Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Markus Flach | Episode 495
Markus Flach was born in Bamberg, Germany in 1979. He came in contact with pottery during a backpacking trip around the Dingle Island in Ireland in 2014 where his girlfriend paid for a 10 minute mini-pottery class. Markus really fell in love pretty much right away and a few weeks after returning home he bought a pottery wheel.
The following months he learned how to do pottery step by step almost entirely on his own. He purchased his first little electric kiln – then a raku kiln and started experimenting with the different styles of pottery.
Markus is a part-time potter and works at the Family Business (Paper Wholesale Company with 7 Employees) at the same time – giving him the freedom to really concentrate on the things he likes the most in pottery.
His focus is both on doing stoneware pottery and raku. Most of his works sell over the internet thanks to Instagram or facebook.
This year he made a raku film with a talented Filmmaker named Thomas Diroll. In Summer he became a Dad and is now proud father of his second son (first one with his divorced wife).
SPONSORS
Number 1 brand in America for a reason. Skutt.com
For all your ceramic needs go to Georgies.com
How important is the idea of giving yourself room enough for your business to be able to fly? In other words, how important is a runway for your business that you gave yourself that room?
Good Question. Firstly I would really make sure that your work is good enough for selling. And let’s assume that you are technically fine and that you can produce pots or whatever they are and they are kind of okayish to use. Then you really need some time to get your name out there, where ever this is, like an Etsy shop or if you go on markets then you need a market stand and you need some props so it is not totally boring. Then you need some research time for where are the markets. The markets, you have to book them in advance, several months or weeks before. I think if you are trying to sell locally, it is really important to get your name out and it will spread over time, more and more. On the internet it is a totally different game. You really need to know how to take good photos of your stuff. It really helps if you are familiar with the basics of photography. So I would really invest in that.
How did you go about validating that your work was good enough?
Gut feeling. I would say it is a total gut feeling. I self critique myself a lot. While this sounds a bit negative but what I do when I have a mug finished and it is glazed and everything, I take it in the hand and I am really thinking, if this were in a shop somewhere would I buy it. Would I like it or is there something about it that is irritating me? If I think it is really nice, then for me it is validation enough that it is good enough for selling.
How about the feedback from customers? Do you seek that out so you can understand how you can improve?
I haven’t sought it out yet, but funny thing is, most of the customers do give you feedback if they are really liking your stuff. For example, when you are shipping a package to someone they write you back with an email or a short message or something then you can kind of get feedback what they are saying about your work without asking.
How about validation from other potters, or peers you respect. Do you seek out the feedback of them?
That is a bit hard. Here in Germany we have kind of, two groups of potters. One group is the self-taught, Youtube, Instagrammy potters, and they kind of share their knowledge and thoughts amongst each other. Then there is the kind of old crew, which was trained by potters over years and years, and they think, in my opinion, I have to say, you can only call yourself a potter if you have really learned it as an apprentice and they are not so open with their feedback. You cannot ask them so much, they are a bit more to themselves. It seems, maybe I am wrong but this was the impression I got.
What is the most important tool you have used to get the word out to the rest of the world that you are open for business?
Depends on the platform. On Facebook you can really use the paid sponsoring ads because you can select which group you want to reach with your message. If you have pottery stuff it is wise to reach a certain age group with certain likes and you can pay Face book to do that. This was working out for me, really good. With Instagram it is taking good photos and always post stuff almost everyday. And the Instagram stories always post something and be present there and like other stuff and comment. When I did this people were interacting with me and then ordering stuff from me.
What is the most significant milestone you have had in your ceramic making so far?
The milestone for me personally was when a coffeehouse ordered some coffee bowls. For me it was a big amount of bowls, at this time, they ordered 35 in row. And this was the first time I was really feeling like a potter who was doing something important and something real. It was the next level from doing, like, I am making a mug here and a bowl there and somebody likes it and it is bought. To here is an order and you really have to fulfill the wishes from the customer. This was the milestone when I was first thinking about this is the thing now and this is what I really want.
Book
Contact:
Instagram: @markusflach