We were lucky to catch up with Corrie Ruffin recently and have shared our conversation below.

Corrie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s jump to the end – what do you want to be remembered for?

I’ve actually been thinking about this a lot lately. Maybe it’s the looming 4-0, maybe it’s the approaching 10 year anniversary of trying to make this “business owner’ thing work, maybe it’s 3.5 years of infertility… maybe it’s a combination of all of those things.

As an artist fresh out of college, with a BFA in Drawing, there’s no way I would’ve believed that I’d find my life’s work in owning a pottery business. It has been an overwhelming, daunting, exhilarating, and empowering experience to grow Korai Goods and to keep it afloat. If anyone says that starting and maintaining a business is easy, they’re either extremely lucky or totally lying. The personal and professional challenges that I’ve encountered have carved quite a few new facets, shaping me into a much more compassionate and understanding person. It’s taken a long time for me to say that I’m proud of the person I am, and proud of the space that I’m able to create for those that love.

As far as my professional community, I will always try to help other small business owners and creatives in any way that I can.
I can definitely give some insight in what NOT to do!

When I think about what I want to be remembered for, and who I want to be remembered by, it all goes back to love, kindness, and inclusion. This growth never ends, but I’m closer than I was yesterday, and looking forward to where I’ll be tomorrow.

I love the idea of always trying to leave things better than I found them.

Corrie, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

For those new to Korai Goods, and new to me, Hi! I’m Corrie. A 39 yr old artist now living and working out of an extremely beautiful, extremely rural, area of coastal Virginia.

My journey to this relatively new state was a long one, beginning as a 6th generation Floridian, followed by 15 years of building my adult life and creative community in Atlanta.

I’m the oldest of 5, raised in my great-grandmother’s (Big Yiayia’s) home in Tarpon Springs, Florida. Best known for its deep cultural ties to a thriving Greek community, this town gave me an incredible appreciation for family, good food, and a true sense of home. I will never lose appreciation for having this foundation.

Like most young creatives, I believe that I knew pretty early on that I wanted to be an artist… or a marine biologist, or an archeologist, or a chef. It took a few years to narrow it down, but luckily as I was graduating high school, the stars and grants aligned for me to attend The University of Florida to pursue a Fine Arts degree. I’m not entirely sure why I believed a 2-D degree to be more marketable than a 3-D, but that’s where I settled, and I graduated with a BFA in Drawing in 2006.

It was a winding road to full-time pottery. Beginning in college with much-loved ceramic electives, pottery was reintroduced while attending handmade markets with the earliest version of what is now Korai Goods. A chance meeting with my friend Sophia of Apricity Ceramics really sealed the deal, as she unselfishly allowed use of her studio space and equipment while I dove back into the world of mud.

Korai Goods quickly moved from 100% jewelry to 100% ceramics when a global pandemic shut the world down.
As we were forced to look at our same dinnerware, incense burners, and planters every second of every day, the home goods market took off… and so did KG. I feel like I’ve been playing catch-up for 3 years, clumsily trying to keep the ship upright and afloat. I had to learn what it was to be a full-time artist all at once, and tried desperately to keep the forward momentum going. I once had a boss that said “if it’s raining pennies, make sure your hats are upside down”. Silly saying, but it stuck with me as I made sure to not take any little success for granted.

I believe that it’s my deep appreciation for the fact that I get to make art every day, and it is EVERY DAY, that keeps me wanting to create something new and beautiful and useful for my customers. I love clean lines, but I also love seeing the story of the piece. The hand, the touch, the heart. The goal is never perfection. The goal is to always usher in warmth and humanity, both of which I believe to be the pillars of anything handmade.

I’m extremely proud of the work I’m now creating, and grateful for the wholesale and retail clients that have stuck with me as my skill set caught up with the demand for my work. I still can’t believe that this is what I get to do, and this is how I support my family.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I believe that it has been personal failures and prolonged challenges that have formed my resilience.

I got married and divorced all before 30, having to totally and completely rebuild my mind, body, spirit, and finances.
My life burned down. I didn’t think that I could rise out of it, but much to my surprise, I did. This has informed how I approach all relationships, trying my best to lead with kindness and compassion. I’m happy to say that I am now remarried to the love of my life, and partner of over a decade.

Truthfully, when I initially read this question, my first thought was of my current struggle with infertility. I was once reluctant to talk about this openly. It is something that I think about, and struggle with, daily. My husband and I have have been trying for 3 and a half years to expand our family past each other and our 2 furry babies, but have yet to make it out of the first trimester. We have spent thousands of dollars, and almost all of our emotional reserves on this calling to become parents. It saddens and comforts me to know that so many women are in my same boat. Social Media has been a surprise and welcomed emotional outlet, allowing me to no longer suffer in silence. It is a community built of the most courageous and resilient people I know. I guess I can count myself among them.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

The magic of pottery turning into my full-time gig will NEVER be lost on me. Like, ever. I was a preschool art teacher, the sales director of an assisted living, a glass enamel artist. and a pattern cutter before all this. I started with commissioned drawings and paintings, which lead to sculptural jewelry, ultimately landing in the world of home goods.

Starting my own business began painfully slow, working every evening and weekend (not much has changed… working on balance!) as more and more people were exposed to my work. I did more markets and pop-ups than I can count, which ultimately built an invaluable community around me. Hard work, human connection, and a tiny bit of luck lead me to where I am today. This is how I have acquired any wins thus far, and I believe will be the formula for any future successes.        

Contact Info:

• Website: https://koraigoods.com
• Instagram: @koraigoods
• Facebook: Korai Goods
• Threads: @koraigoods