Ningxi pottery passion turns into thriving business

If turning a habit into a career is a very fortunate thing, then you can call Tang Tianyuan from Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region a lucky dog, as he succeeded in not only building a business based on a passion but also working side by side with his schoolmates.

Tang, born in the 1990s, has been playing with mud since he was a child, and later majored in ceramics and decorative sculpture design at college.

While busy shuttling between classes, the student union and the Ningxi pottery factory starting from his first year at college to learn pottery skills, Tang decided to start his own business after finishing his university studies. He set up a workshop to make Ningxi pottery, which originated in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and is considered one of the top four varieties of pottery in China.

Notably, almost all of the 13 team members in Tang's workshop are his younger schoolmates. Initially, the pottery business was hard, as he had to make pottery himself while also taking care of management and sales. But the past five years of effort have earned him many more orders, compared to none at the very beginning. Now, a pot made from his Ningxi pottery workshop could sell between 500 ($72.39) to 10,000 yuan.

Up to now, the 28-year-old has been engaged in making Ningxi pottery for nine years, including running his own business for five years. The most impressive thing for Tang over the past five years of entrepreneurship is the happiness he has achieved.

He said that starting a business based on his own interest that can support himself and create jobs for his younger schoolmates as well as gain public recognition has made all his efforts worthwhile.