Creating community for ceramicists

AUSTRALIAN Pottery Supplies, based in Torquay, grew very organically from Prue Morrison’s passion for working with clay.

It was born from its humble roots of Prue making pieces and posting on Instagram, to friends and family wanting to buy her work, to then using her business background to start selling equipment and supplies and developing Australian Pottery Supplies.

In early 2020 when COVID-19 hit, Prue, as a single mum of two children, had to find a business that would support the changing circumstances and still have the ability to support her family.

Already running pottery courses for beginners from her home studio before the pandemic, the demand for pottery equipment grew as the pandemic did, as people wanted activities they could do at home.

Very quickly, the business expanded from supplying home potters to setting up commercial studios and fitting out schools, TAFEs and universities, and now even retirement villages.

Stocking only high-quality equipment, Australian Pottery Supplies also boasts a 4.9 Google business review due to its supportive nature of offering advice, and also quality customer service.

It is now one of the biggest suppliers of local and international pottery equipment, shipping throughout Australia and worldwide.

It was apparent that as the business expanded to importing kilns from the UK, Prue’s home-based business needed new premises.

That was when she took over the new studio-shop-warehouse in the industrial estate in Torquay late last year, allowing her to hold more stock of kilns and equipment, and to branch out to selling clay, glazes and consumables for those in the creative industry or those who were simply having fun at home.

Australian Pottery Supplies now offers a wide range of wheel and hand-building classes for beginners through to advanced master classes (soon to come).

Prue also runs children’s classes, hens nights, corporate functions, Christmas parties, and private tuition where, depending on the chosen course, customers can make and glaze their own work.

The classes range from a three-hour introduction to four-week or weekend intensives.

Prue really wanted to create a sense of community in the creative industry and specifically the ceramics arena, where people can come and try the equipment, learn the basics through to the advanced aspects of pottery, as well as a place to come and share knowledge.

The studio will soon host a drop-in studio and weekly sessions for those who want to develop their ceramics journey but don’t yet have either the space, the money or the skills to set themselves up, or would just rather come together with like-minded individuals and hang out with clay.

Prue has sponsored local and international clay festivals such as Clay Gulgong NSW (which boasts the best of the best in the pottery world, both nationally and internationally).

Head judge of The Great Pottery Throw Down from the UK and considered one of the pottery ‘gods’, Keith Brymer-Jones (who is to pottery what Gordon Ramsay is to cooking), was among the potters Prue had the opportunity to meet at the event.

Keith highly endorses the kilns Prue is importing from the UK.

Australian Pottery Supplies is at 5 Boneyards Avenue, Torquay.

For more information, head to australianpotterysupplies.com.au or phone Prue on 0429 633 298.