We’re having a really good summer here in the sales department at Wallyworld. One reason is a series of large orders from the Keith Fleming Gallery in Port Clinton, Ohio. Over the past few months we’ve shipped them hundreds upon hundreds of pots and they are now my top-selling gallery for 2012. It’s great to have such an amazing new account! The other reason my sales are up right now is that the buying mood overall is a lot better. A lot of the new accounts that I took on in the past year have been re-ordering steadily lately. If you have been reading this blog over the years, you will note that this is significantly better than the dark days of 2008 – 2010 when I had to take a job with the U.S. Census because my business was so slow. So every time I hear Mitt Romney ask that rhetorical question, “Are you better off now than you were four years ago?” I answer with a resounding, “Yes!” Those rhetorical questions can cut both ways, can’t they?
So here’s a nice little “How To” photo essay on our yearly ritual of making the Big Chili Cook-Off awards. This is a fundraiser for the mountain area volunteer fire departments in Evergreen, CO. I’ve been doing these awards for ten years now, and it’s a great event to be a part of. This year we made ten of the “chili chalices” and six bowls with a total labor hour tally of over forty hours for my assistant and I. Each piece has original cartoons that go with the theme of the award (e.g. “best showmanship” – fire-breathing bikini roller skate chili). I always gripe about how much effort these pots take, but by the time the kiln rolls out, I’m really happy with the results.
