We are Malibu Ceramic Works (MCW), and by we I refer to myself and my father. My father started this business in 1979 as part of the master craftsman revival movement; with the aim to revive and recreate the lost art of beautiful handmade tile. This classic art form stems from the local tile manufacturers that once flourished in the early part of the 20th century, e.g Malibu Potteries and Catalina Pottery. With its origins dating back thousands of years to the Moors invasion of Spain, MCW continues this ancient tile making tradition in the rapidly changing, contemporary landscape of modern design and construction.


Over the past 36 years, MCW has established itself as a local art treasure in Topanga and surrounding Malibu. We pride ourselves in how we make our tile, completely by hand. From the cutting of the clay to the painting of decorative pieces, it's all done by skilled, patient hands.

Managing an artistic business has its difficulties like every other business. And over the course of the last 36 years, MCW and my father have encountered many struggles including hostile takeovers and bankruptcy. Yet, incredibly, he never tires nor gives up on his love of making tile. He merely buckles down and pushes through the difficulties to fight another day.

My father has invested an immeasurable amount of time and all of his life savings over the past 15 years to grow and expand the business. Taking it from the brink of collapse about 20 years ago, after the hostile takeover, through the Great Recession and out the other side. When many other tile companies failed, MCW survives to this day because of the will and determination of my father. He is an inspiration and a mentor that I learn from every day.


Sadly, business and cash flow continue to be unstable preventing us from doing much needed upgrades and repairs to our factory's infrastructure. The common stresses are building yet again. My father is in his seventies and should be retired, instead he works 7 days a week to keep this company going. Orders have become less consistent and less profitable, which of course, inevitably restricts funds, which then restricts repairs and causes additional problems.

The recent storms that came to California caused a large leak which short circuited our factory's electricity. It has been in darkness for 5 days now. No work can be done in the darkness, and the repairs required to get us back online are very costly. In addition, the generator costs money which we do not have.

I am trying to raise money to repair the electricity in our factory, to buy a generator and to do other long overdue maintenance and repairs. Anything you can give towards us getting business up and running again, is incredibly appreciated. It will ease many major stresses faced in daily life for myself and my father, who has no idea I'm doing this. Thankful doesn't even cover how grateful I'll be to solve this problem quickly and painlessly.

This company creates such amazing pieces of art and really does deserve a step up.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read our brief story. I hope I managed to convey the situation we have which seems to be increasingly difficult.

Here is some more work we have done in the past. Just to show you how beautiful our handmade ceramics are: 









Thank you again.