Range of Etsy Sellers, originally uploaded by maile&justin.
Artikalnyc hat, Rosy dark chocolate orange fudge, Gudonya solid perfume, Katsai short sleeve tunic, AshleyG print, Fossa Designs (me) Earrings
Yesterday, the writers of the Elsewheres Blog posted the outline of their discussion for last night’s Design*Sponge meetup for female independent designers. Their topic was pricing, and they said something that caught my eye.
Lastly, remember that context is important. Be wary of putting your products into any milieu that doesn’t set the bar as high you would. Customers, buyers, and journalists will all make judgments about your brand based on the company it keeps. If you’re an indie fashion designer, does appearing on the same web page (or store shelf) as homemade fudge send the right message about your products, your business, or your brand?
Granted, they have a bias, being an online shop themselves, but this sounds a lot like Etsy, yes? And I love etsy. I sell there, and I find it to be a wonderful and supportive collection of people. In fact, the Indie community in general–from the many indie blogs, to flickr groups, to craft fairs–is something I love. If I have to distance myself from that in order to increase my prices, I’m not sure it’s worth it.
And yet we all want to sell the things we create. Do you buy from Etsy? Sell? What’s the solution?
Box vs. Indie 
February 21, 2007 at 12:03 pm
I think it’s old-fashioned snobbery, the same that used to keep designers from opening a shop below 14th Street, or allowing a piece to be sold in a mall.
These are the people that still Don’t Get the internet. There’s nothing more “Generation C” than Etsy — it’s user-created, tagged, cheap, and awesome. Pooh-poohing it for sharing space with pedestrian wares is missing the big point: selling on Etsy is cheap, but it’s Google-able and bloggable and Flickr-able.
And, believe me, the boutiques and the art world are watching.
(I sell on Etsy with my girlfriend at ashleyg.etsy.com . It’s replaced our day jobs, and it’s opened a world of opportunity we never would have seen by sending samples to buyers and art directors. Thanks for the picture up there!)
February 21, 2007 at 1:35 pm
It’s great to hear that coming from seller(s) who’ve been so successful on etsy.
Reinforces a belief that already felt right.
February 26, 2007 at 12:51 am
I think that *might* be true in the context of a single shop. For instance, if you were selling high fashion design next to homemade fudge–they probably aren’t going to attract the same target market.
However, etsy is so broad that you could spend hours browsing any single “niche” be it high couture or DIY.
This goes back to the repeated discussions on the etsy forums about advertising to bring in your own customers and projecting a professional image.
Any buyer who would skip over etsy entirely because of a single offensive shop is throwing the baby out with the bathwater. (Not to mention probably new to the great wide world of the internet)
Etsy really reflects the diversity in the art community–there truly is something for everyone if they just take the time to look.
February 26, 2007 at 7:48 am
Thanks, MrsDragon.
Those are good points. Most people that shop on etsy probably do stick to whatever niches fit their interest. Type ‘garnet’ into the search box, and you’re just not going to end up with fudge.
And I think you’re right distinguish between users new to internet shopping and those who have been at it for a while. Anyone who’s been online for more than a minute can see the success of Amazon.com, and they certainly have both fudge and high fashion–and nobody seems too worried about that.
March 1, 2007 at 9:02 am
I’m also an Etsy seller.
I arrived here battered and bruised from eBay where I was selling my artwork for a fraction of the prices I get regularly on Etsy (.99 cent ACEOs, anyone?).
Etsy was a God-send for me and for many other day-job-havin’ part-time artists. I finally have a reasonable market for my artwork. With a lot of hard work and persistence, I also feel like I could turn it into a full-time job if that’s what I want. However, like Ms Dragon pointed out, this will take a lot of work on my part to bring in my own customers.
Etsy is just the market, we still have to bring customers in the door.
March 2, 2007 at 9:58 pm
This sounds like snobbery to me as well. If you shop at any of the malls on Michigan Avenue in Chicago you can buy hot dogs and fries or sushi on one floor and then pick up a few things a Hugo Boss on another. And if you’re not hungry, you will either smell these food vendors or see them when you do. When you shop on Etsy, you don’t have to see the items you’re not interested in. BTW – there is now an Etsy Luxe group for artisans who price their goods above $40.00.
March 30, 2007 at 3:00 pm
I love the whole democracy of shopping, the internet, and etsy. I honestly travel less now to buy more. As an etsiest(is that a word),artist and as a professional educator
( I lecture Humanities & have an MFA) I think it’s worrisome that commerce creeps up so much in creative enterprise. If you study artists, you’ll see that not too many of them cared a whit about “branding” or “image.” They just did their work and the rest (income, prestige) followed. However, if you are in this for business sakes, get an image, a brand, and an MBA but you may have to stop calling yourself an artist if you are too busy worrying about where and who buys your work and not so much the ideas and emotion behind it.