All NZ candle makers, by region.

Tāmaki Makaurau holds the largest concentration of candle studios in the country — Grey Lynn, Onehunga and Kingsland have a pour-house each within walking distance. Sea air, big windows, and enough discerning homewares boutiques to support small batches.

Te Whanganui-a-Tara — small city, big candle scene. Te Aro studios pour for half the homewares boutiques in Cuba St, and a coastal-spray brief comes naturally to a town this windy.

Ōtautahi rebuilt itself around small studios in Sydenham and the Tannery — the candle community here skews quietly experimental, with more wax-blending and beeswax than the North Island.

Ōtepoti's cold winters mean candles are functional as well as decorative. North Dunedin makers lean towards heavier waxes, longer burn times, and unapologetic scent — peat, smoke, kauri.

Bay of Plenty makers favour citrus, sea-grass and pōhutukawa — bright, salt-air-friendly scents that pair with the climate. Mount Maunganui has two boutiques worth visiting on a coastal day trip.

Wine country. Candle makers in Hastings and Havelock North pour deliberately into amber glass, lean on fig, blackcurrant and oak, and treat scent the way the local vineyards treat varietals — single-origin, written-up, considered.

Te Tai Tokerau — kauri country. Northland makers tend to specialise in tree-essence blends and rongoā-adjacent botanicals, with a slower production cadence than the metropolitan studios.

Wānaka and Cromwell. Continental climate, big seasonal swings, and a candle-making style that mirrors it — heavy summer florals followed by smoky, resinous winter pours.