Tara and Michael on fri 3 jul 98
I am very interested in selling my pottery wholesale in Alaska. Please
help me by sending me names (addresses would be geat) of galleries or shops
that would be good for high quality functional pottery.
I wish I could up there for a information gathering tour but I cant!
Thank you so much for your help,
Michael Redwine
kathhill on sat 4 jul 98
The following are in Anchorage - Artique, Tundra Crafts, Decker Gallery.
I don't live in Anchorage & don't have a phone book from there.
Information should be able to help you. Good luck.
Kathy Hill
John H. Rodgers on sat 4 jul 98
-- [ From: John H. Rodgers * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --
Don't like being negative about this idea, but being a long time Alaskan,
and being into clay here, I can tell you it will be a tough go.
For a very long time there has been a growing movement called "Make It
Alaskan", and this has caught on. Tourism is a huge business in Alaska, and
people that come here to visit want to bring back a piece of Alaska....it's
just a natural part of the trip. They typically want to buy something
whether art, artifact, or craft, that is made here, by Alaska residents.
There is a lot of complaint about imported stuff, from the orient and the
lower 48 states. Not all but most shop owners I know are very sensitive to
this issue. Anything that is not created in Alaska is in direct competition
with Alaska's home community, which divides into Alaska Native and Non-
Native issues. There is even a state funded program that provides for
certification as "Made in Alaska" or "Handmade by Alaska Natives"...the
latter being the total of the indigenous peoples of Alaska. Once certified,
a craftsperson or artist is licensed to use the states copyrighted logo for
their particular category.
To find out more about it, do a web search for Made in Alaska.
As for pottery there there are quite a number of potters around, producing
just about everything you can think off. In planning a business strategy
here, one has to take a serious and in-depth look at the population and
market. The resident population is small...on the order of 600,000 people in
the entire state, and probably only so if you count the sled dogs out in the
bush villages. Approximately 300,000 of those live in the Greater Anchorage
area. The rest are scattered over the state. In summer, some where in the
state, 1.5 million tourist will visit. When the first termination dust falls
on the mountain peaks around Anchorage in late August, like the salmon,
they will be gone. So that leaves 600,000 residents to sell to.
Approximately 1/3 to 1/2 of those live in the bush.
So you really have to consider whether going to the expense and effort to
get into such a small market in such a distant place is really worth it.
Freight eats everyones lunch in Alaska. Freight on my clay costs more than
the clay itself. It really drives the cost of finished goods up, and on the
other side the keen competition keeps the selling prices down.
The clay folks in Alaska are a diverse bunch. And they are keenly aware that
diversity of product is the only thing that keeps them alive in such a small
population, and one more fish in the barrel will just make it that much
harder. So, as a result, sometimes you will encounter severe attitude when
"Outsiders" try to sell in a market where locals are already having a hard
time.
As for myself, I have been in the "Lower 48" attempting to find new business
for our Alaska Made products. Why? Simply the fact that the Alaska market is
so tiny, that it is hard to make a living based on the local population. I
have over the past few years done some heavy reading on marketing, and one
rule of thumb that continually pops up..........to sell something, you have
to go where the people are ( there's only 600,000 in Alaska, about 200
million in the rest of the country) and you have to sell to people that have
the money to buy your product.(Alaska's economy is weak because the oil
dried up and nothing else is happening to fuel the Alaska economy.)
One last thing on the negative side still....".Do Your Homework" on this. If
you don't undertake a serious market research effort you are going to waste
your money. It's o.k. to dream a little...we all need it. But, keep your
feet planted in reality.
Now, with all the negative stuff said, I encourage you to make a trip to
Alaska. It will be a journey you will never forget. Take a cruise, fly up
and rent a camper, or drive the Alaska Highway. To do the latter you need 10
days up and 10 days back and 10 days to visit. The Alaska Highway is now
paved all the way. You will encounter a few rough sections, but its nothing
like the 1400 miles of gravel road I experienced back in the Sixties when I
first came up....an experience I shall never forget....nor one I would trade
gold nuggets for either. The highway is not a super highway even now, but
more like a back county paved road. You know, tar with slag topping. It's
not to bad though. And it is even better when you are near a town.
When planning your journey, get a copy of "The Alaska Milepost" from your
local bookstore. It is the "Bible" of travel to Alaska.
Once in Alaska look around. In spite of my negative remarks, you still may
find a market niche that only you can fill. By going there you can learn
first hand what you need to do to make it work for you. My only
recommendation is keep your eyes wide open, and don't expect to much.
Luck
John Rodgers
30 years in Alaska
-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------
Date: Friday, 03-Jul-98 01:39 PM
From: Tara and Michael \ Internet: (tara_k@efn.org)
To: Multiple recipients of list CLAYART \ Internet: (clayart@lsv.uky.
edu)
Subject: ALASKA GALLERIES
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
I am very interested in selling my pottery wholesale in Alaska. Please help
me by sending me names (addresses would be geat) of galleries or shops that
would be good for high quality functional pottery.
I wish I could up there for a information gathering tour but I cant!
Thank you so much for your help, Michael Redwine
-------- REPLY, End of original message --------
Penny Hosler on sun 5 jul 98
Michael,
First, let me affirm everything John R said about the Alaska market. He's
right on the money. The only really lucrative market up there is the
tourists, and they're looking for something specifically "alaskan" - from
polar bears to Eskimo dolls. Princess Cruises supports several friends of
mine up there in the "crafts" industry. The tourists are fairly captive
audiences and do most of their shopping at the Princess gift shops/Princess
hotels, so major bucks are possible there. Westtours is also a good bet,
but again they're looking for the "made in Alaska" on the bottom of the
pieces.
I believe Princess and Westtours are based in Seattle.
If you're still interested, I brought a phone book down with me when I moved
to Wash last year:
Artique Ltd - 314 G Street - Anch - corporate art sales 907-277-0637
Decker/Morris Gallery - 621 W 6th Ave - Anch - 907-272-1489
Tundra Arts - 425 D St - Anch - 907-276-0190
Only 27 years in Alaska, and I do miss it...(the slugs are smaller)
Penny in WA
-----Original Message-----
From: Tara and Michael
To: Multiple recipients of list CLAYART
Date: Friday, July 03, 1998 10:40 AM
Subject: ALASKA GALLERIES
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
I am very interested in selling my pottery wholesale in Alaska. Please
help me by sending me names (addresses would be geat) of galleries or shops
that would be good for high quality functional pottery.
I wish I could up there for a information gathering tour but I cant!
Thank you so much for your help,
Michael Redwine
Kris Bliss on mon 6 jul 98
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>The following are in Anchorage - Artique, Tundra Crafts, Decker Gallery.
>I don't live in Anchorage & don't have a phone book from there.
>Information should be able to help you. Good luck.
>
>Kathy Hill
>
Artique is full as far as potters go..
Tundra Crafts is a co-op.
Decker Gallery hasn't dealt with clay in a long time.
Bliss pottery
Anchorage, Ak.
kbliss@customcpu.com
(in anchorage 30 years)
kbliss@customcpu.com
Anchorage, Alaska
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