Reshape Ceramics is the ceramic studio behind the Pura plate collection .
Reshape Ceramics is a company like no other. Before embarking on ceramics, she first worked to help the reintegration of former prisoners through her NGO Reshape.
The purpose of this social project is to reduce the recidivism rate of people who have been in prison. How ? By training them in the profession of ceramist, inside the prisons themselves.
In this interview, Inês, COO of Reshape Ceramics, tells us more about this company created to change perspectives and futures.

How was Reshape Ceramics born?
"Reshape Ceramics is a project of the NGO Reshape, created in 2015 in Lisbon (Portugal). The vision and mission of the association Reshape is to provide good conditions and support for the reintegration of people who are or have been incarcerated. At the end of 2020, we launched Reshape Ceramics, which is the social enterprise of the NGO.”
Inês, could you introduce yourself?
"I did a Masters in Management and specialized in social enterprises. I really wanted to put the management skills I acquired, as well as my analytical mind, at the service of projects and social problems.
In 2019, I did a thesis at the Gulbenkian Foundation , with Reshape as my main subject.
After that, the Gulbenkian Foundation offered me to continue working at Reshape Ceramics bearing the financial cost for two years. My main mission was to ensure the financial viability of the organization. I started as a Project Manager in January 2020. Currently, I am the Operations Director of Reshape Ceramics. "

Why did you choose ceramics as a means of reintegration?
“What happened was that we found a ceramics workshop in one of the prisons we were working with through the NGO Reshape. Everything was in place and working, but it was not used.
This is very common in prisons here in Portugal. They have many spaces that were once workshops. Those detained were required to perform forced labor. In the past, there were more companies and NGOs carrying out projects inside prisons thanks to higher public budgets than today. But then, because of the image and the complexity of the administration, the companies stopped working with the prisons. The prison system itself did not have the resources to maintain these activities.
So, when we discovered the ceramic workshop, we decided to set up an example to show that it is still possible to have a production inside a prison. This approach made it possible to hire these people, train them and give them a decent salary. And this even if we had no ceramic experience!
One of the quotes we use most often here is: “We don't hire people to make ceramics, we make ceramics to hire people. »
Our main objective is to create real training and employment opportunities, and to empower these people so that they do not fall back into the context and the situation which, most of the time, leads them to the type of crime that they committed.
Reshape Ceramics artisans can leave prison with the money saved working with us. Since there is no minimum wage in prison, we decided to pay them the national minimum wage. By doing this, we hope to be able to serve as an example for other companies. Then we help them find a place to live, and sort out all the things that come up when they get out of jail.
So ceramics appeared because of this opportunity. When we started, we had no idea what we were getting into.
Fortunately, we were able to evolve quickly thanks to our partners and volunteers. They helped us to design the first collection, to decide on the colors and the logo... Thanks to this, we were able to quickly hire a professional ceramist. Currently, we work with two recognized ceramists who share the work. They design parts, provide training and help with production management.
Pura dinner plates , soup plates and dessert plates , ready for quality control.
How many people work for Reshape Ceramics today?

Currently, we have a first person who has finished serving his sentence and who is working with us in the workshop. He was part of the first group we recruited in 2019 when we started training, and he is the first person to have completed the program in its entirety.
We also work with 4 artisans inside a prison, four other people in the workshop, and we regularly welcome interns and volunteers.
Each time a person is released from prison, we replace them with another individual who has already completed the training.
How is the training going?
"We select artisans based on their motivation, the importance of this professional opportunity for them, their ability to ensure the safety of the people working with them, and the risk of recurrence. It is estimated that out of 10 people who enter prison, 6 of them will return. This means that prison itself creates a higher risk of recidivism. Maybe we should change a few things in this system.
The first part of the training includes 16 sessions of social skills: how to communicate, how to express your feelings in a healthy way, how to identify your feelings and show them to others.
Then we do a ceramics workshop in 7 sessions. It is a more artistic training and focused on their personal visions. We teach three ceramic techniques, and at the end they are invited to design a piece from A to Z. After that, we organize an exhibition to show their pieces.
At the end of the training, each employee of Reshape Ceramics interviews and classifies them. We then cross our results to select them.
One of the things we want is for everyone who works with us as an artisan to know how to make a product from start to finish. For example, the person in the workshop must know each stage of production. The people inside the prison switch positions to learn all the techniques. This ranges from the creation of the molds that we use to create our plates, our cups, to the trademark registration on our products and packaging, through the molding of the pieces with stoneware. "
What types of products do you manufacture and what are your inspirations?
“We use liquid stoneware as a raw material. We changed supplier very recently to only work with Portuguese materials.
The first collection was designed by José Oliveira, an anthropologist designer. His specialty is understanding how humans interact with equipment and tools. So our idea for the first collection was to create classic and useful pieces, which could fit into almost any home, and have different functionality depending on people's lifestyles. For example, our flat plates are quite large, so some people use them as a serving dish. "

What are the actions implemented by Reshape Ceramics to reduce your impact on the environment?
"When we created Reshape Ceramics, we thought about the impact of this social project on the environment. Even though it's about craftsmanship and small processes, it still creates emissions and waste. We have examined the production chain and identified the main problems.
First, we recycle all of our stoneware during the process. We have created a three-piece collection for the bathroom with recycled stoneware, in partnership with the Portuguese store Do Zero. Each piece that breaks after being fired is sent to a company that manufactures building materials with ceramics. And for parts that have too many flaws to sell at the regular price, we sell them at a discount.
We also use electric ovens powered by green energy.
We do our carbon offsetting informally. We calculate internally the amount of greenhouse gases we have produced and we donate this amount to reforestation projects or similar projects. "
Sandstone is recycled at each stage of production: before firing, it is kept and reused to create new pieces, after firing, it is kept and sent to a construction company that uses sandstone to manufacture its building materials.
What is your favorite part of your job?
“My favorite part of this job is the people. I don't have to put in a lot of effort. very privileged to have this life. And it makes me very happy to know that just by doing my job, I am helping other people get a job as well. For example, we had a session for the first time with a accountant who was teaching our beneficiaries how to file their taxes. For some of them, it was the first time they had to do it. They get money, they pay taxes, like normal people."
Is there a future project / collection / event you would like to tell us about?
"I am going to share an exclusive with you: we will be launching a brand new collection very soon. It will be a small collection, with 2 or 3 pieces, always made with stoneware. Our idea is to offer a different collection from the first one which is very symmetrical. We wanted this one to look more organic.”
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