Shopping locally has been made difficult in recent months.

While we had a few short weeks of being able to grab presents in the run-up to Christmas, this was taken away from us due to our second lockdown… and then a third.

As with many things, we have had to adapt our shopping habits which meant we have turned our attention online.

Some local businesses have embraced a new way of receiving orders and one of them, Lytham Candles, has seen a huge increase in orders since the start of the pandemic.

From her “factory” on Blackpool Business Park, Emma Cox has been creating some incredible fragrances for homes and businesses.

As we are spending more time at home, more people have taken a little more pride in their homes, once home-schooling is out of the way!

And it’s not just candles, seeing a change in people’s shopping habits, Emma has expanded her collection to incorporate room sprays, reed diffusers, mists and melts.

Getting these products out to customers during a pandemic has meant Emma has had to adapt to conditions by introducing new systems.

She said: “Since Covid, people have realised the importance of shopping locally now more than ever. It’s lovely to see everyone helping and supporting one another.

“Here at Lytham Candles we offer a click and collect service, we can deliver locally and we help customers by posting gifts to their family and friends and add a free personalised message.”