Our Story | Est. 2015 | Pottery For The Planet

OUR STORY

Where It All Started

Pottery For The Planet began with a belief that everyday objects can stand for something. It was born from the partnership of Renton Bishopric and Clare Botfield, two artists and environmental activists who were drawn together through campaigning back in 2006. What started in a small Queensland pottery studio has grown into a community-driven brand with a national presence and a genuine place in Australia's reusable culture.

Humans making cool stuff. That is still what it comes down to.

Renton

Renton is a second-generation potter, introduced to the craft at an early age in his family's studio, Nob Creek Pottery, which became an iconic part of the Australian ceramics community and welcomed visiting potters from around the world. He spent many nights firing kilns alongside those artists, and his days immersed in the family business. Those experiences continue to shape his approach today: a deep respect for ceramic tradition, balanced with a focus on creating pieces designed to be used every day.

"Single-use mentality is something that society has to move away from as quickly as possible if we hope to create a sustainable future for generations to come." - Renton Bishopric

Clare

Clare was a visual artist, designer, and entrepreneur with an instinct for turning ideas into action. Her connection to the Earth began in childhood, helping her parents run their Australian native plant nursery, and deepened through her involvement in environmental campaigns in her early twenties. She shaped the foundations of Pottery For The Planet from its earliest identity to its creative direction, and she did it with the kind of energy that made everything feel possible.

Clare passed in 2024. Her vision continues to guide us, and her legacy lives on in every piece of pottery we make.

A SEED IS PLANTED

Renton and Clare established their first pottery studio in Central Queensland. Around this time, Clare witnessed firsthand the scale of single-use cup waste while working as a barista. That experience sparked the idea for a reusable alternative: something practical, beautifully made, and designed to replace the takeaway coffee cup. What began as a simple concept soon took shape through collaboration, experimentation, and a shared belief that small, everyday changes can create lasting impact.

TAKING ROOT

Renton's work "Coal for Breakfast?" won the major prize in the Queensland Regional Art Awards. Clare and Renton used the prize money to invest in what would become Pottery For The Planet.

OUR FIRST STUDIO

The couple set up Clare's Cinnabar Soul storefront in the vibrant hinterland town of Eumundi, and established Pottery For The Planet's first studio in a friend's old horse stables.

THE PATH TO GROWTH

The team grew for the first time when Stephen Roberts joined to contribute his throwing skills to production.

That same year, the first Travel Cups were created. The timing was significant. The ABC's War on Waste series was about to go to air, and its launch created a shift in Australia's attitude to single-use products that drove rapid demand for the Travel Cups. Clare and Renton had found a way to use their creative business to continuously move consumers toward more sustainable choices.

In true entrepreneurial spirit, Clare created the branding, shot every photo, and taught herself to code to build the first Pottery For The Planet website herself.

Where We Are Now

Today, Pottery For The Planet is a community-driven brand with a national presence. From our studio in Noosa, within the UNESCO Noosa Biosphere Reserve, we design and produce ceramics that are used and loved across Australia and beyond, through more than 500 stockists and our own online store. What began as a small idea has grown into something much larger: not just a product, but a genuine shift in how people think about the everyday objects they choose to keep.

WHAT WE STAND FOR

SUSTAINABILITY

We design products that help replace single-use habits, while continually working to reduce our own environmental footprint. That includes operating on solar energy, using recycled and repurposed packaging, and pushing toward more responsible production at every step.

Crafted

Every piece that leaves our studio is made by skilled hands. No two are exactly alike, and that is not a flaw. It is the whole point. We exist to create pottery that is functional, beautiful, and made with real intention. The imperfections are the story.

Commitment

We hold ourselves accountable to our cause. That means acting transparently, pushing ourselves toward better practices, and not taking the easy path when a more responsible one exists. We are not perfect at this. We just keep going.

Education

Change starts with awareness. Through our products and our community, we aim to inspire more conscious everyday choices.

Grounded

We are connected to place, to material, and to real people. Based in Noosa, within the UNESCO Noosa Biosphere Reserve, on Kabi Kabi and Gubbi Gubbi Country, we are shaped by where we come from. We are proudly Australian and genuinely grateful for the community that has grown around what we make.

What We Are Working Towards

We want to make choosing reusable feel like the obvious thing, not the effortful thing. That means continuing to develop products that make single-use easier to walk away from, from Travel Cups to Travel Bowls, and creating pieces designed to be kept and used for years rather than discarded. We are also committed to reducing our own footprint as we grow, from renewable energy and waste reduction to more responsible production practices.

We are not finished. But we are committed to the work.

Stay Connected

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok at @potteryfortheplanet, visit us in person at our Noosa or Eumundi showrooms, or sign up to our newsletter to stay across new arrivals and updates.

HANDMADE

Crafted from our hands to yours

UNIQUE DESIGN

Every product is one-of-a-kind

PLANET FRIENDLY

Every order removes plastic from the ocean

REUSABLE

Perfect alternative for disposable products

WHAT WE STAND FOR

Let customers speak for us