Ottery’s recycled candle shop is heading to Exeter as the owners move to a space four times the size.

The Recycled Candle Company is owned by business partners Richard Hills-Ingyon and Sargon Latchin who bought the property on Mill Street in August 2017.

With business growing, they found the store was starting to get full and that candle making, which should have been done in the studio, was spilling into the shop.

Mr Hills-Ingyon said: “We’ve known for a while we need a bigger space.

“The company has picked up a lot of momentum in the last year.

“I think having a physical store here in Ottery really expanded our reach far more than we thought it would.”

The candle recyclers happened to spot an empty store in Gandy Street, Exeter, when they were in the city and decided the time was right.

Mr Hills-Ingyon said: “We thought we’d be a bit nosey and have a look to see if it is even remotely viable.

“After viewing the property, we did all the figures and realised it was viable.

“It’s about four times the size.”

The pair now plan to make the move in six to eight weeks time.

They say they would love to hand over the shop to someone so it does not sit empty.

Since their move in 2017, they say the Ottery community has welcomed them with open arms, and that they are heartbroken to be leaving.

Mr Hills-Ingyon said: “We don’t want it to look like we are abandoning Ottery following greener grass. We’ve had so much support from people saying congratulations.

“We’ve made some really lovely friends.

“I’ve got a place here so I’ll still be here in my spare time.

“I never would have thought a year and a half ago that a community could be so welcoming and so supportive.

“I think people can see that our business has grown and that we can’t turn down an opportunity to continue to grow it.

“If we were to stay here in a space this size, we would have to start turning big orders away.”

The candle recyclers do want to maintain a presence in the town and are working to set-up a recycle point at FillFull where residents can take their unwanted candles to be made into new candles at their store in Exeter.