“cosmic wall platters” - joel cherrico pottery · 2019. 2. 22. · cherrico pottery is ready to...

2/22/2019 Cosmic Wall Platters: A Growth Plan for making art that gives people incredible value in their daily lives - Google Docs

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OJ-wnjy6E1WyZ5AT1gV-63LXxCfGpkFYpcOcu4ON9Hc/edit 1/31

“Cosmic Wall Platters”

A growth plan for making art that gives people incredible value in their daily lives

By Joel Cherrico

Digital copy with clickable links: cherricopottery.com/briefcase



~ Contents ~

Introduction * 2-5

Part 1: The Problem with Cheap Mugs * 6-9

Part 2:

Action Plans Drafts * 10-11

Part 3: Marketing Platform *12-13

Appendix * 14-30

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~ Introduction ~ “Watch the stars in their courses and imagine yourself running alongside them. Think constantly on the changes of the elements into each other, for such thoughts wash away the dust of earthly life.” - Marcus Aurelius Our goal is to craft world-class ceramic art that hangs on the walls of peoples’ homes: to make art that gives them a “Wow Factor” they feel in their gut. It needs to give people an awesome, daily reminder of how stoic ideas create remarkable value in their own lives. Requirements:

● Cherrico Pottery Wall Platters inspired by dailystoic.com ideas and quotes, that can sell online and ship anywhere globally.

● Embracing limited quantity and high value as an opportunity to grow with honesty,

discipline and generosity.

● Discounts and gifts for early adopters. Get platters to people who this art truly serves, and who have their own platforms that serve others with their ideas.

● Long-term strategy for sustainable art making by Cherrico Pottery, while creating value for

Daily Stoic and it’s followers.

● Preserve the core: continually make these platters, and other pottery and sculpture, working full-time as ceramic pottery artists for decades to come.

● Stimulate progress: use online tools and generous gifts to find innovative ways for this art to enter the world.

● Long-term strategy for creating wealth for art collectors. Do everything within our abilities

to set art collectors up for success: so they can eventually re-sell platters for $50,000+ each at auction at Sotheby’s or Christie’s auction houses.

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Why make handmade pottery? A goal for most working artists is obtaining the ability to find a home for every piece of art they make. But living as a full-time artist is extremely rare in modern society. Artists need more models of how their art can enter the world sustainably. Cherrico Pottery has proved that this is entirely possible. Founded in 2010, Cherrico Pottery, LLC has 8 years of sustainable proof of how embracing technology can help artists thrive. I believe that there is magic in waking up every day and making art for people. Somewhere between 20,000 and 30,000 pieces of our handmade pottery are out in the world right now. Long-term focus has proved that this handmade pottery is helping people in some way. 2017 generated $193k in gross sales from 2,689 pieces of Cherrico Pottery. 2018 generated $237k in gross sales from about 2,846 pots, shipped to 16 countries so far through our websites: cherricopottery.com and cosmicmugs.com, operated by myself, my fiance and a small team of student workers. I believe pottery can serve people globally at both lower and higher levels, and Cherrico Pottery is perfectly positioned to do that long-term:

● At lower levels, we can continue publishing across our diverse online platform to share lots of free content: secrets and keys to what it takes to live as artists full-time. We’ll share insights in writing, photos and videos, detailed in “Part 3: Marketing Platform”

● At higher levels, we can craft a diverse body of world-class art for wealthy patrons: mugs,

bowls, vases, wall platters and more. We ship them to people globally, detailed in “Part 2: Action Plan Drafts”

What We Need: Media and Marketing We need an authentic sense of quality and prestige to be obviously embodied in all parts of the art. Our goal is that the newest art is always the best art yet, and that it always finds a home. I believe the art is ready, but Cherrico Pottery is not. We need help with media and marketing. We need help learning how to serve wealthy patrons.

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What does this have to do with Stoicism? Even in modern society, with all of our advanced technology, crafting art with our hands is more important than ever. It connects us deeply to what it means to be human. Just like stoicism, ceramic pottery is as old as civilization.. This ancient art has always communicated to people deeply. Art has always helped people create meaning in their own lives. Seneca and Marcus Aurelius felt called to service at the highest levels in society. Wealth was never their main driving forces, but it was a necessary part of how they were able to serve people, and what was required in order to do their work. Epictetus lived a life of modest simplicity, and his lessons are equally as valuable for informing our artistic path long-term: doing whatever it takes to live as artists, first and foremost. The key is authenticity. Art is about the search for truth, just like stoicism.

Much of the Art Market is Disgusting Art becomes more valuable when artists die. Rich people use art as trading cards of wealth, just like stocks and bonds. Galleries buy work from their own artists, only to prop up prices. Auction houses pretend that the best artists are the most valuable artists. Rich collectors want more, more, more and shamelessly buy art just because their neighbors have it. Today’s art market pretends that the best art is the most expensive art. Museums give everyone access to society’s best art, but show only a tiny selection of what exists. They are gatekeepers to prestige and perception, yet overflowing with work of famous artists. We will see all of these problems as opportunities. We will also focus on only what we can control: pricing art appropriately, and selling it as low as necessary to enter the world right now, and generating enough money to make more. We will serve people who truly enjoy this type of art, regardless of art market values. We will take steps to explore success in the art market with necessary career charisma, but reject more than is necessary. We will maintain a healthy contempt for this game and always focus on the hosest creation of art.

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Why High Prices are Necessary

March 2nd, 1914 the Hotel Drouot in Paris hosted an auction of contemporary art. It was organized by a group of collectors, selling artwork they had amassed over the past 10 years. One of these works was, “Saltimbanques” by Pablo Picasso, which had sold for 1,000 francs in 1908. At the auction, German collector Heinrich Thannhauser purchased the painting for 11,500 francs, a huge sum at the time. As author Arianna Huffington wrote in her 1988 book on Picasso’s life and work, “Picasso’s genius had become legal tender. It was an apotheosis and validation of everything he was doing...There followed a flurry of analyses of what it all meant.” (page 130) Cherrico Pottery is ready to produce art that serves this world of collectors, galleries, business people, auction houses, media and the greater mass of people watching. We can do this while spending decades making art, in rural Minnesota, on our own terms. We are ready for occasional trips to media hubs like Los Angeles or New York City for exhibitions and media, but living away from media centers keeps us healthy, working artists. Auction house resale value is an important part of how this art creates value for other people. Only certain, notable art needs to go to auction: large jars, sculpture and platters. But auction house resale will infuse the prestige necessary for all other Cherrico Pottery to enter the world with consistent, enduring sales for decades to come.

Long-term Art Making “The person who does wrong, does wrong to themselves. The unjust person is unjust to themselves.“ – Marcus Aurelius Pottery making is hard on the potter’s body. Long-term sustainability requires making fewer pieces of pottery, and selling them for higher prices. This is a healthy, natural part of what is required to live as a full-time potter. Cherrico Pottery plans to continue operating from rural Minnesota and build our long-term pottery studio. We can do this while crafting and shipping less than 2,000 pieces of art per year and keeping average prices below $500 per piece of pottery/sculpture. That keeps us healthy, working artists, regardless of price inflation from auction resale value. It also lets people globally connect with the art honestly, by consistently sharing our process through our diversified online platform.

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~ Part 1: The Problem with Cheap Mugs ~ Shoji Hamada moved to the country town of Mashiko, Japan in 1930. He had a radical idea: refurbish old, traditional farm houses into pottery studios. Spend everyday making pottery by hand, in quantity. Use simple, beautiful designs from simple materials. Make the pottery functional in everyday life, enriching people’s lives with beauty. Hamada’s long-term vision proved true. In 1940, English potter Bernard Leach featured Hamada in his book, “A Potter’s Book” and they toured the world, giving pottery workshops globally. Hamada was designated a “Living National Treasure” in 1955 by the Japanese government, akin to our “Medal of Freedom” that Obama gave to Bob Dylan in 2012. In 2015, I sat to have tea with his grandson Tomo Hamada at the Hamada Museum in Mashiko, after purchasing three small dishes for about $10 each. The experience was beautiful. Two days later, I traveled to the rural town of Shigaraki, Japan. Potter Shiho Kanzaki welcomed friends and me into his studio, after picking us up from the train station. He spoke english well, served us espresso and told us stories from decades ago. Shiho San (Mr. Shiho, as he liked to be called) exhibited bowls in the most prestigious galleries atop Tokyo Skyscrapers. Over the years, demand for his unique pottery bowls soared. He chuckled about ripping up his existing gallery contracts, only to exhibit in even taller, more prestigious skyscrapers. I tried to buy his smallest cup: a “guinomi” about the size of a shot glass, and no bigger than the $10 dishes I had purchased from Tomo Hamada. “Shiho San, I would love to buy a pot. I have 5000 yen (about $50) in my pocket. Can I please buy one?” “No, Joe San. Little cup, $400! Ha ha ha! Go look in gallery.” His showroom had a red carpeted floor and a 5 foot tall buddhist statue on one end. I held a $3,500 bowl that fit comfortably in one hand. I touched a $25,000 vase. The point of this story is that I walked away completely satisfied in both cases. Both experiences were important because they were authentic.

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The Quality Problem

After graduating college with a degree in Art, Samuel Johnson walked into “Grey Fox Pottery” looking for a job. They were hiring potters at minimum wage, basically anyone who could work quickly with their hands. One potter made 300 mugs per day. Another pulled 300 handles. Another made 300 stamps. Another rushed mugs in and out of the kiln, hustling for the 15,000 mug order they needed to fulfill: beer mugs for this year’s Minnesota Renaissance Festival. Sam picked up one of the pots, put it down and walked out, disgusted. The job felt like pumping out soulless shit all day, everyday. A week later, he visited the St. John’s Pottery: a studio founded by Richard Bresnahan, who apprenticed in Karatsu, Japan for four years. Bresnahan brought 13 generations of pottery tradition to rural Minnesota. Sam picked up the pots, and immediately felt something deep in his gut. The way they felt in his hand. The carvings on the bottom. The marks from the potter’s fingers. The dry, colorful surface looked like the pot had been literally covered in fire. That experience changed his life forever. Sam dedicated four years of his life to his own apprenticeship at the St. John’s Pottery, without pay, often working 80 hours per week. Years later, Sam Johnson returned to St. John’s University, hired as the Ceramics Professor. I had just finished reading, “Body of Clay, Soul of Fire: Richard Bresnahan and the St. John’s Pottery” and that book was a key reason I decided to enroll at the University. Sam gave me a nearly identical pottery apprenticeship experience. He was my mentor for four years spent studying pottery at college, and the reason Cherrico Pottery exists. The point of this story is that even a small cup can change the course of your life, and the lives of the people around you. It can be as powerful as a “Quake Book.” The objects we surround ourselves with matter.

Cheap Mugs for the Masses

We could sell lower priced mugs, but we probably shouldn’t. Appendix #1 shows our research for sourcing 5,000 mugs minimum before 2020. Cherrico Pottery could buy from small pottery companies in the United States, and resell the mugs to Daily Stoic customers.

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The problem is that as price drops, so does quality. Clay is a brutally honest material. Pottery shows every touch of the hand. As you make more pots, the hand gets removed and machines take over. There MIGHT be an opportunity to craft a simple design, with one color, and source from multiple small pottery companies. But artist quality will suffer and could hurt our brand. These mugs are still handmade, but the identity of each hand is lost. They feel kind of soulless. Sourcing above 5,000 mugs per company might not be possible. Most US companies can’t handle that high of a quantity. We could order 10,000 mugs in a couple months from a Chinese company, but they would not be handmade and that would be obvious. We could do this through Vistaprint quickly, but it would be extremely difficult for it not to feel cheap. We might be able to design something though... Maybe we could collaborate on a mass-produced, non-handmade mug made in China with quantities that can scale. But why would we spend time dealing with Chinese suppliers, when we can instead spend time writing and making art? Handmade ceramics cannot be scaled as easily as posters or coins. It requires more of the hand and body. It would be a battle with suppliers, to spend time trying to design a handcrafted mug that is not meant to scale. It goes against so much of what it means to make ceramics by hand. They shouldn’t scale. That’s exactly why they’re special.

How should we move forward?

In 2006, I graduated high school after making about 100 pieces of pottery. I gave away every pot for free at my graduation party, but a friend’s mom wanted to buy some. It was a set of four coffee mugs, matching in size and shape, and she couldn’t believe I was giving them up for free. I thought they were terrible, so I refused any money. But she love them, and that was the first time I thought about selling coffee mugs. The next year, I decided to devote my life to becoming a potter. I’ve been thinking about selling coffee mugs nonstop for 12 years. No matter how many thousands of scenarios I’ve worked on, the same conclusion always shows up:

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As you lower price and increase quantity, you reduce quality and artistry. The lower you push cost and prices, you only get further from artistry and quality. Financials don’t seem that attractive either. Why would we spend time dealing with new operations, logistics, sourcing, quality and everything required to bring our time on bringing more low-quality products into the world, when we could make art instead? I recommend focusing on our artistic path first, and then writing about it.

Ryan Holiday’s Ideas for a Daily Stoic Mug

Ryan Holiday has ideas for a mug collaboration with Cherrico Pottery and we we should still do work on evaluating his specific ideas. But we need to answer a few important questions:

1) Why should we spend time bringing these mugs into the world, instead of making art and writing about it?

2) Do mugs need to be handmade by potters? If so, what is the maximum quantity annually?

10,000 mugs is probably too high.

3) We could have mugs made in factories in China, where we could have unlimited quantity and low price. Why would it be a good idea long-term?

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~ Part 2: Action Plan Drafts ~

Here are 3 possible action plans. This is where we need the most help. I apologize that these plans are speculative, short and unfinished. All have pros and cons. But we are ready to adjust and take action on every plan here, and to add more plan drafts. They’re ranked from 1 to 3, from what I think is best to worst. Our goal was to recommend what is best for these people:

● Customers who buy “Cosmic Wall Platters” ● Owners who receive them as gifts ● Customers who buy other Daily Stoic products or Cherrico Pottery ● Fans who only ever see the art online, in media, in museums, etc.

#1: Gift Five “Cosmic Wall Platters” to people to spur sales Gift five “Cosmic Wall Platters” to five different influencers who would genuinely enjoy living with this art. Ask them to write/talk about the art to their platform’s fans. Requirements:

● Cherrico Pottery will start by completing 10 unique “Cosmic Wall Platters” which would require about 2-3 months production time.

● Cherrico Pottery will gift one platter to Neil deGrasse Tyson at StarTalk Radio and ask him

to write/talk about it. We’re currently in contact with his assistants and support his Patreon at $500/month, which includes a once per year visit with Neil, where we could talk in person in NYC.

● Cherrico Pottery will hire Brass Check to help us connect with 3 more celebrity influencers

who would genuinely enjoy getting a platter as a gift. Recommendations: Tim Ferriss, James Altucher, Robert Greene, Peter Thiel, Arianna Huffington or Jeff Bezos (see Appendix 7).

● Cherrico Pottery will list 5 more platters for sale on amazon.com/handmade/Cherrico-Pottery, which was curated by the American Craft Council (See our relationship with Amazon and American Craft Council, Appendix #6-7)

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● Daily Stoic will invite authors to write about their experience living with the platters, and

facilitate all other media required for us to sell 5 more platters using Amazon Affiliate Links, so Daily Stoic profits from a portion of the sales.

#2: Find an investor for our “Nuka Iron Jar” in Appendix #3 Find an investor for our “Nuka Iron Jar” who is truly excited about the art. Figure out how to bring this jar to auction at Sotheby’s or Christie’s for 10x or 100x resale.

● We believe this piece of art might be more aesthetically powerful than any other piece of art

we have made yet.

● Cherrico Pottery will hire Brass Check to help us connect with an investor, then create whatever buzz is required for us to raise notable popularity around this jar.

● We will do whatever is required for the investor to be able to take the jar to Sotheby’s

Auction and create “Auction Magic” described in Appendix #4 for the investor’s sale of the jar.

#3) Re-apply to Shark Tank In 2014, we applied to the TV Show “Shark Tank.” We asked fans on our email list (only around 400 people at the time) to write us letters of support and email them directly to [email protected]. Over 150 people emailed Shark Tank in support of us going. June 2016, Shark Tank emailed us requesting we apply to their 2nd round application. You can review the full application I sent them upon request, but this is the important takeaway: Shark Tank is not aware of our 2017 or 2018 annual sales figures, which are higher than all other years combined. Those figures make us more qualified than ever to apply to Shark Tank. We are ready to hire Brass Check to help guarantee we get accepted, and craft the best deal long-term.

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~ Part 3: Marketing Platform ~ Cherricopottery.com was started in 2008, halfway through my college “pottery apprenticeship.” Since then, we have sustained and grown a community of people reading, watching and participating in our art from all over the world. Cherrico Pottery Social Media Platform:

● 40k email subscribers: cherricopottery.com/newsletter

● 300 Patreon subscribers pay $5+/month each: patreon.com/cherricopottery

● 203k Facebook followers: facebook.com/cherricopottery

● 29k Instagram followers: instagram.com/cherricopottery/

● 10k Youtube followers: youtube.com/joelcherrico

● 6k Twitter followers: twitter.com/cherricopottery

The most notable part of this platform is that our Facebook Live videos have been watched by 10s of millions of people since 2017, becoming a sort of “Pottery TV Show” that about 100k people per month consistently watch. This technology is a key reason for our higher 2017 and 2018 online pottery sales. The American Craft Council also established a relationship with Cherrico Pottery over the past few years, in the following publications and projects:

● “A Potter’s Journey” 8 part blog series about crafting a pottery career: ○ Part 1: The Beginning

○ Part 2: Art Experiences Outside The College Classroom

○ Part 3: Conquering Art Major Anxiety

○ Part 4: Writing A Business Plan

○ Part 5: Launching A Pottery Business Venture and Fighting to Keep it Alive

○ Part 6: Growing A Profitable Pottery Business

○ Part 7: The Local Blend Business Partnership

○ Part 8: The Search For 1,000 True Fans

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https://www.cherricopottery.com/newsletter/

https://patreon.com/cherricopottery

https://www.facebook.com/cherricopottery

https://www.instagram.com/cherricopottery/

https://www.youtube.com/joelcherrico

http://twitter.com/cherricopottery

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-beginning

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-art-experiences-outside-college-classroom

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-conquering-art-major-anxiety

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-writing-business-plan

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-launching-pottery-business-venture-and-fighting-keep-it-alive

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-growing-profitable-pottery-business

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-local-blend-business-partnership

https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-search-1000-true-fans



● “Eat, Pay, Love: A Potter’s Business Mode” Interview:

https://craftcouncil.org/post/eat-pay-love-potters-business-model

● “On View at ACC: Joel Cherrico” Exhibition of jars and wall platters at the ACC

Headquarters in Minneapolis, MN, one hour south of the Cherrico Pottery studio:

https://craftcouncil.org/post/view-acc-joel-cherrico

● Emerging Pottery Business Awards sponsored by ACC: cherricopottery.com/awards

● “Amazon Handmade” brand partnership between American Craft Council and Amazon. We

are part of a curated selection of artists who exhibit at the ACC Shows, to exhibit and sell

art: https://craftcouncil.org/post/view-acc-joel-cherrico

○ Continued in Appendix #6-7

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https://craftcouncil.org/post/eat-pay-love-potters-business-model


https://www.cherricopottery.com/awards/


https://craftcouncil.org/post/potters-journey-search-1000-true-fans



~ Appendix #1-8 Research ~ This is a myriad of unfinished research. I apologize that it is scattered and unfinished. I tried to show only the most pertinent information, but more is available upon request. The purpose of this appendix is meant to give you deeper insights into every piece of evidence that Cherrico Pottery has assembled so far to support our Action Plans.

Appx. #1: Sourcing Mass Produced Mugs DEENAN POTTERY: 1-866-370-2561 - I called on February 19, 2019 and inquired about an order between 10,000 and 30,000 coffee mugs per year. Answers: - $200 setup cost - Average wholesale cost per custom mug: $13.50 for a single glaze, $15 for a marbled double glazed up. - Maximum quantity: they have done mug orders of 10,000 mugs in the same design. But orders take about six months to fulfill and only about 2000 mugs might be possible per order. - This customer service representative took down my name and number and is asking executives about growth for the possibilities of 20 to 30,000 mugs per year, but they are not confident this would be possible. More United States Handmade Mug Sources: http://greyfoxpottery.com/about-us/contact-us https://mtartspottery.com/ http://jjpotts.com/custom-handmade-mugs/mug-medallions/ https://www.shstoneware.com/ Machine-made mug designs: we recommend vistaprint.com, or Vistaprint Corporate for higher quantities. This is where we get all printed materials. Quality is inconsistent and occasionally sloppy. Customer service is great and they have replaced all flawed designs, but flaws are common. We have not ordered mugs but believe they could handle 20k+ quantity from overseas suppliers.

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http://greyfoxpottery.com/about-us/contact-us

https://mtartspottery.com/

http://jjpotts.com/custom-handmade-mugs/mug-medallions/

https://www.shstoneware.com/



Appx. #2: “Perennial Seller” by Ryan Holiday, Questions and Answers Questions from the text and answers by Joel Cherrico about “Cosmic Wall Platters” From page 48: Q: Who is this for? A: This is for wealthy people who love art, and who are curious about pottery, outer space and stoicism. Long-term, this art is meant to be sought after by museums, art auctions and private collectors. Q: What does this do? A: They make people say, “Wow…” especially from first impressions. This art must be gorgeous and mysterious. It makes people feel the importance of valuable art in their own lives with visceral, emotional reactions to aesthetics, and perhaps from price/value. They need to be veblen goods: valuable, rare and expensive. We need to be honest about the fact that it’s exactly what these platters are made for, and that’s okay. Q: Does it have a purpose? A: The purpose is to inspire people everyday with what is possible: a universe full of combinations of elements to create valuable art objects. Q: Does it add value to the world? A: Initially, people will get these valuable platters from aesthetics, and knowledge and believe that they are on the ground floor of something special. Q: How will it improve the lives of the people who buy it? A: They will enjoy the “Wow Factor” of owning world-class ceramic art that is beautiful in a truly innovative way, expressing a unique part of what it means to be human. People have been making pottery since the dawn of civilization, and they are participating in that deep human history in a beautiful way. They also get insider knowledge: they are on the ground floor of something special. Art regularly sells at auction for $1M+ from living artists, and occasionally $100M from dead artist. I believe that this art will join the ranks of that work in the future. Customers might not believe that, but they have no downside to being curious about it, for a piece of art that they already like. Page 51: Q: What are these people going to be paying for?

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A: Initial sale of the art comes from Cherrico Pottery wall platters are meant to be gorgeous, valuable and appreciate over time with the livelong dedication of artist Joel Cherrico. His lifelong dedication to his craft adds value to each piece of art over time. Joel is dedicated to exhibiting his art at the highest levels in the coming decades: exhibitions at the Guggenheim, Whitney, MET and Museum of Modern Art in New York City. He aspires to have art in the permanent collections at the American Museum of Art in Washington DC. Celebrities like Neil deGrasse Tyson own his work. Joel has a Guinness World Records title. People are paying for the fact that this art is gorgeous and they are getting a great deal on something that might be more valuable in the future, but that they love and are happy to live with right now, for many years, even if the value goes down. Page 54: Q: What sacred cows am I slaying? A: Cherrico Pottery proves that artists can live and work honestly in society, and that they can work to grow in prosperity with art that they truly believe in. It’s not about being a prostitute. You don’t have to be shameless your art to sell your art. You can sell things that you pour your heart and soul into, that are deeply beautiful, that you truly believe in, and that can be both expensive and undervalued. Q: What dominant institution am I displacing? A: We are completely bypassing galleries, art show applications, teaching jobs, university professors who have no idea how to price art in order to keep making it it sustainability without their teaching salaries. We are creating truly innovative ways to serve people with art by getting it directly to them, and taking full control of our own story through building our own platforms. Q: What groups am I disrupting? A: Machine-made objects surround us daily. Pottery speaks deeply to the human experience. Painters and sculptors are valued most in contemporary art. Pottery can disrupt this world. Q: What people am I pissing off? A: People who don’t understand the fact that pottery is an integral part of what it means to be human. Artists who believe that pottery should be cheap. University professors who sell their own work for far less because they ignore what was required for sale prices that allow artists to work on art full-time without salaries. Our art will be expensive and sought after, and early adopters will love it and be our advocates, especially since they got discounts for believing in us. Auction houses and current artists selling at auction houses will be pissed off because there is currently no precedent of potters achieving high sales.

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Appx. #3: “Nuka Iron Jar” One of numerous jars from https://store.cherricopottery.com/big-pots https://store.cherricopottery.com/nuka-iron-jar-roughly-3-feet-tall-by-20-inches-wide-nfs/

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https://store.cherricopottery.com/big-pots

https://store.cherricopottery.com/nuka-iron-jar-roughly-3-feet-tall-by-20-inches-wide-nfs/



Appx. #4: Sotheby’s “The Value of Art” YouTube Series Notes The Value of Art | Episode 1: Authenticity https://youtu.be/_dxr9r0stiU

● “Connoisseurship: expert knowledge or training, especially in the fine arts.” ● “Chinese connoisseurs have a saying...you open the door and you see the mountain right in

front of you. That visceral feeling, obvious feeling of authenticity.” The Value of Art | Episode 2: Condition https://youtu.be/1Q0RjnWyYiw

● “Condition impacts value tremendously. An extreme example is the Great Gatsby. A pristine copy in a pristine jacket might easily sell for $400,000. Take that jacket off, crumple it up and throw it away, and a still pristine book is worth maybe $10-12,000.” - Selby Kiffer, International Senior Book Specialist

The Value of Art | Episode 3: Rarity https://youtu.be/ToVLBinVnR4

● “Rarity only becomes a factor when there is desirability.” ● “The art market, at its core, is a classic sort of supply and demand business.” ● “You want what’s called auction magic. Bidders on the phones, from across the room, vying

for this spectacular, rare piece of art.” - Meredith Kirk, Specialist, Contemporary Art, New York

The Value of Art | Episode 4: Provenance https://youtu.be/K56EhgfCDjs

● “Provenance is the history of ownership for a work...my favorite part...whose walls has it been hanging on?”

● “This is what we live for: to get the great stories to tell.” ● “Often the story of it’s ownership can be just as interesting, if not more interesting, than the

story of the artist.” ● “The Rockefeller Rothko…”

The Value of Art | Episode 5: Historical Importance https://youtu.be/LRenlUbdgpI

● “Everything is a time capsule.” - Julian Dawes, CO- Head of Day Sale, Impressionist and Modern Art, New York

The Value of Art | Episode 6: Size https://youtu.be/hd9cMsdwnxE

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https://youtu.be/_dxr9r0stiU

https://youtu.be/1Q0RjnWyYiw

https://youtu.be/ToVLBinVnR4

https://youtu.be/K56EhgfCDjs

https://youtu.be/LRenlUbdgpI

https://youtu.be/hd9cMsdwnxE



● “Roughly over 84 inches can be prohibitive...Park Avenue Size.” ● “Once you go monumental, you actually go backwards on our numbers” - less value for

larger works. Small works can be more desirable. The Value of Art | Episode 7: Fashion https://youtu.be/KrcamXKoPnE

● “Right now...Right now...Right now.” ● “The auction world looks at exhibitions…therefore we’ve seen a larger demand…” ● “She had a show at the Guggenheim and now she is considered one of the grade dames of

the South Asian art world.” The Value of Art | Episode 8: Subject Matter https://youtu.be/n4PlKauag1M

● “Something with the color red in it historically sells better” ● Challenging, not beautiful... can be more valuable

The Value of Art | Episode 9: Medium https://youtu.be/mvI9vBEQfgU

● “There tends to be an unwritten hierarchy…oil on canvas is at the top.” ● “The definition of what can be art has kind of exploded.”

The Value of Art | Episode 10: Quality https://youtu.be/_WDZ4Hmiy9w

● “Craftsmanship to quality is as close as you get to beauty.” ● “It might be something really simple, just one line” ● “It’s that magical element.” ● “When you see a work

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https://youtu.be/KrcamXKoPnE

https://youtu.be/n4PlKauag1M

https://youtu.be/mvI9vBEQfgU

https://youtu.be/_WDZ4Hmiy9w



Appx. #5: Selected Quotes and Research from, “The Price of Everything” HBO Documentary 2 minute trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iejpS_PpPJk “I always say to artists, “Don’t to be an artist unless you really really really really really have to.” - Jerry Saltz: http://nymag.com/author/jerry+saltz/ Collector of Jeff Koons: …”People said, “you’re crazy” when I bought this.”

- $900k initial price, appreciated to $65M and Koons is still alive. 16:04: “There are no rules about what is going to be good and what is going to be bad. Art doesn’t give a shit.” - Larry Poons 40:00 “There is a lot more money in selling something the second or third time than the first time. I sold my first Jeff Koons at $700 to the Rubells. ” - Mary Boone https://www.maryboonegallery.com/gallery Rubell Museum: https://rfc.museum/ 42:00 Jeffrey Deitch - art dealer, on artist Jeff Koons: “This natural American salesmanship infuses everything he does.” http://www.deitch.com/about/staff “It’s a completely sick, and perverse, and upside down art world. Who is the most undervalued painter?” - Barbara Rose, Art Historian What if that were replaced with something generous? What if that value could prove to lead to generosity, like giving money to donorschoose.org? Lobby Art: “a crime…” 51 Astor Place: “context is key: if you see it in a lobby it kind of disappears” “White heat” burns people out all the time: “would your paintings sell for $1m at auction? 108:00: The simple answer would be supply and demand. The real answer is, I think, I don’t know how to put this elegantly... financial interests of certain parties. There is an interest in keeping prices at certain levels. It’s part of the rules of the game.” - Serge Tiroche, Art Runners:

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iejpS_PpPJk

http://nymag.com/author/jerry+saltz/

https://www.maryboonegallery.com/gallery

https://rfc.museum/

http://www.deitch.com/about/staff



http://www.tirochedeleon.com/team/serge-tiroche/ 1:20:00 - “We’re starting to see artists who have very little depth of trading, very little traction, selling for enormous prices, if there is confidence in that artist’s work.” CNBC Live Interview “No collector wants to contribute to a crash and burn situation for that artist.” “When I’m thinking about success for me I’m thinking about the long-term….what matters in the long-term.” “Museums are the gatekeepers of cutlers to some sense. These are works that matter.” Njideka Akunyili Crosby www.njidekaakunyili.com

RELATED: Jason Silva: positively influence 1M people. Jason Silva: https://www.facebook.com/jasonlsilva/videos/1589016824695930/ The new Billionaire: “He or she who will reach out and say, ‘I will positively affect the lives of a billion people.’ - This should be our goal. This is our responsibility.”

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http://www.tirochedeleon.com/team/serge-tiroche/

http://www.njidekaakunyili.com/



https://www.facebook.com/jasonlsilva/videos/1589016824695930/



Appx. #6: Amazon Handmade and American Craft Council Brand Partnership The purpose of Appendix 6-7 is to show that Amazon has shown direct interest in investing in the future success of a limited, curated selection of a few American Craft Council artists. “Amazon Handmade” sent over 5 staffers to the American Craft Council St. Paul Show in 2018, flying them in from Costa Rica for the 4 day event. What follows is a series of emails between ACC staff, and more letters and pottery that I sent directly to Jeff Bezos and his executives. The email was from American Craft Council staffer about the Amazon Handmade brand partnership, 2019: “Greetings ACC artists,

Thanks for your patience while waiting for this long overdue note. What a winter it has been! We're

excited to share the results of the ACC/Amazon Maker Pop-Up pilot with you. As you know, our

collaboration with Amazon was intended to offer a curated selection of ACC show artists a new and

different channel (e-commerce) to promote and sell your work. The learning curve for both sides

was steep. In retrospect, having more time to plan and implement a project like this would be very

helpful. We all learned a lot about online retailing and each other, which will help inform how we

proceed moving forward.

Pilot Results (October 16, 2018 – December 31, 2018)

As a group, ACC artists performed well. As with all marketplaces, some of you did better than

others. You’ll find a comprehensive PR report attached, but here’s what the artists who performed

well had in common:

● Reviews : Many artists were existing Handmade Artisans prior to the ACC pilot, so they

had existing reviews and relevancy, making it easier for customers to find their products.

● Strong selection : They listed more than 10 ASINs.

● Investment in Amazon programs : They invested in their business on Handmade by

utilizing FBA (fulfillment by Amazon) and participated in the sponsored products

program.

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● Compelling price points : Those who had an average selling price of $50 to $75 fared

well.

● Self-promotion : They promoted their participation and the Handmade shop on social

media.

Next Steps

Moving forward, each artist will have a variety of options for how they’d like to participate with

Amazon Handmade. The options include everything from enhancing your ACC/Amazon Maker

Pop-Up store to opting out entirely. Amazon Handmade will keep the Maker Pop-Up shop live and

have an ingress to it on the Handmade homepage. Only artists that participated in the Maker Pop-Up

pilot and/or those who have been juried into one of our 2019 shows will have the opportunity to be

in the ACC/Amazon Maker Pop-Up. Amazon will also continue to include ACC artisans in

marketing content, including emails and social media. You’ll find a list of options attached.

ACC’s Role

ACC plans to continue working with Amazon Handmade to help market the Maker Pop-Up shop at

key times of year. One of those ways may be to help drive audience to our shows in each city.

Another possibility will be to shed light on artists that are both exhibiting at our shows and have a

shop in the Maker Pop-Up. What we will no longer be doing is serving as the mediator between

artists and Amazon Handmade. Given that e-commerce is not our core business, we believe a better

use of our time will be to continue to explore how ACC can provide more opportunities to connect

artists with enthusiasts and more broadly promote the value of truly handmade goods to new

audiences.

Thanks again for everything you’ve put into this venture.

All the Best,

-- Pamela Diamond Director of Marketing & Communications” ***PR attachment data was not included, but is available upon request.

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Appx #7: Letters to Jeff Bezos and staffers The following was a letter I sent to Amazon Executive Alice Powers. I emailed [email protected] and she responded on his behalf, giving me his mailing address. We mailed him one of our newest “Moon Mugs” from cosmicmugs.com/moon-mugs with this letter: “June 11th, 2018 Dear Amazon and Mr. Bezos, Thank you very much for your kind correspondence. I really appreciate it. Amazon Handmade attended the American Craft Council St. Paul Show this past April, where I was a vendor. Your staff were delightful. Thank you very much for giving us a weekend to explore growth. The purpose of this letter is to give Amazon Handmade ideas about growth. Online sales of my handmade pottery increased about 338% last year, from about $44,000 to over $193,000. June 15th, 2017 Jeff Bezos published a Twitter request for philanthropic ideas. He requested ideas for...

“...my philanthropic activity to be helping people in the here and now - short term - at the intersection of urgent need and lasting impact.”

Below is one idea that embodies this request. It is the culmination of craftsmanship, customer obsession, ownership, honesty, exploration, high standards, thinking big and a proven track record. Amazon Handmade staffers are currently helping our small company list over $100,000 of my handmade art for sale on Amazon. We are recreating art listings from our website (cherricopottery.com/big-pots) to this Amazon link: amazon.com/handmade/Cherrico-Pottery Historically, the world’s best artists were helped into public affection by patrons. Mr. Bezos could launch our art into the mainstream, only if it might be appropriate and worthy of this launch, while giving money to people in need. By purchasing 100% of the first batch pottery listed on Amazon Handmade, Mr. Bezos could make both the art and money available to the public.

● Cherrico Pottery LLC would donate pottery sales profit to a charity of Mr. Bezos’ choice. You can view our transparent, public donation record here: cherricopottery.com/donations

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mailto:[email protected]



● The story of this sale and donation could be worthy of publication in the Washington Post

and “Arts” sections of publications alike.

● Art from this sale could be saved together, as a body of artwork. Exhibition in a major museum, like the Museum of Modern Art or Guggenheim museum in New York City, would make the art publicly available.

Combining handmade art, philanthropy and sales will inspire more artists to find their own success on Amazon Handmade. The “Moon Mug” included with this letter is one example of my art. A team of workers and I (currently 5 of us total) consistently pack and ship these $495 retail price mugs and more, to our customers globally. Just last year, art like this fueled $193,535 in sales of 2689 pieces of pottery, from almost entirely organic traffic. Please do not feel pressured to reply to this letter if the plan is not appropriate. Amazon’s long-term vision and leadership principles are inspiring us to find success regardless. Jeff Bezos’ example of how to live a noble, ambitious life is incredibly motivating. Thanks so much for your continued inspiration. Gradatim Ferociter!

Joel Cherrico Cherrico Pottery LLC [email protected] Cell: 1-320-223-1326”

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The following was another letter I sent to [email protected], with an updated plan for ways that Cherrico Pottery could serve Amazon and Jeff Bezos as a possible art collector:

“Video Growth Plan for Amazon Written by Potter/Owner Joel Cherrico

9/19/2018 To Amazon staff: Thank you for bringing Amazon Handmade staff to the American Craft Council Show St. Paul, Minnesota, US this year. Cherrico Pottery also attended. We exhibited a selection of rare, valuable pottery that I created. We worked the show with 4 employees, and we broadcasted Live videos across our social media, which were watched by over 108,000 people in 2 days. Cherrico Pottery passed many milestones in August, 2018: about $142,610 in sales of handmade pottery since January 1st, showing consistency and growth from $193,525 in pottery sales in 2017. A growing portion of 2018 revenue is now coming from video subscribers too. How do Artists Prosper Online? Today, we serve customers with innovative, rare art that I create. Packing and shipping $165-$495 pottery mugs required creative solutions to operations, to guarantee that none break. We prospered by investing in hiring, logistics, gift wrapping every product, gorgeous brochures, and online tools, like a 37k+ person email list and 200k+ followers across diverse social media. Some of these metrics are ready to grow exponentially, and consistently, in the coming decades. Honest Price Elasticity As demand rises, customers have repeatedly asked us to raise prices, so they can get one or more of our notable “Cosmic Mugs” (cosmicmugs.com). Occasional discount sales and coupons give even more people excitement, when they can afford available art. Inherent rarity works to the advantage of the artist, but also the customers, who love participating in the artist’s success by owning or gifting a piece of rare, valuable art. Rarity and Long-term Value Appreciation It is likely that Picasso’s art will only appreciate in value. Honest value comes with honest fame. S hort-term profitability considerations will always be put behind aesthetics, but we can prove that artists can be honest, prosperous business people too. Artists can use money to fuel creation of ever more remarkable art with the, “Wow Factor” viewers can feel in their gut.

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The “Wow Factor” must come from the art, artist and artistic efforts. It might also come from remarkably high values ($100,000+ for a single piece of art) but this will never be our primary focus. It might be a side effect of our artistic and business efforts, but never the sole purpose. The Role of Video for Cultivating Prestige While museums, exhibitions and awards bring prestige (and should be part of our growth strategy) the purpose of this letter is explore how Cherrico Pottery can serve Amazon Prime Video customers, who can also purchase the finest Cherrico Pottery on the Amazon Prime marketplace. I believe our long-term goals can be achieved from serving customers through helping them connect via video. Links to Evidence of the “Wow Factor” Achieved in Video by Joel Cherrico Pottery

● https://www.facebook.com/cherricopottery/videos ○ Tens of millions of people have watched Joel Cherrico craft pottery, and hundreds of

thousands watch consistently. This has become a soft of “Pottery TV Show.” How can we emulate this with Amazon Studios staffers for Amazon Prime Video customers?

● https://www.facebook.com/GuinnessWorldRecords/videos/10154766038974032/ ○ Guinness World Records sent staffers to St. Joseph, Minnesota, US to film Joel

Cherrico Live, and over 300,000 people watched the interview. ● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvciVXijupc&t

○ 70k+ people watched this video on YouTube and over 400k on Facebook. This is just one example of public excitement we can grow, with appropriate videos.

● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYEAZAw6DwU ○ The national TV show “Shark Tank” invited Joel Cherrico to send them this video in

2016. That happened before our 340% sales growth in 2017. We hid this growth from Shark Tank. We believe there are more honorable paths to growth and fame than appearing on Shark Tank.

● https://www.facebook.com/expandconciousness/videos/1482823688426812/ ○ 2.1M people organically watched Joel make pottery Live in this guest feature.

● https://www.facebook.com/HigherPerspective/videos/1643290825703230/ ○ 1.7M people organically watched Joel make pottery Live in this guest feature.

● https://www.startalkradio.net/why-the-starry-night-is-universally-beautiful/ ○ Joel Cherrico was invited to write this blog post for StarTalk, and he is scheduled to

meet personally with Neil deGrasee Tyson in NYC September 4th, 2018. Film Studio Potential

● https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkDe9P-ATB0

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https://www.facebook.com/cherricopottery/videos

https://www.facebook.com/GuinnessWorldRecords/videos/10154766038974032/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvciVXijupc&t

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYEAZAw6DwU

https://www.facebook.com/expandconciousness/videos/1482823688426812/

https://www.facebook.com/HigherPerspective/videos/1643290825703230/

https://www.startalkradio.net/why-the-starry-night-is-universally-beautiful/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkDe9P-ATB0



○ The above link shows how we have invested in a local space to film consistent, high quality videos, either on a Live platform or pre-scripted. How can Amazon Studios staff help us use this space for videos worthy of Amazon Prime viewers for decades to come?

○ This video is a “TED Talk” draft (private, unlisted and not yet submitted to TED.com) but is one example of our plans to grow with mainstream prestige.

Amazon Marketplace Professional Services Growth Plan

We plan to complete The Amazon Marketplace Program to achieve the following:

● 50 sales minimum of our notable “Cosmic Mugs” sold Seller Fulfilled Prime on amazon.com/handmade/Cherrico-Pottery

● 90%+ five star ratings on our store ● Proper listings with discoverability and search terms ● Prime badges on our finest products ● Video on 3 products minimum, to begin developing the video story of our finest products

listed for sale, using high quality videos and stories about the art ● $100,000 worth of art minimum, listed with Prime badges

Path Ahead

This year marks the 8th anniversary of Cherrico Pottery, and our core values and focus remain. We continue aspiring to craft world-class pottery by hand, in ways that help people globally experience the “Wow Factor” and beauty inherent to handmade pottery.

We need a simple, beautiful television show broadcasted on Amazon Prime. We can create this in the Cherrico Pottery Film Studio. Two historical examples we can follow are “The Joy of Painting” and “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.” Both low-budget shows magically captured audiences globally. They entertained billions of people for decades, and are still enjoyed today.

What can we do to make this reality? Thanks so much for your kind correspondence.

Sincerely,

Joel Cherrico Cherrico Pottery, LLC”

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Appx. #8: Resume

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“cosmic wall platters” - joel cherrico pottery · 2019. 2. 22. · cherrico pottery is ready to...

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