Introduction.
Starting a pottery business can be an exciting and rewarding venture. It is important to understand the basics of starting a successful business, as well as understand the craft of pottery. With careful planning and dedication, it is possible to create a thriving business that will bring joy to customers for years to come.
Almost a year back I was reading a news article that explained how traditional cooking and dining in clayware making a comeback, as per the article the gradual progression of environmental consciousness, adoption of the old days’ practices for better health, and deep inclination to adopt new things among city dwellers are triggering this commercial growth. For example, we have seen how strongly yoga is coming back into our day-to-day lives and regaining the hallmark status that used to prevail thousands of years ago, similarly, other practices are also reemerging, and now the trend of use of earthenware is one of those.
The goal of this blog is to come up with some best business ideas that anyone can start. All business ideas are written in detail here, from problem statements to investments. Moreover, if you want more information I promise to get back in a week. Keep reading.
Traditional earthen utensils & cookware are taking a commercial shape for the last few years, today if you surf the internet will get many specialized eCommerce that deal exclusively with earthen utensils & cookware.
Why am I very optimistic about pottery business?
I have traveled to many cities but seldom have noticed any showrooms or shops that deal exclusively with artistic earthen works. This has given me a strong sense that this line of business has not evolved in the form of showroom business.
So far you have got clear clues on the business fundamentals, Now I will explain how one can start this business with minimum investment and sell offline and online. Let’s start.
You may have noticed that nowadays the usage of earthen cookware is widespread in the commercial arena like hotels and restaurants, alongside that is entering households also. Yes, the demand would not be like ceramic or metal wares but when compared with the limited demand side of earthenware the supply side appears to be much weaker. (This is my personal assumption).
There are two options open for this business to start, either we must source from the villages that are famous for pottery or we need to start our own workshop with skilled artists. My suggestion is, to begin, start with sourcing ready-to-sell products and gradually build your workshop. Down the line this strategy will help you gain two big lessons, i.e. you will know what this industry is all about and consumer behavior, later while producing your own these two experiences will help you get products that customer wants.
What line of products this pottery business will sell?
Most important, currently, pottery has three distinct segments, the first one is premium artisan, the third segment is regular utility and the second one is the alternative to ceramic ware. In this business idea article, we will take the second segment as our business line as it is evolving rapidly and becoming trendy.
The pottery business will require moderate investment to have a small showroom, carriage van, and working capital and build a workshop.
How to begin a pottery business?
To start selling ready-to-sell products, please follow the steps mentioned below.
- Identify the sources, there are places (countryside/villages) where clay pottery is made in bulk, you have to identify those.
- Visit the villages to understand the production, quality, logistics, and rates. (Select products that are not regular and have artistic looks)
- Restrict products into dinnerware & cookware (Remember, you are giving an artistic alternative to porcelain, china, bone chain, and stoneware)
- Calculate the cost of inventory and other related expenses.
- Select a showroom space (Approximately a space of 200 to 300 sqft floor area with clear frontage and small storage).
- Design the showroom with a decent look.
- Register a brand name (I always suggest this because that gives scope for scaling up in the future) (Do not forget to embed your brand name in each product you order)
- Once your showroom is ready start doing marketing to target households, hotels, restaurants, and gifting.
- Do not forget to do good packaging like any ceramicware product.
- Start selling on social media, initially targeting the local market.
- Please form a legitimate business organization.
In the pottery business, you can keep a 100% or more margin, the success will depend on your sourcing and selection of products. Look and feel is the only USP of this business, if that is brilliant then there is no stop ahead.
A quick guide on making a storefront.
This pottery business can be started with a small to a medium storefront or from home online, depending upon your investment capacity decide what models suit you best. No doubt, doing it from home can save a lot of money [The cost of setting up a storefront] but having a retail store has its advantage like quick awareness, a professional look, and no doubt extra sales from walk-in customers.
List of things that will cost you to open a retail storefront [ Collected from various internet sources]
- Rent per SqFt
- Onetime deposit
- Interior [Decor, Lighting, and Branding]
- Exterior [ Frontage, Branding, and Lighting]
- Permits and License
- Parking renovation [If required]
- Washroom renovation
- Shelves and storage
- Bill desk
- Billing gadgets and software
Summing up.
The first step in starting any new endeavor is research; researching your local market conditions, customer demographics and competition is essential when creating your plan for success.
Additionally, you must understand what type of products you want to offer: handmade pieces or mass-produced items. Once these decisions have been made you can begin looking into equipment needs such as kilns and wheels; this may require some initial investment but it will pay off in the long run by allowing production speedier than hand-making each piece individually would allow.
Finally marketing your product should not be overlooked! Creating social media accounts on platforms like Instagram or Facebook will help spread the word about your company’s offerings while also providing potential customers with visuals that could lead them straight into buying from you!
You may also find success at art shows or markets where people are already interested in purchasing unique pieces from talented artists like yourself! Ultimately finding out which methods work best for promoting sales within both online settings and physical ones requires trial-and-error so don’t get discouraged if something doesn’t seem immediately successful – keep trying different avenues until one works perfectly with how much time/resources/effort put forth by yourself & any other members involved with running the operation smoothly & efficiently.
Conclusion.
In conclusion, setting up shop takes patience, hard work, knowledge & creativity -but once all those elements come together there’s no telling just how far things might go! Starting up a pottery business has great potential; take advantage now before someone else does!
Best of Luck!
