Is it possible to make a living?

[Roberta12]

Best advice ever, @GEP  Especially the part about saying no to things that aren't really productive.   I have had people ask about part time work with me, but I think it would make me nuts.  I am pretty much in my own head when I am making.  I have even thought about what part of my work could I even have someone else do?  Not much.  A friend stayed with us for a few days.  She volunteered to do some sanding.  That was terrific, but I found myself going back over everything  and checking for rough spots.  What the Heck?  I don't consider myself a perfectionist by any means, but I guess I have a standard for my work going out into the world (QOTW) that I have to double check everything.  So yeah, I am happier working by myself.  

Roberta

[Mark C.]

It amazing how cutting down can make more money. Weather its an employee or shows. Less is more at times

I used to do 12 shows a year and when I cut that back and did less and had more inventory at the shows I did I made more money that year. Having more inventory at a show you make more $. I kept cutting shows back as I aged and still made more money. The show expense food and lodging all added up or didn't  making me more $. Finding the sweet spot -well thats a bit harder.

I have had a part time as needed studio assistant  for over  30 years and am not letting her go yet. Next year we are going to try a new schedule -month ot two on month or two off.

I'm setting my xmas booth up today with wares-its my 42rd year in this shopping center. Booth runs 5-66 hours a day and I have sales help. I'll run it for 13 days this year. Fri-sat-sun. close for 3 days (will bisque and glaze and fire) then reopen thru and run everyday till midafternoon xmas eve.

Next year one local show and if I choose maybe this xmas booth-we shall see. I still have  7 -8 wholesale outlets as well selling my work daily.All local but one (my best one)

I'm done throwing this year a bit early for me.I think I have the most wares ever this time of year in stock.The economy has softened compared to last year which was over the top.

Sales have returned to normal this year .

Edited December 9, 2022 by Mark C.

[DirtRoads]

7 hours ago, Mark C. said:

The economy has softened compared to last year which was over the top.

Sales have returned to normal this year .

I'm seeing this exact same thing.   Only the 2nd time in my 30 years of retail I've seen a sales decline.  But as you said, cutting costs and you come out with more profit.   A big box retail manager told me today that store sales were up .. but profit was down.   That prices are just sky rocketing.

I decided to cut back this year and let the bill board I had for like 4 years go.      Rate went up but it was still generating enough revenue to be profitable.   But I had to open 7 days a week, especially on Sunday.   Last year, I reduced to Wed-Sat and only started 7 days again in November.       Cutting retail labor to 3 days is a huge saving.    I'll keep that schedule this year as well.   I usually open up and just have a sign saying call me (I live right there).    I'm getting a bigger banner this year to extend hours.    I'm here anyway.    I can always take off the 3 days I have someone here and go where I want.    I'm past the age of wanting to take vacations.   I traveled, skied & did scuba diving  all over at one time and now have zero interest in traveling.    So 3 days is plenty of time to do what I want (basically my only hobby now is playing MMO's).

[DirtRoads]

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-dow-industrials-are-on-the-verge-of-a-golden-cross-even-as-blackrock-predicts-recession-like-no-other-11670608304?mod=MW_article_top_stories

Just got that in my In Box.    

[Mark C.]

Well after opening my 43 annual xmas booth this year during a huge storm I as of now am thinking this is my last xmas doing it. The money is great but I'm at a point where I want to feel what  a normal xmas is with only supplying my 7-8 outlets at Xmas and not selling my own work at my booth. I have done this booth every year straight since 1979. I think I'm getting to the point where the time is what I want back.

I have had great sales help but that is getting tougher and this year is the last for my crew (they are my age as well). I was wresting the doors closed thought hey this would be great not to doing this anymore. My plan was to slow it down at 70 and thats in March, really for me its xmas day as thats when all the demand slows again. I told my partner and she was happy to hear that maybe next year no more xmas booth .Only a  fire left to do as I;m done throwing for the year and just need a huge claen up fire. I close the booth for 3 days starting Monday to do just that.

 

Edited December 10, 2022 by Mark C.

[Callie Beller Diesel]

17 hours ago, DirtRoads said:

basically my only hobby now is playing MMO's)

Okay, I know this is off topic, but I gotta know which one(s). I did not have you pegged for a gamer!

In the name of not derailing the thread entirely, I am also noticing sales returning to more normal levels this season. I think everyone’s feeling the interest rate increases, as well as the increases in all manner of goods across the board, and it’s making them choose luxury goods/gifts more carefully. The things I noticed were selling the most were all gifts under 50, and I went through an unusual number of ornaments and small dishies this year. 

I just finished my largest show of the year, and the general consensus among the vendors was that the landscape is changing after the last 2 years. A lot of people had to spend the money that they’d set aside for show fees on daily living expenses, so they had to choose the shows they started up doing again with more care. There were a lot of folks that went over pre-pandemic numbers to see which shows were actually profitable, and which ones they’d been doing just because they were looking at gross take, not net. I know a few potters that after doing the math, and decided it was more profitable to take on shipping work. Usually those folks had some solid digital marketing assets and practices in place, so it’s not a solution that works for everyone. But it’s something to consider.

The ones that did this noted that you can charge for shipping on each item, and you don’t incur the shipping cost (except for bulk purchasing packing materials) until the item sells. With shows, you incur the cost of doing the show regardless of how much stock you sell. So that means if you’re trying to incorporate all your business costs into your COGS pricing, show expenses wind up being a variable rather than fixed percentage of the cost. If you’re selling a large volume of work, that percentage is more easily absorbed, but if you’re not producing at that volume for a wide variety of reasons, it’s something to be aware of when you’re compiling data.

 

 

[Roberta12]

@Callie Beller Diesel my sales at my big show were about the same as last year.  However, I made a conscious decision to make more small items.  That worked for me.  Lot of ornaments and small dishes and small cups were sold.  A few larger pieces but not very many.  Our community is being faced with the closing of some large enterprises and groceries have doubled in cost.  My heart goes out to younger families with kids.  There is still the push to buy local and for many, the desire to purchase handcrafted.  Just a lower price point.  As one of the organizers of the local market, I will be able to see sales numbers in about a month as the sales taxes roll in.  I will be able to do more comparison then.

r.

[Juxtaposie Jen]

While new to pottery - I’ve been around the block a few times when it comes to self employment.  (My handy hubs has been self employed most of our married life) 

I’m convinced you can make a living at almost anything.  But you may not actually want the kind of life that will require. 

Finding that sweet spot of profit/lifestyle balance is not easy  

This next part is going to sound harsh - but people who are asking that question - are rarely in the right place to do it.  That is usually people who have fallen deeply in love with something and want to find a way to do it full time.  (Something I completely understand) 

But making a living means you will spend a lot of time NOT doing the part you love.    

If you’re running a creative business is a very different animal than making full time.   Your making time is then at least partially dictated by what will sell.  You have to decide if that makes sense for you and is the life you want.  To jump in full time would require a substantial financial investment.  That’s overhead you will be spending hours to pay for when you may not have your product and niche figured out yet.

The barrier to entry as a side gig is much lower.   It gives you time to grow  and refine. There’s a reason a lot of successful potters start there.   After spending some time doing that - you will know what questions to really ask to determine if it’s a viable business opportunity for the life you want.

I am super blessed to be employed at a job that I enjoy, pays me well, and I am good at.  I let that job finance my creative endeavors.  Sometimes we forget that we don’t HAVE to monetize our creativity. 
 

Many blessings to you as you find your sweet spot. 

[Mark C.]

So my big tip is what Roberta already said-when things get tight (recession -slow down -inflation) make smaller things. I have done this for over 4 decades and it always works.

I usually make more money in the slow times just by switching to smaller forms and lots of them.

as to Jens comment 

(But making a living means you will spend a lot of time NOT doing the part you love.)

Thats just a potters life and its all poart of the lifestyle-I'm not keen on all the bookkeeping but its part of the bigger picture which is the part I like. You cannot always just eat the frosting.

I feel your statement is what separates hobbyist from Professionals . I got over the parts I did not like in the 70s. This will be my last year of selling over 100k in ceramics and I can tell you there are parts I do not like but they get done just as well as the parts I do like.

Jen is spot on about slowly getting into it-the long haul while doing other things is the best way to ease into a potters life. Working side jobs while making is a good idea.

For me I never once had the thought I would be a full time potter as a job its was organic over time-it was more about passion than work and its just became my life without much thought-that was in the late 70s.

[Callie Beller Diesel]

As far as doing the parts you don’t love goes: just because you don’t like doing a given task as much as you like throwing, doesn’t mean you won’t like that task at all. I find I like doing check ins on my finances to see how they’re going. I farm out the accounting, but do my own book keeping because I like seeing where I’m at. There are some tasks that you might dislike doing as part of a more mainstream job, but suddenly become a lot more interesting because you’re doing them for yourself.

[Hulk]

Getting better at somewhat unliked can help, also streamlining/improving the process, and/or the state of the unliked thing can help.

For example, I'd grown to tolerate glazing, now I look forward to it - my skill having improved some, and the results as well.

Another example, keeping a clean and organized (well, relatively) space is easier than facing a mess!

Edited December 14, 2022 by Hulk
verb corrected

[Mark C.]

Hulk Glazing is one of my favorite parts (its never been throwing as most like)

I also love glaze making and testing-seeing the tests(usually a bust)

The firing (with gas) is the next favorite.

[DirtRoads]

On 12/10/2022 at 11:47 AM, Callie Beller Diesel said:

Okay, I know this is off topic, but I gotta know which one(s). I did not have you pegged for a gamer!

 

 

Runescape  from day 1 launch lvl 126 for 4 years until they changed game

World of Warcraft TBC to CATA.   Came back for Vanilla Classic.   Playing WOTLK Classic now (3 accounts .... omg what is wrong with me, but you can buy lvl 70 boosts now lol)

Elder Scrolls Online -  Off & On since Beta.   I have 7 end game characters in that game.   I always go back to that game.

I didn't watch TV for like 20 years and played games instead.    I have a timer and it goes off after 6 hours of playing.   Usually, I log off at 2 or 3 hours now days .. voluntarily. 

[Callie Beller Diesel]

@DirtRoadsyour WoW habits mirror my husband’s. I was just in it for the Chuck Norris jokes in the Horde chats. 

[shawnhar]

On 11/21/2022 at 2:46 PM, marco said:

Hi there!
I love doing ceramics because it reminds me of sculpture I've done for art. Do you guys think is it possible to make a living? What do we need in order to do it??

You need skill, drive, passion and discipline, and the ability to market yourself.

 

I have a friend that has been making a living playing guitar for decades, but he plays the songs the crowd wants to hear, not his favorite music.

I would have never imagined I would be making so many damn spoon rests. I thought I would be selling vases, lol.

[oldlady]

shawnhar, spoon rests are a good thing to sell, they are not expensive and people using dishwashers need more than one.   but, i do remember two men who were looking at a small tray about 6x10 and they planned to use it as a single spoon rest to hold 3 spoons at a time.   kaching!

[Mark C.]

Vases are a slow sellers for me except at holiday times  like this week and Valentine's Day and Mothers day

You need to know not only what sells  best but When it sells best to take advantage of the market.

Keep making spoon rests -I can do 48 in about 40-45 minutes  (one pug cut into 48 pieces) No trimmers

they are recession proof

after 25 years I just raised my price on them last year

Gas is up 60-70+ percent last bill (todays bill came and it was $1,313)  for  big kiln and 4 small kiln glaze fires.

Edited December 25, 2022 by Mark C.