Jodyann Morgan, the founder of CTOAN Co., released her second-annual Black Joy Collection on Feb. 1. This year’s collection pays tribute to Black creativity, expression, excellence and euphoria, with a royal color palette and warm scents.
Morgan creates hand-poured, trans-inclusive, gender-free candles that celebrate the human form and highlight areas of the body that are often hidden. In the 2024 Black Joy Collection, styles like Thighs of Thunder and Fanny embrace stretch marks, cellulite and belly poaches.
“There is definitely an audience for fat art,” said Morgan. “People want to see fat art represented in every medium, and it should be the norm.”
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
Living and working at the intersections of a Black and queer identity, Morgan is driven to give back to organizations that accept queer youth. “There aren’t a lot of organizations out there getting the money that they deserve.” Since the launch of her website, CTOAN Co. has donated $10,000. For every candle purchased from a collection, $2 is donated.
A percentage of proceeds from this year’s Black Joy Collection will be given to Black Arts MKE, a nonprofit that supports Black arts and culture by inspiring creativity in youth, providing opportunities for artists of color and strengthening the community through arts partnerships.
The fast-growing company and product demand that supports donations could be labeled an accident. After all, Morgan never dreamed of starting a business.
“In the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I wanted a hobby that I could do in my home,” said Morgan. “I tried many things — gardening, painting, and then I landed on making candles. Just for fun, I put it on Instagram, and people really seemed to be interested in 3D body form candles. But there weren’t molds of plus-size people represented in 3D candles, so I created my own.”
Morgan launched her website in November of 2021. Come March of 2022, she was able to quit her full-time job and take on candle making full-time.” When I was working security, I was making candles before I went to work and after I got home.” Family members assisted with early operations, but eventually, Morgan hired part-time employees.
Along with her three employees, Morgan works with her wife, Chaya Milchtein, who helps her with marketing techniques.
“I’m not paying for any promotions,” said Morgan. “It’s all word-of-mouth; it’s all social media. Influencers on social media, celebrities that have shared my candles and the community is definitely the force that has helped me propel this company.”
Melanie Rose from Netflix’s “How to Build a Sex Room,” actress Gabrielle Union and plus-size model Tess Holliday have used their platforms to share CTOAN Co. products.
“Stunning, intricate craftsmanship down to subtle cellulite and stretch marks,” said one reviewer.
Morgan and her team don’t intend on opening a storefront, but plans to acquire a production space are in the works.
“I work out of my basement,” said Morgan. “We bought the house two years ago, and the plan was for me to have a little corner to make candles, but now I’ve taken over the entire basement. I also kind of acquired the dining room. So the plan is to definitely get a production space where I’ll be able to grow the brand, employ more people and just have a bigger space that’s not inside my home.”
