East Fork Pottery’s CEO Has Stepped Down. What Will Happen to the Brand?

“Each piece is truly different,” said Trudee Sauer, who runs @eastfork exchange, an Instagram account through which people can buy, sell and trade pieces. Another Instagram account, @molasses_for_the_masses, pays homage to ceramics made in a rich brown color, now retired, called molasses. And searching the hashtag #themug on Instagram brings up thousands of photos of a $40 cup called, yes, the Mug. Sana Javeri Kadri, the founder of the spice company Diaspora Co., which has collaborated on products with East Fork, called it “truly the best mug to hold in your hands.”

But the ceramics are not the only reason customers are drawn to East Fork, Ms. Javeri Kadri said. “People often get excited by the story, and by Connie and how magnetic she is.”

Since the company’s inception Ms. Matisse, who for the past two years has served as its chief executive, has played an integral role in how it communicates with the world.

A mother of two children under 8, she has written or signed off on blog posts that note exactly how the Mug is made and explain why, in a state with a minimum wage of $7.25, East Fork’s salaries now start at $22 an hour. She has written email newsletters, including one about how to clean dishes, in which she also grappled with her work-life balance. She has posted selfies taken in her bathtub to East Fork’s Instagram account. Some, like a post advertising job openings, relate to the business. Others, like a post calling out body shamers, do not.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/08/style/east-fork-pottery.html