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Most Popular Mug Size?


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I'm trying to figure out if the new mugs I am working on are big enough. I thought my old mugs were a nice size since they held 8 ounces but have been told else wise many many times. Soooo new mug will hold an easy 16 ounces and maybe as much as 20 ounces going to the rim. My new mugs look huge to me, do people REALLY want mugs that will hold this much stuff?

 

What is your most popular selling mug size?

 

T

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I don't know about most popular selling size however personally I use different sizes for different things:

  • 350-400ml (11.8-13.5 ounces) = coffee
  • 400-470ml (14-16 ounces) = big morning cup of tea, the 'I am flagging' coffee or night time hot choc
  • Bigger than 470ml = soup cup

But then again I am probably just a bit OCD in this respect ;)

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I make 5 sizes and the mod popular by far is (drum roll Bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb)

is the medium size 12-14 once made from 1 # of clay.

I sell this mug in all venues (art shows -wholesale -consignment)  more than all the rest

I sell them in the thousands over the course of a one year .

Now thats only in Arizona, California, Washington ,Utah ,Nevada

so your  area may be different

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I make smaller mugs that hold about 12 oz.  I guess to me there will always be somebody who asks if you make a different size. They either like the cup enough to buy it or not. If this is a creative expression of mine, I decided to no longer care what others want. I am not a "gigantic mug" type person.  If they ask for a larger cup, I point to my beer steins. 

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I'm trying to figure out if the new mugs I am working on are big enough. I thought my old mugs were a nice size since they held 8 ounces but have been told else wise many many times. Soooo new mug will hold an easy 16 ounces and maybe as much as 20 ounces going to the rim. My new mugs look huge to me, do people REALLY want mugs that will hold this much stuff?

 

What is your most popular selling mug size?

 

T

I guess if they want to open a can of soda and pour it in, or a bottle of beer, that is a reasonable size. 

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My sister used to sell out of her mugs that held 3.5 cups.  I do feel the trend is for larger mugs so if you sell 14-20 oz. mugs I believe you will sell them just fine. :) 

When I had the chance to do 20 mugs for my husband's coworkers, everybody went for 12-18 oz., nobody wanted smaller. But I've had small 6-8 ounce mugs in my shop (I misjudged the shrinkage) and I've sold just about all of them. I think it depends on the person. One potter I follow calls those "junior" mugs.

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What I have noticed is young folks like a larger mug and as people age they like smaller ones-this has held true for my 40 years in the mug business.

If you are collage aged you like a beer mug about 32 ounces . If you are retired an 8 oz is fine.

My mug info is here on the 7 sizes I make

http://www.liscomhillpottery.com/shipping-info.html

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I would go with Mark on the size for sales and pricing . I make mostly in the 14 to 24oz size. I do tankards/ steins at 16-32oz. I like a big mug. I'm a big guy. I think in the USA we have huge portions for anything. Go to a coffee shop and most people are buying 16 to 20oz and even 24oz. This is because of perceived value I get 25% more for $.40 (10% more); awesome!!! That will be $4.40. If a potter offered the same size mugs at the same price increase as the coffee chains they would probably sell larger mugs. However people buying pottery say ok I can buy a one of a kind mug for lets say $20, 22, 24, 26, 30 depending on size( people get this). I want the $26 or $30 one but $22 gets me a mug to use or show and I saved $6 or $8 for something else. I've made thousands of mugs never sold a one. Just my crazy two cents.

 

 Here is the size of mug our 4 year old grandson likes.

post-66695-0-49227500-1450577512_thumb.jpg

post-66695-0-98289800-1450577519_thumb.jpg

post-66695-0-49227500-1450577512_thumb.jpg

post-66695-0-98289800-1450577519_thumb.jpg

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What I have notices is young folks like a larger mug and as people age they like smaller ones-this has held true for my 40 years in the mug business.

If you are collage aged you like a beer mug about 32 ounces . If you are retired an 8 oz is fine.

My mug info is here on the 7 sizes I make

http://www.liscomhillpottery.com/shipping-info.html

 

My favorite mug lately holds 8 oz. at the rim....are you calling me old?!?!

 

:P

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So if 40 years of selling lots of mug sizes one still questions which is more popular here's another spin on this.

For over a decade I have sold 4 sizes of mugs at two local Mexican bagel shops.

The sizes are lined up and when I say sell I mean a lot of mugs sell there.

I sell enough in this one outlet to drop a art show as the sales are so strong.

Guess what size sells the most in this outlet ?

The 12-14 once mug which is the same deal for me at art shows and all my other gallery's

Mugs are a personal thing size wise

Here I sit drinking my morning coffee from a huge 16 oz mug later in day I will have a small mug of milk (8oz)

Then at noon a very smakk espresso in baby mug

For dinner I,m back to a 12oz mug so for me I use many sizes

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I like different sizes too, for different uses. I try to find the line between what I like and what people want to buy, so far it's worked out but I'll let you all know when I've been doing it as long as Mark!

 

I think that if I could choose only ONE size of mug to make I would do the 12-14 oz.

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I like the 1# mug, about 12-14oz. I find anything else just feels so odd. Some people dont mind drinking cold coffee out of a huge mug. 

 

I don't drink out of mugs often, but I drink out of yunomi almost every day, orange juice every morning.

 

My wife on the other hand is an avid coffee and tea drinker out of mugs, she prefers the 12oz as well.

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What I have noticed is young folks like a larger mug and as people age they like smaller ones-this has held true for my 40 years in the mug business.

If you are collage aged you like a beer mug about 32 ounces . If you are retired an 8 oz is fine.

My mug info is here on the 7 sizes I make

http://www.liscomhillpottery.com/shipping-info.html

Hey, Mark,

I just looked at your color samples and I particularly like the effect you accomplished on #3 & #5. Would it be too much trouble for you to describe how you accomplished the glaze effects on each of these?

JohnnyK

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Both of these are two glaze combos
#3 is my black glaze under my rutile glaze fired to cone 10 in reduction
#5 is a rutile/iron glaze under my rutile glaze again gas fired to cone 10 in reduction
All my glazes do better in reduction
The last thing is I have used these for many decades and know what glazes the do in terms of movement

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Your comment, Mark, about people's size preferences changing rang true for me.  I was just talking about this with a studio colleague, and we both used to prefer larger sized mugs but have both in the last couple of years changed preferences.  She now uses very small cups in the 6 - 8 oz range, and I now prefer a 12 oz mug.    I used to drink my coffee mostly cold because of the huge mug size, but now I think I like to refill more often and drink it warmer.  So it's not that I'm drinking less as I have aged.  We are both over 60.

So I wonder why we well aged folks go smaller....

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I make my mugs 1 pound of clay. I don't know what the liquid measure would be after firing. Used to make them 3/4's of a pound. Now those ones look dinky, or puny.

I also make tumblers with no handle the same weight.

I would rather not have seven sizes of mug to choose from.Am I being too stingy?

TJR.

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(Your comment, Mark, about people's size preferences changing rang true for me.)

Hey this is old news for me as this has been the truth for many decades in terms of selling gazzlions of mugs for 40 years. You learn your customers wants pretty quick .

I cannot tell you how many mugs in sets I have sold to have the older buys cone back next year and by a smaller set and talk to me on how they hold more than they thought.

I have heard this a few times this month alone.

Now why as you age do you want less fluid in your cup you ask well if you are under say 50 you may not get it.

Cold coffee has been mentioned.

when you are 20-30 something you use a Huge mug or at least I did .

When you mature some you learn moderation (some never do) (this is not my area of expertise as well)

hence less is more.

​I still use a variety of mug sizes myself but I never use one over 20 oz.

When your 80 you want a light small mug-same is true with flatware -lighter is better

How do I know this well sell ceramics for 40 years and you too can generalize to hearts content

 

One thought not even mentioned is location also dictates mug sizes-I sell larger ones in the southwest that the northwest-more heat more fluids.

When you do art shows all over the west  for decades you learn what sizes what colors etc sell best where.I glaze differently depending on where I'm taking my work-now theres a new thought.

​Can you learn this without doing it well no. Got to pay your dues that say.

Only 3 days left of retail before a break from ceramics.

Mark

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