VanGo Pottery™ Solves the Birthday Party Dilemma!

Looking for something fun and creative to do at your child’s next birthday party? Then consider having a pottery painting party with VanGo Pottery! We will come to the location of your choice and provide everything you need to entertain your guests with pottery painting fun. And with the nice weather upon us, it’s the perfect time to plan an outdoor party in your backyard or at your favorite park.

Boxes, boxes, and more boxes!

One of our most popular birthday party packages allows you to choose from a huge assortment of boxes. The boxes come in a variety of shapes and are not only fun to paint, but are great for storing your child’s favorite trinkets and knick knacks. The cost is $15 - $20 per box (plus tax) and includes all of the following:

• Choice of box
• Use of our paints, glazes, and design tools
• Staff assistance for up to 2 hours
• Cleanup
• Glazing and firing
• Delivery of your finished pieces

And with no studio fees, moms and dads can help children paint their pieces at no additional charge.

For an additional fee, our staff will help the birthday child and his or her guests decorate a dinner-size birthday plate to commemorate the occasion.

For more information and to book your party, please call 602.468.3136.

Thrift Store Inspiration

Recently, I was with a friend engaging in one of my favorite past times: thrift store shopping. If you’re like me, you don’t need a reason to shop in thrift stores. It’s simply fun to browse through aisle after aisle of knickknacks and whatnots that others no longer want with the goal of finding a hidden treasure at a fraction of the original cost.

During this particular outing, I came across a small ceramic goblet that caught my eye. It quickly went from merely “eye catching” to “must have.” Though the photo in this article doesn’t do it justice (I blame it on poor lighting and a crummy cell phone camera), it does provide a semblance of what my new found treasure looked like.

The goblet was quite small, only a few inches tall by a few inches wide. The colors consisted of varying shades of blues and browns with a whimsical, fish-like object on either side. It was truly a fun little piece that was worthy of shelf space on the curio in my family room.

As I was applauding myself for having found such a cute piece at such a great price—$2 during the half-off sale—my friend pointed out a chip in the goblet’s rim. It wasn’t a huge chip, but the goblet was so small that the chip became significant. Rats! I found myself trying to overlook the defect and thinking of how I could display it so that the chip would not be seen.

Just as I had convinced myself, again, that I should make the purchase, my friend took it from me and politely advised me against it. She told me I could make one myself—a better one! One with no chip. And in true friend fashion, she went on to “remind” me about my artistic abilities and talent. And with that, the decision was made. I am now in the process of making my own cute little goblet (perhaps, a series) and all it took was a little inspiration from a thrift store find and the gentle nudging of a wonderful friend.

VanGo Pottery™ is in Phoenix Business Journal!

Close-up: Mom takes pottery parties on the road
Phoenix Business Journal - by Kaivan Mangouri
Date: Thursday, November 11, 2010, 2:07pm MST


Sheri Geiss was working full time and raising 9-year-old twins when she took a giant leap of faith.

The single mom wanted to spend more time with her children, so she quit her job at Anthem College in 2005 and launched VanGo Pottery LLC from her home.

Geiss uses her van to cater pottery-painting parties at schools, assisted living centers and residences. VanGo was ranked No. 119 on Startup Nation’s 2010 list of 200 Leading Moms in Business, released Oct. 11.

Geiss, who has a fine arts degree, originally wanted to purchase a studio for her business. But the cumbersome overhead helped her decide that a mobile business would give her the flexibility she wanted and enable her to spend more time with her daughters.

She now works alongside her twins — who, at 14, have become artists in their own right, she said.

“I almost had to put the brakes on, and I have to remind myself why I did this if I’m getting too busy,” Geiss said. “But the caveat to that is, now that my daughters are a little older, I’m looking into franchising.”

Competition in the area has dropped in recent years because of the recession, she said, adding her low-overhead business model now is in a prime position. She plans to expand the business within the next year.

“There’s a lot involved, and through my research and talking with people I realized that I really just need to hire people or a company to do (franchising) for me,” Geiss said.

In the meantime, she’s glad for the experience the business has given her family, including exposure to entrepreneurism.

For more: www.vangopottery.com


Read more: http://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/print-edition/2010/11/12/close-up-mom-takes-pottery-parties-on.html

VanGo Pottery™ Wins Top Honors in Mom Business Competition

Phoenix, AZ – October 11, 2010– From among thousands of contestants, VanGo Pottery™ has been ranked #119 in StartupNation.com’s 2010 Leading Moms in Business competition (www.startupnation.com/leading-moms-in-business), sponsored by Infusionsoft (www.infusionsoft.com).

Over 709,000 votes were cast in support of the 2010 contestants, reflecting immense interest and supportiveness for moms building businesses at the same time they tend to their families.

“There’s been a sea change among moms as they’ve come to realize that adding entrepreneurship to their lives brings exhilaration and immense gratification, not to mention supplemental—sometimes primary—income to their families in these dicey economic times,” says Rich Sloan, chief startupologist and co-founder of StartupNation.

“We are so grateful for our wonderful clients and friends! You make our job fun,” said owner, Sheri Geiss. The winner’s profile for VanGo Pottery™ can be found at http://www.startupnation.com/leading-moms-in-business/contestant/7608/index.php.

The 2010 Leading Moms in Business ranking, conducted in collaboration with Ladies Who Launch (www.ladieswholaunch.com) and The National Association for Moms in Business (www.mibn.org), highlights some of the dominant trends, motivations and attributes among moms in business. They include:
• A great eye for providing attractive discounts, coupons, savings and value, all especially important to consumer moms of the recession era.
• A likelihood to come up with innovative products and solutions to address the challenging maze of motherhood. It’s an environment that demands resourcefulness.
• Conscience-driven business, where “doing well” is just fine, but the real rush comes from doing good.
• The attraction of being your own boss looms large for moms wanting to take control they just can’t find in a day job.
• Sustainable solutions and responsible business practices are increasingly paramount.
• Making the most of social media for business benefit is seemingly a birthright for the socially adept moms.

The full results of the 2010 Leading Moms in Business ranking are available on StartupNation’s website at http://www.startupnation.com/leading-moms-in-business.

VanGo Pottery™ - Taking Environmental Responsibility Seriously

A client recently commented that my paint brushes were very clean. I replied that my staff and I make it a point to keep them clean and that I still have many of the same brushes from when I started the business, five years ago. That got me thinking about how important it has been for me to reuse and recycle as often as I can.

I’ve reused the same red, plastic cups for rinsing brushes for five years. When wrapping and boxing my clients’ pottery, I reuse the packaging from supply shipments I have received. Many of the molds and design tools used in my clay handbuilding classes are throwaway household items and thrift store finds. And because the kiln uses a great deal of electricity, I coordinate my firings to be as energy-efficient as possible. In addition, several vendors have adopted “green” practices as well.

There are lots of little things we, at VanGo Pottery, do on a daily basis to reuse, recycle, and eliminate waste. And we will continue to look for ways to incorporate sustainable practices into our business model. I am proud to be a part of the global movement to make environmentally responsible choices.

VanGo Pottery™ is ON FIRE!

Pardon the pun, but we are on fire!

VanGo Pottery™ is a contestant in the 2010 StartupNation Leading Moms in Business Competition, a competition that recognizes mom-owned businesses nationwide:

“Everybody knows one. Like a super hero, she balances running a family with the heroics of running her own business. We’re talking about moms in business, of course. And now, StartupNation is conducting its second annual ranking of these astonishing entrepreneurs and the businesses they run.

But, how do we know who’s the best of the best? We’re leaving that in part to you. Over the next few [weeks], it’ll be your daily votes that determine the top 200 Leading Moms in Business. In addition our judges will determine special awards and accolades for moms within the top 200 who deserve special recognition.”

Please help VanGo Pottery™ place in the top 200 Mom-owned businesses by voting here:

http://www.startupnation.com/leading-moms-in-business/contestant/7608/index.php

You can vote once a day, every day, but voting ends August 31, 2010. Thank you for your support!

VanGo Pottery™ is Now on Facebook!

It’s been a busy year for us at VanGo Pottery™ and we are grateful to all our wonderful clients that have kept us busy. You can stay on top of the latest happenings at VanGo Pottery™ by becoming a fan on Facebook.

To connect with us on Facebook, please click the "VanGo Pottery on Facebook" link in the upper right corner, in the green Link List box.