Partner With Us: Sell Your Pottery at Hintonburg Pottery

Hintonburg Pottery Shop: Call for Local Artists

We are inviting local artists to bring fresh work into our Ottawa retail gallery! We love supporting the local clay community, and we want to connect artists with the people who appreciate pottery and want to purchase your creations.

Our studio and retail shop are busy year-round, and we are especially focused on stocking our shelves for the rapidly approaching Holiday Season.

The Next Step: How to Apply

To be considered for our retail space, please email jennifer@hintonburgpottery.ca with:

Pictures of your work.
OR a link to a photo album or your Instagram page.
Your price list

If we are interested in carrying your pieces, we will email you to arrange a time for you to bring your work in. We ask that you leave them with us for a week so we can evaluate them before confirming a purchase.

What Happens After You Drop Off Your Work?

Evaluation: We will evaluate your pieces
Decision: We will email you with our decision and specify exactly which items we would like to purchase. Please note that we often select only a few pieces and may not accept everything you bring in.
Invoicing & Payment: Once you receive our confirmation, you will send us an invoice for the items we have agreed to purchase. We will process payment via e-transfer within 7 days of receiving your invoice.
Provide us with your artist’s bio and picture - we also link to your website or instagram, etc
Pick-Up: You can then arrange to come by and pick up any pieces that we did not accept for the gallery.

Display and Branding

We strive to keep each artist's work distinct and prominently displayed to help grow your following.

Dedicated Space: Each potter will generally have a designated shelf space with their artist's biography displayed next to their work.
Artist Promotion: We are committed to promoting you as an individual artist. When a customer purchases your piece, we provide them with a printed postcard featuring your artist's biography. This ensures every sale acts as a personal introduction, helping customers remember your name and seek out your work in the future.
Flexibility: While we strive to keep your work distinct, a few of your pieces may occasionally be mixed with other artists' work on a shelf (e.g., if we are creating a small area themed around a colour or event like Remembrance Day). We reserve the right to display the items in our retail gallery in a way that we think will optimize sales.

Our Sales Terms and Structure

We aim to keep our process simple and exciting for both you and our customers! We typically look for a couple dozen items at a time to keep our selection fresh. We do not have a minimum order quantity.

Term	Details
Primary Model	Wholesale Purchase (Preferred)
Wholesale Price	You set the price you are willing to sell the piece to us for. We recommend 50% of the final retail price.
Retail Markup	We typically sell the pieces at a 50% markup (2x the wholesale price).
Consignment	Offered on a case-by-case basis if we want to trial a piece but are uncertain how it will perform in our space.
Minimum Retail Price	If you sell your pieces online, we will respect a Minimum Retail Price (MRP) to ensure we do not undercut your pricing.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: What kind of pieces are you looking for?

A: Functional pottery sells best in our retail space. Popular items include:

Mugs (Small espresso and large sizes)
Beer Steins
Bowls
Spoon Rests
Olive Dishes
French Butter Dishes
Garlic Pots

Q: 50% wholesale seems like a steep cut. Why this model?

A: While we wish we could purchase at full price, the wholesale model allows us to sustain our Wellington St W storefront, which includes:

A Physical Retail Location in a busy area.
Knowledgeable Staff selling your product 5 days a week.
Exposure through our in-house retail space and online store.
Promotion through our social media channels and newsletter.

Remember, you set your wholesale price. Artists with an existing following can often command a higher price. To see what our artists typically sell their pieces for, you can visit our online store: https://www.hintonburgpottery.ca/collections

Q: When do I need to have pieces ready?

A: We take new product on an as-needed basis and are currently prioritizing stocking for the Holiday season. Once approved, we will coordinate a time with you.

Quality and Technical Standards

We are quite strict in the quality of the pottery we accept. We use the Ottawa’s Guild of Potters technical standards as our baseline for assessing work.

Evaluation Process

When we receive your pieces for evaluation, we are looking for no defects. Variation is fine, but we will reject pieces with cracks or significant glaze issues.

Standards for All Work

The principal medium must be clay.
The item must have no cracks or chips.
Any slip-cast molds used must be made by that potter.
Clays, glazes, and designs must be appropriate for the intended use of the piece.
Walls and base must be proportionally correct for the pot’s function.
Handles must be substantial for the intended use of the pot.

Functional Pottery Standards

It is each potter's responsibility to ensure that all their functional pottery adheres to the following:

Standard	Detail
Form/Function	Form must match its function (e.g., pouring containers can be filled to capacity; spouts do not drip).
Glaze/Firing	Stable glazes that fit the clay body; both clay and glazes fired to maturity.
Defect-Free	No shivering or dunting. No glaze flaws (blistering, crawling, crazing, pin-holes, pitting) detrimental to function.
Base/Rim	Bases must be steady. Rims and bases must be smooth.
Lids/Handles	Lids must fit properly. Handles must be secure and functional.
Construction	Decoration, joints, and additions must be clean and secure.
Food Safety	No toxic elements (lead, cadmium, barium) in liner glazes that touch food or liquid.
Matte Glazes	Matte glazes must be tested for leaching.

Thank you for your interest and we look forward to carrying your work in our retail gallery! If you have any questions or would like to chat, please email: jennifer@hintonburgpottery.ca