Live to listen to Live band music and have some cocktails.

We would also visit Ponce City Market and head up to the rooftop. Then head over to Reverb. I would take her to Batsi for some music and live entertainment then we would get away from the city and head to Revho for some socializing and creativity with a luxury ambiance.

On a slower not so busy day we would head to Slim and Husky for same amazing pizza and check out a concert at City Winery. On any given day in Atlanta you could run into a festival some where so we would check a few of those out too.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My husband Raymond Starks deserves so much credit. His patience, his dedication to our family and our business, and his support have been so impactful on my journey. He sees so much greatness in me and holds me accountable for it. He pushes me past uncomfortability and I’m a better person because of it.

I would also like to dedicate my shout out to Chrishauna Johnson. During those times when I was struggling to keep going, and mentally tired of fighting, she always pushed me to the finish line and prayed for me when I couldn’t pray for myself. Not only has she provided support in so many other ways, but her giving heart, amazing advice, encouragement and unwavering friendship is why she gets 5 stars in my life.

Website: www.StirAndMixxes.com

Instagram: @StirAndMixxes

Twitter: StirAndMixxes

Facebook: www.facebook.com/StirAndMixxes

Other: TikTok: StirAndMixxes