Portsmouth Candle

Please do not patronize this store. Today, I went in the shop in search of a memorial candle. My sister passed away from cancer earlier this month, and I wanted to help brighten the holidays for her husband and three young children by creating a new tradition for them.
I was looking for an extra tall pillar candle that could be lit each Christmas in honor of my sister. All the candles I saw were short or of medium height. I went to the employee (owner?) who was stocking items in the front of the store, and asked if she knew of any other shops that carried tall pillar candles since the store didn’t have any for sale. Before I could explain the reason, she curtly told me that she didn’t know, and I could just keep looking. Her rude tone and short response left my boyfriend and I speechless and we immediately left.
Later, I went to another store and asked a person there if they could suggest some places to look and they were happy to help. I’ve worked in the retail business in the past, so I understand why someone might not want to suggest their competitor. However, this was a special circumstance. Small businesses depend on their reputation, and repeat customers. I specifically try to support these kind of shops instead of going to the mall, but I will never step into this shop again. Shame on you, Portsmouth Candle.

I used to go to PCC everytime I visited Portsmouth. I would bring friends and family there because it was a nice place to shop. I visited the shop last Sunday with my mother and sister and we witnessed the rudest behavior Ive ever seen from an employee. A little girl, must have been 5 or 6, was standing by some Christmas ornaments simply looking at them. An employee came out from behind the counter and knelt down to the little girls level and said in a demanding tone ‘where is your mother?’ The girl didn’t know what to say, she looked scared! But her reaction didn’t bother this particular employee, she persisted asking again in a even more stern tone ‘where is your mother’ the employee stared around the store, making eye contact with my sister and I, casting a blaming look as if to say ‘is this YOUR kid?’ Finally the girls mother appeared and the employee told her to not allow her daughter to touch anything. The woman was so taken aback, that she left immediately and told her daughter that they will never shop there again. My family and I left too and will never be back.

Another great stop in Portsmouth for gifts. By the name, it’s obviously a candle store but they have so much more! They have many cute gifts and outdoorsy items. I can spend quite a while walking around here looking at everything. If you’re a tourist this is a great place to stop, because they have handmade items that were made in New Hampshire or other surrounding areas… so you can find that unique, one of a kind item you’ve been looking for! Usually I hate giving candles as gifts because it says «Here, have a candle. I had no idea what to get you,» but these candles are so different that you can find something more personal for your giftee. One year I bought this witchy oil burner supposedly used for a spell, and I got stopped by TSA and had my bags searched because of it lol… but the present was a hit and it was handmade and gorgeous! Can’t wait to stop by again in a few weeks!

Nice stock and tasteful home decorating items but horrid customer service. I purchased several items with a credit card and then asked for change for a dollar in order to feed the meter so that I could continue to shop. The senior person on the check out bluntly refused to make change for me — obviously she had not considered that her customers might need to park a car in order to patronize her business. I can easily patronize another local business — for example, the Life is Good store where the clerk promptly and pleasantly gave me change even before I made a purchase.

The Portsmouth Candle Company is exactly what you think it would be. It’s a store that sells all kinds of candles. It’s a surprisingly big store located on the corner of Fleet and Congress Streets, and it’s a good place to go if you’re shopping for a gift. It’s amazing that it took me almost 5 years to review this place because it’s a staple of downtown and I’ve probably been inside 30 or 40 times. But no one else as reviewed it either. It’s not flashy, it’s not incredibly memorable, and it’s easy to overlook, but this might be your store if you’re wandering the streets of Portsmouth looking for candles or gifts.