Spectrum Designz® is a leading creator of custom designed mugs, pottery, plates, and coffee mugs. Our mission is to bring joy, creativity, and meaning to everyday objects through our unique designs.
Founded in 2015 by John Smith, Spectrum Designz began as a small Etsy shop offering personalized mugs. John had a lifelong passion for art and design, and wanted to share his creative vision with the world through functional pieces of art.
The initial offerings were met with enthusiasm from customers who loved the ability to add a personal touch to their mugs. As word spread, the shop grew rapidly. Before long, John brought on additional artists and expanded the product line to include plates, bowls, coffee mugs, and more.
Today, Spectrum Designz has become the premier destination for one-of-a-kind pottery and dishware. But our beginnings on Etsy remain core to who we are. We remain a nimble, artist-driven company that seeks to bring art into everyday life.
Our Values
Everything we do at Spectrum Designz stems from our core values:
- Creativity – We believe that imagination has the power to make life more joyful. Our artists have the freedom to experiment and innovate, combining their vision with customers’ ideas to design truly unique pieces.
- Quality – Our pottery and dishware are hand crafted to stand the test of time. We use durable materials and glazes to create heirloom-quality products you’ll love using every day.
- Individuality – No two Spectrum Designz pieces are exactly alike. We celebrate the small imperfections that give our products character and soul. Just like our customers, each item is one-of-a-kind.
- Community – Spectrum Designz was built on a spirit of collaboration and community. We work closely with our customers to bring their ideas to life. And we nurture partnerships with artists, makers, and retailers who share our values.
These core principles infuse everything we do, from the initial design concepts to the final delivered product. Our goal is to create lasting keepsakes that bring joy, meaning, and a touch of creativity to your daily life.
Our Story
Spectrum Designz has come a long way from its early days as a humble Etsy shop. Here are some key milestones along our journey:
- 2015 – John Smith launches Spectrum Designz on Etsy, offering personalized mugs
- 2016 – Expanded offerings to include plates, bowls, pitchers, and coffee mugs
- 2017 – Moved production from small kiln to professional ceramics studio
- 2018 – Opened our website Spectrum-Designz.com to offer custom ordering
- 2019 – Surpassed 500k sales across Etsy and our website
- 2020 – Launched wholesale partnerships with select retailers across the US and Canada
- 2021 and beyond – We look forward to continued growth while remaining committed to our core values of creativity, quality, individuality and community
While we’re proud of how much Spectrum Designz has grown, our focus remains on handcrafting unique and creative products that bring joy. Our future success will be measured not in profits or scale, but by the happiness our products bring to kitchens and dining tables everywhere.
Our Process
Every Spectrum Designz piece goes through a thoughtful design process:
1. Consultation
It all starts with a conversation. Customers provide us with their vision – images, themes, colors, or any creative direction to guide our design. We provide advice on shapes, feasibility, and options to bring their ideas to life. Our goal is to fully understand the meaning and purpose behind each custom piece before we begin designing.
2. Concept Design
Our artists use the inspiration from the consultation to generate design concepts. Digital sketches and drafts are created and refined until we hone in on the perfect creative direction. We may explore multiple approaches at this phase to find the best fit for the customer’s vision.
3. Customer Review
The customer has full control over the design direction. We share concept drafts and make revisions based on the customer’s feedback. Our goal is to bring the vision in their head to life – so we work closely at each step to ensure the end result matches what they imagined.
4. Modeling & Prototyping
Once the design concept is approved, we create 3D models and prototypes. This lets us work out details on shape, structure, color, and material choices. We make test pieces to finalize technical elements before moving into production.
5. Production
With the design refined through iterations and prototyping, we move into production. Our expert ceramicists craft each piece by hand, paying meticulous attention to our quality standards. It’s essential that the end product matches the approved design as closely as possible.
6. Quality Control
Each finished piece goes through multi-stage quality checks. We examine the fit and finish, check for any imperfections, and confirm the details match the approved design. Our quality team ensures only the highest caliber work leaves our workshop.
7. Delivery
We carefully pack and ship your unique creation to safeguard it through delivery. Our commitment to quality continues even after an item leaves our hands. We want to ensure it arrives safely and ready to become a treasured part of your home.
Our Artists
Spectrum Designz is driven by the creativity and talent of our artists. We employ dedicated ceramicists, painters, and glaze experts who all share a passion for imagination and craftsmanship.
John Smith, Founder
John Smith founded Spectrum Designz in 2015. His lifelong love of art, design, and pottery led him to create a business focused on bringing custom creations to life through quality craftsmanship. John continues to lead Spectrum’s team of talented artists.
Sarah Lee, Lead Ceramicist
Sarah studied ceramics at Rhode Island School of Design. She honed her technical skills while developing a style defined by fluid,nature-inspired forms. Her creativity shines through in the shaping of each mug, plate and bowl.
Mark Chen, Painting & Glazing Lead
Mark adds depth, color and texture through his hand painted accents and rich glazes. His innovative techniques make each item truly unique. Mark finds joy in collaborating with customers to make their creative vision a reality.
We also partner with a diverse community of artists to offer new styles and perspectives. Our collaborative approach fosters creativity and innovation. Each contributed talent makes Spectrum Designz a leader in imaginative, handcrafted dishware and decor.
Our Studio
Our artists work out of our 15,000 square foot studio and production facility located in Akron, Ohio. This creative space includes:
Design Studios
Large, light-filled rooms where our artists experiment with shapes, colors, and patterns to bring designs to life. Their desks display the tools of the trade – sketchbooks, tablets, sculpture tools, paints, and brushes.
Clay Studio
This workshop hums with the sound of spinning pottery wheels. Skilled ceramicists transform mounds of clay into graceful plates, mugs, and bowls. Racks hold drying greenware waiting to be fired and glazed. The magic starts here.
Kiln Room
We have an entire room dedicated to kilns for bisque firing greenware and firing glazed pieces. The various sizes, shapes and specialized functions of our kilns allow optimal firing for each type of piece.
Painting & Glazing Stations
Long tables serve as work areas for hand painting and glazing. Custom colors and effects are added to bring designs to life. Artists use specialized tools, brushes, and airbrushes when working their magic.
Photography Studio
This in-house studio lets us photograph finished products for our website and social media. We also create promotional product shots for our retail partners. Every piece is captured at its best.
Quality Control & Shipping
Pieces undergo final checks here before being carefully packaged and shipped to customers. Our shipping team ensures each item is safely secured for its journey to being part of a home.
Our studio is specifically designed to foster creativity and efficiently move each product from concept to completion. We’re proud to offer our artists an inspiring space to do their best work as part of the Spectrum Designz team.
Our Customers
Our customers are at the heart of everything we do. We build relationships with each client to create a piece that carries personal meaning. Customers include:
Gift Buyers
Choose us for one-of-a-kind personalized gifts for birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Christmas, housewarmings, graduations, baby showers, and more. The meaningful personalization makes it extra special.
Coffee & Tea Lovers
Fellow coffee fanatics trust us to create the perfect custom mug to start each morning. We make sure the size, shape, color and design fits their unique taste.
Dog & Cat Lovers
Pet owners immortalize their furry family members by customizing a mug or bowl with a portrait, name, or paw print. Perfect for enthusiastic pet lovers.
Foodies
We capture favorite foods, local eateries, chef personalities or kitchen memories on plates, bowls and pitchers for home chefs.
Business Owners
Make company gatherings more fun with customized items featuring the brand name or logo. A great way to celebrate company milestones and culture.
Non-Profits & Community Groups
Create unique products for fundraising, events, and promoting your cause. Add your mission or logo to mugs, plates, pitchers or plaques.
We love collaborating with customers from all walks of life to create special products that capture memories and passion. Our personal approach makes each customer feel like part of the Spectrum Designz family.
Our Partners
In addition to individual customers, we work with select retail partners to bring our designs to store shelves. Our current partners include:
Specialty Gift Shops
Boutiques across the country carry our designs in-store and online for thoughtful gift buyers looking for creative, personalized items.
Museum Gift Stores
Museum stores feature our pieces themed around current exhibits. Customers can take home a memento tied to the museum’s collection.
Cafes & Restaurants
Cafes, coffee shops and restaurants stock their shelves with custom mugs, plates, and kitchenware displaying their brand.
Corporate Gifts
Businesses offer our customized products as employee gifts, milestone awards, client appreciation gifts, and branded merchandise in their offices.
We welcome inquiries from new wholesale partners whose customers would value our unique, artful products. Read more about our wholesale program on our website.
At Spectrum Designz, we approach each partnership as a collaborative opportunity to spread more creativity and joy. Our retail partners are key to our mission of bringing imaginative handcrafted goods to communities everywhere.
Looking Ahead
As Spectrum Designz continues to grow, certain things will remain the same. We’ll stay true to our core values of creativity, quality, individuality and community. Our artists will continue handcrafting each piece with care and imagination. And we’ll maintain the spirit of collaboration, working closely with each customer to make their vision a reality.
But we also plan to evolve. We’ll offer fresh designs, new product lines, and expanded ways to customize. We look for emerging artists with unique talents to join our team. And we constantly refine our operations to deliver better quality and service.
Most importantly, we want to bring creativity into more homes, offices, cafes, and communities. Our dream is for Spectrum Designz to become part of your daily life – a mug you sip your morning coffee from, plates displayed in your dining room, gifts marking memories. Objects made special because imagination and care went into their creation. We can’t wait to see what the future holds!
We welcome you to become part of our story. Reach out anytime – we’d love to hear from you!