History.

In 1977 Anthony Morris came home from England, where he had learned to make pots under Robin Welch. With his wife, Sue James, he bought land at Matakana for its clay deposits and its closeness to the Auckland market.

The site came with two old kauri buildings: a sports changing room from Warkworth and the old Matakana Village bakery. They built a wood-fired kiln big enough to drive a tractor into, and by 1978 were making large garden pots and floor tiles. That year they held the first Labour Weekend Sale, with around a hundred pieces. By the 2000s it offered some six thousand.

Ant’s interest was in ‘intermediate’ technology: simple machines that free the maker from drudgery without replacing the maker. He combined wheel-throwing with new methods to make bigger, more consistent pots, and in 1984 brought a vertical extruder from Western Australia. The same year, fire destroyed most of the workshops. The pottery rebuilt, and the extruder stayed at the centre of production right up to closing. In 1985 ceramist Mike Rose arrived, and with him the coloured glazes that became Morris & James.

“Our products are made with pride and delight, to be enjoyed with pride and delight.”

By 1988 there were showrooms in three cities and more than thirty staff. Then, in 1990, the lifting of import restrictions and other pressures pushed the company into receivership. A cattle truck was loaded with pots and driven to Auckland; staff went from thirty-five to twelve; suppliers stood by. The company traded its way out.

What followed was growth of a different kind. Hand-decorated ranges from 1992. The café in 1994. New buildings through the decade, factory tours from 1998, and the Modern Range, with Molten, in 2004. That same year Anthony suffered a severe stroke, and in 2009 the staff, led by General Manager Kieran Rice, bought the pottery.

Under staff ownership came the XL glazed pots, Kiwiana, the Roulette range and the Collection Room, and a very busy few years through Covid. In July 2025, after the property and then the business had been offered for sale without success, the decision was made to close. Production and sales ended in November 2025.

“It was great to arrive at work and to drive down the avenue of trees to the pottery,” Kieran wrote. “I feel confident however that our work will continue to bring colour and joy into homes throughout New Zealand (and further afield) for many years to come.”