Right off the Batt Pottery

I interviewed Darryl and Cindy Lentz at their place of business in early June 2014.

Q & A below photo. 

Q:When did you start Right Off the Batt Pottery? 

A: I, (Cindy) took up pottery as a hobby after leaving the Canadian Military in 1994. It turned into a business in 2008 when I bought a small studio in Kinkora. Soon after opening shop, I had to hire five people to help me.

Q: Where is your business now, in 2014?

A: We had to move to a bigger space in Borden a few years ago to keep up with growing  demand. Our products are being sold all over North America, and demand is so high that at times we have to turn down stores looking to sell our products.

Q: What advice would you give to someone interested in following your footsteps?
A: You have to look at any business you want to thrive like it’s a child; it requires all your attention and devotion. You’ll hit rough waters in your journey, too, but we’ve learnt to keep swimming until you hit calmer waters. We’re more than happy to help anyone. We don’t see making crafts on P.E.I. as a competition, because when people learn from each other, we all win in the end.

Q: What’s the kindest thing anyone has ever done for you? Be it in your business or outside of it.
A: It’s hard to think of one that stands out, but the kind acts that do stick with us are when people give their time, not an object. Our neighbour would plow our driveway after a snowstorm without us having to ask him. And one of our employees baked us some Hungarian bread on her day off once and dropped it off at the studio for us before we closed on a Saturday evening.