Today we’d like to introduce you to Lorraine Frigoletto.
Ceramics and pottery painting have been a part of Lorraine Frigoletto’s life since her mother, Rose Mary Ardagna, started a studio in the basement of their house 40 years ago. It’s now time for the next generation to continue the family’s passion for pottery painting.
Lorraine explains, “When my mother decided to retire, I was offered the business. The opportunity to become the new owner of Clay Dreams was enticing but the most important part of it was being able to keep the business in the family. Being the new owner of Clay Dreams allows me to feed my passion for creativity, use my experience and skills working with customers, but most of all in keeping the family tradition of Clay Dreams Alive.”
“Even after 40 years, I still open the kiln and get excited and surprised to see everyone’s pieces. That feeling has never dulled even after all this time.”
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Although the transition of ownership from my mother to me was a smooth one, it took me some time to adjust to being a business owner. I have administrative experience as a child care director, where it was in charge of a staff, a center, and a budget. Being a small business owner is all of that except you are solely responsible for all of it. It’s been an adjustment for me but I know over the next couple of months everything will fall into place and I will feel more confident and comfortable.
I highly recommend any young woman or man thinking about starting their own small business should take a business planning course. I participated in a 5-week Business Planning-Getting Started workshop at the Center for Woman and Enterprise.
what should we know about Clay Dreams? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Clay Dreams has been a family-owned business with almost 40 years of experience in the ceramic arts. It has been an Arlington landmark since 1999.
We offer specialized pieces and products and provide superior customer service. In our studio, you can paint a unique piece of pottery, that is food safe, can be used in the microwave and put in the dishwasher. There are wonderful items to choose from, such as mugs and plates, figurines, banks and seasonal items.
Our most favorite thing to hear is from the customers that keep returning from generation to generation.
We hear from adults how they had their birthday parties at Clay Dreams when they were 5 or 6 or 10 and love that they have good memories from those parties. Those same adults are now bringing their children to the studio for their birthday parties. Just like the business has passed down from one generation to another, the next generation of children are coming into Clay Dreams to make their own memories.
Our studio is warm and inviting and we provide one on one service whenever possible. We like to compare your time at our studio like you would receive at a restaurant. We welcome you, seat you, you choose what you want to paint, we provide all of the tools and you relax and enjoy being creative. We will clean everything up when you are done and you can go on your way anticipating the date of a pickup when you will witness first hand your creative work.
Do you have any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general? What has worked well for you?
I have found other local family-owned businesses to be a great help in dealing with such things as business insurance, payroll, and even who has the best lunchtime choices.
I advice new small business owners to be part of social media groups in and around the city of the business.
Pricing:
- Pieces start at $8.00 and go up from there.
- Children 12 years and under have a studio fee of $6.00; Children under 2 are free.
- Children and adults over 12 years of age have a studio fee of $7.00.
- Ceramic Lighted Christmas Trees start at $30.00 for a 6″ tree all the way up to $170 for a 27″ tree. Prices include the studio fee as well as wiring, lights and light bulbs.
Contact Info:
- Address: 183 Massachusetts Avenue
Arlington, MA 02474 - Website: claydreams.com
- Phone: 781-641-3000
- Email: claydreamspottery@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clay_dreams_pyop
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/claydreams
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