Many of you have probably heard of Etsy, an ecommerce company which sells many custom items, many of which are handmade. Etsy is "transforming itself from a niche craft-seller website into a launching pad for at-home entrepreneurs."
They've spent the past year creating Etsy Studio, a marketplace launching this April that is dedicated to selling craft supplies, and DIY tutorials. At the same time, Etsy is adding a new service called Shop Manager that will improve the seller experience.It's the company's largest expansion ever. And while Etsy is still dwarfed by the likes of eBay and Amazon Marketplace, the Dumbo, Brooklyn-based company attracts a loyal following of 1.7 million active sellers who reaped $2.3 billion in sales in 2015.
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Etsy Studio will launch with 8 million items, and is optimized to assist makers in tracking down any supply they need—beads, yarn, cut metal—using search functionality that can sort by size, color, material, shape, weight, length, or width depending on the medium. Each listing also estimates preparation time, tells you where the product is shipping from, and offers additional information about whether the supply is handmade or recycled."With Etsy Studio, what we really want to focus on is giving people the ability to find exactly what they need," product management director Tim Holley explained.
The article further explains how people who want to create and sell their own products can do so with ease now. The struggle of finding materials should be alleviated. I think this is a great opportunity for expansion for Etsy, especially because its stock price has dropped since it has gone IPO. The company has been spending quite a bit and revenues have been decreasing, as can be seen in the 10k, but launching Etsy Studio may be just what Etsy needs in order to make profits again. Do you guys agree? Could this be the turning point, or will Amazon drive Etsy out of the market?
