Burt Hanna, President of Hanna’s Candle Company, has been passionately involved with the home fragrance industry for 24 years, transforming a small fragrance company, Hanna’s Potpourri Specialties, into Hanna’s Candle Company, one of the largest candle manufacturers in the United States. This year at age 48, Burt was honored with the National Candle Association Hall of Fame Award for Special Achievement.

Burt has always been eager to explore and develop new technologies, designing a process that enabled his company to make a six inch wide pressed pillar candle, launching a new market that produced over 50 million candles produced to date, generating over $250,000,000 in retail sales.

Realizing the importance of recycling, in 2003 Burt launched Greenland Composites, producing extruded composite wood and polymer construction components made from recycled wood and plastics. From this technology, in 2008 he began manufacturing composite garden stepping stones, then adding raised bed gardening kits in 2010, resulting in the birth of yet another company, Greenland Gardener. Burt’s interest in recycling has continued to pique, and he has now expanded into the area of recycling retired small electronics as well as metal. His newest company, Greenland Recycling, opened its doors to the public in 2011.

Burt has been a frequent guest speaker at the University of Arkansas delivering lectures on entrepreneurship, business development and product marketing. His strong belief in fair competition and respect of the individual has guided Burt to be a natural leader, innovator, and successful businessman.