Bath and body works candle day sale

• Bath and Body Works is putting online customers looking to buy discounted 3-wick candles in a virtual line.
• The chain's annual candle sales are popular and often sell out.
• Bath and Body Works was one of the winners of Black Friday this year. 

Bath and Body Works is holding its annual candle day sale, and customers have to wait in line before they can even access the website and start shopping.

The large three-wick candles are available for $10.25, more than 60% off their typical price of $25.50. Though still a large discount, this year's candle day is slightly pricier than last year's sale price of $9.95, according to USA Today.

The virtual line puts customers in a kind-of online holding room until it's their turn to shop. According to the store's explanation, shoppers can keep their place in line even if they close the website, as long as cookies are enabled. They can also sign up with their email address to be alerted when it's there turn to shop. Once you're let into the shop, you have ten minutes to start browsing before you're booted to the back of the line.

The online sale started at 6 a.m. ET, and at around 9:30 the wait was 24 minutes, Insider found. The sale will continue as long as supplies last, the retailer said. The deal is also available in Bath and Body Works stores, many of which opened early on Friday. 

Black Friday sales were flat this year compared to 2020 and on the lower end of estimates, but specialty retailers like Bath and Body Works still managed to do well. In a visit to a mall in Rochester, New York, on Black Friday, Insider found Bath and Body Works was packed in the mostly empty shopping center.

Specialty stores like Bath and Body Works have discounts enticing enough to draw customers into stores moreso than big box retailers, GlobalData Retail analyst Neil Saunders told Insider. The chain has built customer excitement around annual events like the three-wick sale and buy three get three to draw in customers both in stores and online.

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UPDATE: Bath & Body Works has sold out of the three-wick candles online. The in-store sale ends Saturday.

Bath & Body Works' annual Candle Day sale returns in stores and online with a 30-cent price hike. 

Starting Friday, all three-wick candles are $10.25, nearly 60% off the regular price of $25.50. The regular price for the candles is $1 more than last December and the 2020 Candle Day sale price was $9.95. 

The online sale lit up at 6 a.m. ET Friday and the $10.25 candles will be available while supplies last or will end at 5:59 a.m. Saturday. Promo code BESTDAYEVER is needed. Last year, the candles sold out quickly online and quantities were limited during the three-day store sale.

This year's in-store candle sale is scheduled to last two days – Friday and Saturday – and many locations will open early, Bath & Body Works said.

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Search for hours using the store locator at www.bathandbodyworks.com/store-locator.

“Bath & Body Works Annual Candle Day has been a tradition for nearly a decade," the company said in a statement, calling the sale "one of the most beloved events of the year."

There’s a purchase limit of 18 candles, the company said.

Bath & Body Works said the sale will feature 150-plus candles including holiday scents like The Perfect Christmas and Fresh Balsam. More than 45 new candles will also drop for the sale.

Target's annual gift card sale also returns this weekend. The two-day sale with 10% off store gift cards is Saturday and Sunday but you'll need to have a free Target Circle account to save.

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Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko. For shopping news, tips and deals, join us on our Shopping Ninjas Facebook group. 

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