In Conversation: Alora Founder Jessica dos Santos Gerstner

Meet Jessica dos Santos Gerstner, the founder of Alora, a candle brand that celebrates intention and the art of bringing light into everyday living. What began as a creative side project in her Amsterdam home quickly grew into a love letter to beautiful, useful objects and the rituals that make a space feel like home. 

A lifelong curator of cozy corners and simple pleasure, Jessica brings a thoughtful sensibility to every part of the candle-making process. In this conversation, she opens up about the path that led her from commercial law to launching Alora, the values that guide her, and what it means to invite joy into the spaces we inhabit. 

We’ve recently partnered with Alora to create a special collection, pairing their refined scents with hand-blown glass vessels crafted by our artisan partners in Herat, Afghanistan. You can shop the collection now on our website. 

Our conversation has been edited for length and clarity. 

Can you share a bit about how Alora began? What inspired you to create a candle brand? 

A few years ago, I started exploring different creative outlets. My background is actually in law, both my husband and I have been working in the corporate world for most of our careers. Alongside that, I’ve always loved being creative and curating beautiful spaces around our home. Whether it’s putting together flower arrangements, sourcing textured linens, or learning film photography, creating has always been a way for me to feel grounded and inspired.

At one point, I began attending different workshops—flower arranging, ceramics, candle-making—as a way to reconnect to that creative part of myself. I ended up completely falling in love with the candle-making process. I started experimenting with different wax and scent combinations, and it really just grew from there. 

I began thinking more seriously about what it would mean to create a brand that was connected to the idea of home and curating intentional spaces. That’s really where Alora came from. The name itself means ‘shining light,’ which felt so right, both for what a candle literally is, and also what I hoped the brand would represent. 

How has your South African background influenced the design direction of Alora?

The creative and design space in South Africa is world-class with beautifully refined style that carries warmth, intention and is inspired by the stories of its people. We knew we wanted to bring this quality into our brand and worked with a Cape Town based brand designer to bring to life the heart of Alora through its look and feel. I’m proud of how we brought that vision to life and we really made an effort to set ourselves apart, especially with the design. That was a meaningful journey, because in the creative space, design is such a competitive area, especially with social media and so many things fighting for our attention. 

From the beginning, it sounds like you were intentional about everything. Can you talk about that? 

Yes! We always wanted to take a lot of care when choosing materials. I think with candles, there’s more awareness now around making sure they’re non-toxic, which was really important to us. We use 100% natural wax. We went pretty deep into understanding the types of waxes available, and we landed on a coconut and rapeseed blend which has a nice firmness to it that allows us to create refills for our candlesThe wax is also sourced and made in Germany, which feels like a more sustainable and locally considered option for us here in Europe. 

We also worked with a French perfumery to craft our scent blends. That was such a beautiful part of the process. We wanted to create scents that weren’t overpowering or artificial. Getting that balance just right took time but it was something we knew we wanted to do from the outset.

How did it feel receiving the first hand-blown glass jars for this collaboration? 

I thought they were so beautiful, because you can really see that they are handmade. They’re not perfectly symmetrical on all sides and you can see the depth in the glass and the shape. And the colors! I cannot get over the colors. The way the tones shift depending on the thickness of the glass, how the light passes through it—it’s just so stunning. 

Can you share more about your values around small-batch, handmade production? 

I currently make all the candles myself. Even as we grow, I want to preserve this hand-poured element because it makes each candle a unique creation. There is a story. There are real hands behind this product. It’s not about getting another mass-produced thing to put in your home, there’s intention and heart that goes into the process. That’s why we’ve loved this collaboration with Artijaan because we are aligned in that sense. 

What do you hope people experience when they bring an Alora x Artijaan candle into their home? 

I hope it encourages people to be more intentional about their space. For me, creating Alora was about following what felt most authentic, and I hope some of that feeling comes through whenever someone lights one of our candles. Your home should feel like your sanctuary, it’s the space where you want to feel most connected to yourself. A candle might seem simple, but it can represent that moment of belonging and feeling at home in yourself. 

Favorite candle scent for your current collection? 

They all have a special place in my heart and for different reasons, but the Amber is my cozy candle season favourite. 

Creative ritual you swear by? 

Listening to music. I get my best ideas when I’m listening to music. It creates a feeling, and that feeling then inspires the concept or direction I want to go. 

Go-to way to unwind?

Lighting a candle, of course! But also being inspired by other creatives. It gives me a kind of energy that really fills my cup. And relaxing at home with my husband and our dog. 

Favorite scent memory? 

The cologne my husband wears. He’s worn it since we were dating. It always transports me. Also, the perfume I wore on our wedding day.

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