Suz! Inc.

This is Fred Ball for Zions Bank, speaking on business.

Susan Mole has always been creative, but it wasn't until she moved to Tokyo that she became fascinated with Japanese art. She started playing around with Japanese paper and eventually taught herself how to make paper earrings. When Suz!, as her friends call her, moved back to California she wanted a change, so she moved to Park City.

With her artistic flare and deep Southern accent, Suz! opened Washi Originals, a business that sold handmade cards and stationery. Suz! was content with her business until she took a creative glass class in Salt Lake City. She immediately fell in love with the colors and the medium and began creating Christmas tree pins from scraps of glass. The pins instantly became popular, and Suz! knew she was on to something good.

Soon Suz! began making earrings from fused glass, a process that melts layers of glass together by firing it in a kiln similar to those used to fire pottery. She started out with small things like jewelry and pins, and eventually began making bowls, platters and sculptures. Her business quickly outgrew her kitchen, and she relocated to an old warehouse in Salt Lake. Suz!'s husband and son are glad she found another place to make her creations because they were tired of finding glass shavings on the kitchen table and in their food.

In the beginning Suz! sold her work at small trade shows and conferences, and eventually worked her way in to the largest juried show in the nation. She tells me she learned the importance of creating a professional display for her work. Suz! was able to attract dozens of clients, including several large corporations. Disneyland and Disneyworld galleries also sell Suz!'s glass work. Suz! has had offers from major businesses to create her work for her, bidding to take over the production side of her glass work, but for now she's content doing it herself.

For Zions Bank, I'm Fred Ball. I'm speaking on business.