Small Jars Sell As A Color Story
Nobody orders one small jar. They order eight colors and put them on a shelf where the customer picks by mood. That's the whole business model behind this line, and it's also where most buyers lose money, because a color range multiplies every problem you already had with a single glaze. Eight colors means eight glaze lots, eight firing results and eight chances that one of them arrives looking nothing like the sample you approved in spring.
Same Mold, Different Shrinkage
Every glaze fires at its own rate, so a red jar and a cream jar out of the same mold can end up a millimeter apart at the lid seat. One millimeter is enough that the lid rocks. Before you approve a range, ask for one piece in every color, put them side by side, and press each lid down with your thumb. If a lid lifts on one side, that color comes back as a return. It's cheaper to fix the seat than to explain it to a retailer in November.
Glossy And Speckled Are Not The Same Job
A high gloss shows every pinhole on the lid, and a speckled matte hides them. That matters when you mix both finishes in one display, because the eye goes straight to the shine and inspects it harder. Decide which finish carries the range, and let the speckled colors do the volume. Ask whether the speckle comes from the clay body or from a surface glaze as well, because the two wear differently once a customer handles them every day.
MOQ Is Per Color, Not Per Order
The number that kills a color range is the minimum per color, not the total. Get it in writing before you fall in love with ten shades, then cut the range to the six that actually sell: one neutral, one black, one warm, one cool, one speckled, one seasonal. Sleeve each piece, because small jars scratch each other in a carton, and confirm the carton count. A clean range of six beats a tired range of twelve every time.