Asheville-Before becoming an entrepreneur, Alex Mattis received formal pottery training.

Mathis completed his apprenticeship in 2009 and set out to make his own pottery, which he called "a gloomy old tobacco farm in Madison County."

By 2013, Matisse, his spouse Connie and John Vigeland founded Dongcha Pottery and operated a traditional wood-burning kiln to make ceramic products.

Now, the three co-founders are now in charge of a company with 120 employees, which has just completed a $3 million Series A financing led by Pentland Group.

In an interview with WRAL TechWire, Matisse said that this investment will result in a major capital improvement in the company's two facilities, as well as increasing staff and employment opportunities.

Mattis said this is not inevitable. This takes time, and Mattis describes it as a "big left turn" in the way the company operates.

The company expects to produce and sell 350,000 ceramic products this year and increase its output to more than 1 million next year.

"We have experienced the Industrial Revolution in about four years," Mattis said. "This is a crazy journey, and it's not always easy."

Co-founder of Dongcha Pottery. The image of Dongcha pottery.

Matisse said that ceramics are "popular" again. At the same time, consumer behavior is shifting to e-commerce, which has led to an emerging direct-to-consumer approach that companies can use.

"We have completely changed," Mattis said. The first major decision: to transform their production from a traditional wood-fired kiln to an automated kiln with technical support from the Netherlands.

Next, the company launched a new updated website and expanded its offerings.

Then, Mattis said, the first round of seed funding from angel investors was interested in the long-term prospects of the company and its founders, Mattis said. This allowed the company to expand to its first factory, which occupies 14,000 square feet and still operates part of the manufacturing and production operations.

Matisse said: "We are a group of energetic and passionate people who are trying to do something different." "We are interested in building a company for the family, just like Patagonia built for the outdoor industry. ," he added.

Not only is the company's facilities — they have expanded from their initial location to another 30,000 square foot facility — relying on automation and advanced manufacturing technology, the company is integrating technology into its functions.

"We are embracing the new technology of e-commerce," Mattis said, noting that the company executes its own fulfillment business internally. Matisse said: "We sell most of the products online, we manufacture and manufacture ourselves."

"We have just invested in a series of new technologies to simplify the process," Mattis said of the internal performance of functions.

As the demand for e-commerce channels continues to increase, the company has also achieved accelerated growth. As demand increased, Matisse and his co-founders considered other capital expenditure investments they could make to increase manufacturing capabilities.

They decide to invest in technology and invest in their employees.

"We have adopted a lot of technology in the manufacturing process," Matisse said. "We believe that embracing automation is the only real way to provide people with a paid life," he pointed out.

Mattis said the company has recently obtained the Welfare Company or B-Corp certification and is one of the newest such companies in the state. However, Mattis pointed out that the name is a by-product of the company's focus, and the company is building a company that ensures its employees earn a living wage.

Mattis said that the current starting salary is $20 per hour, and pointed out that next year the starting salary will increase to $22.50 per hour.

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According to a document from the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the company will receive US$3 million in funding through Series A financing.

Matisse said part of this money will be used to increase manufacturing capacity and install two additional furnaces in the new plant.

"We are constantly going beyond the space we are in," Mattis said. "We have been able to achieve our goals without affecting customer acquisition," he added, noting that the company is "accelerating our customer acquisition flywheel."

He pointed out that this was because they chose to invest.

"Our production capacity increases with all the new equipment and new investments we have made," Matisse said. "The investment we are making now will allow us to produce 1 million pieces of pottery each year," he added, which will make the company one of the country's top three tableware manufacturers, he said.

"We are introducing a series of new equipment," Matisse said. "Some of the most advanced molding machines that money can buy."

The company also plans to invest in a formal product department so that it can manufacture and produce various white-label products corresponding to its core product line. It also adds a large plate, additional cups, additional vases, and more. , "Continue to improve the current collection," Matisse said.

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But this is just the beginning of Matisse's vision for the company.

Mattis said the company plans to invest US$1 million to increase its in-house clay manufacturing and clay recycling capabilities.

"We are very excited about protecting our supply chain by investing in all these equipment."

For Matisse, this is about economic stability.

"The more we control," he said. "We will be more stable."

"Currently, we buy clay from the roadside," he explained. "But we rely on other people to complete the most important part of our process."

Matisse said that the introduction of this function into the company, such as the company's fulfillment center, will significantly save costs and strengthen control. "Our process requires a specific hardness, so we will be controlled."

"Right now, our North Star is profitability," Mattis said. "We are not going to be a company with sales close to $1 billion but still burning money."

Mattis said that after making these investments, the company still has room for growth.

"Our goal is to enter the new campus by 2025," Mattis said. "From our factories to hand-made studios, on-site nurseries, event spaces, restaurants, and other smaller spaces that provide shared resources for other companies dedicated to manufacturing, there is everything."

"If possible, we hope to do this through debt financing," he pointed out. "But I believe that we will raise funds at some point. There are a lot of funds that are interested in putting funds into its value. We are a good candidate and we need to provide liquidity to our investors."

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