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handmade mugs Tag

Getting to work for a family business can be a challenge. The rewards of working for a family business, especially one that makes things, like Handmade Stoneware Mugs, are many. One such perk is being connected to the act of creating functional, durable, and safe mugs...

It has come to light that it appeared as if we were playing favorites with our innkeepers of Duluth. The earlier story that I posted was not complete in it's informative nature... As it turns out the nice couple that called was, in fact, looking for a very particular color for the mug that they were seeking - Burgundy. The only inn in Duluth that has burgundy mugs in stock was the Firelight Inn on Oregon Creek. That being said, Julie our now infamous GM, looked at the order history of each of our Duluth Inns before finding the location of a burgundy mug. In alphabetical order... Our favorite Inns of Duluth:

This was an email that we received  a while back that should have been added here more recently! After returning from the Innkeeping Conference and Trade Show I am energized and empowered to do that little bit extra - Like posting on our blog! The answer to the question that Pamela has is YES... We can make an order of mugs without medallions. The cost is $15.00 each for a single style in one color for one address. Hi ,my name is Pamela Matherne. I am from Houma , Louisiana. My husband and I were passing through Wagonwheel Gap , CO. and stayed at the Blue Creek Lodge. I was looking for a gift to bring home to my sister and I bought her one of your handmade mugs. She says it's the one she always wants to use because it keeps her coffee warm longer.

In September of last year I received a catalog request from Warren Farha, the owner of Eighth Day Books, of Wichita, KS. As I was filling out the envelope I searched google and came across their webpage and I saw this quote, "that which is true, is ours". Little did I know that we would make an order of handmade mugs for Warren, and that that order would have a 'true' story of it's own.
Original line drawing of the store and our emblem design
And that true story is told by Joshua and it goes like this: "Just as we were unpacking your delicious shipment at the front counter (we call it the 'front counter' but it's by the back door), our friend Philip (long-time customer) came in to buy Christmas gifts for his (prodigous) family.  He was immediately entranced by the mugs, and selected 8 as stocking-stuffers." So the very first day that EIGHTH day books had their mugs, they sold EIGHT... How Cool!

All Star line-UpAll Star line-Up
By Lee Egerstrom
Economic Development Fellow
[email protected] A company of artists in St. Paul is proving that making art objects can sustain a small business, that entrepreneurs can survive economic cycles, and that quality can still trump quantity in this age of big box stores and mass marketing. Deneen Pottery is a family owned business that has endured various trials and tribulations since 1972. It makes hand-thrown stoneware products for institutional and business customers who want to exhibit glaze engraved logos, which result from a trademark protected process that Deneen master potters invented. The biggest categories of Deneen's 2,700 customers are hospitality industry companies such as bed and breakfasts, country inns and golf courses. Right behind are college bookstores, corporations that want promotional items for products or their corporate image, and restaurants. Renaissance festivals and community events that appeal to tourists who may be collectors is another important but smaller category, and Deneen has a small number of retailers as customers who specialize in merchandise for tourists.

Just before Thanksgiving Tammie, owner of The Coffee Cup located in Cameron, OK, was searching google for handmade mugs when she came across our website. "I looked at others but your product, professionalism, and website blew the others away."  Now we have her design ready for approval and we are eagerly looking forward to working on her first order of custom mugs!

It's a snowy COLD day here in Minnesota - single digit highs and -30º below at night with the wind chill. Sorting through the importance of Facebook, and finding relavent material and ideas to share on a blog can be TOUGH. A few weeks back when I figured that I'd like to use our Facebook page to showcase 'Innkeepers Mug Displays' I was given a tip by  Linda Hayes from the Inn at Riverbend in Pearlsburg, Virginia about her friend Selena. "You should get [a picture] from Selena at Bed and Breakfast on Tiffany Hill, her retail wall with your mugs is beautiful."
Original-of-Panorama.smWhat a setting -And the inside is even better!