Did you listen to the podcast with Nawal Motawi from Motawi Tileworks? Nawal has a ceramic tile studio that employs 30 people. Her business wins awards for its culture and commitment to the local community. It even has a manifesto: for the workplace to be healthy, emotionally and physically while taking great craft and fun seriously.
Some highpoints of the podcast:
- She learned the craft side of the business at the art school at the University of Michigan and later at Pewabic Pottery in Detroit. She taught herself the business aspect by devouring INC magazine's articles and reading books recommended there. She also attended conferences where she could meet others in the business and network.
- Nawal's goal when starting the tileworks 20 years ago was figuring out how to make the kind of tile she wanted for her living, not just to survive but to thrive.
- The tileworks has five income streams: 1) the showroom at the factory; 2) a storefront in downtown Ann Arbor; 3) a wholesale gift business; 4) installation commissions and 5) e-commerce
3 business tips:
- make sure you price your work so you sell it for a price that is high enough to thrive.
- you need sheer persistence, pursue your goals unstintingly. Have a vision. If your customer doesn't want to buy what you are offering listen to them and change it so they will. You are a creative person and you can find a way do to it so that will work for you.
- be willing to change. Find a different outlet, another store, change the price, the color and don't neglect to get some help.
Inspirational reading: Small Giants: Companies that Choose to be Great Rather than Big, by Bo Burlingham
Listen to the rest of this talk with this very smart business person and see where it takes you: What to do with a BFA: How Nawal Motawi Created a Robust Ceramic Tile Studio
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