Will matching artisans and manufacturers secure Etsy’s future?

The artisans who bring their unique designs and products to the Etsy online marketplace should be able to think bigger. That’s what the site’s management is hoping will happen as they work to bring together vendors, many of whom make their products by hand, with manufacturers that can help ramp up production levels.

A new division known as Etsy Manufacturing will debut next week when manufacturers begin to create profiles as part of a beta of the initiative. The goal is to develop an online roster of suppliers that artisans can search to find potential business partners.

Chad Dickerson, CEO of Etsy, said one of the biggest issues facing the marketplace is that sellers begin to see sales ramp up, but then find they simply can’t handle increasing demands. With the new venture, Mr. Dickerson is looking to help artisans find production help while staying true to Etsy’s mission of putting community before profits.

Etsy Manufacturing

Source: etsy.com/manufacturing/apply

"Manufacturing can be very different from what people think of it to be. It can be everything from a seamstress or a caster or a single woodworker," Mr. Dickerson told The New York Times. "We want to reach those manufacturers."

While Etsy does not plan to audit individual manufacturers, it does require them to provide information to ensure they meet the site’s ethical standards. The marketplace is encouraging designers to conduct due diligence about manufacturers’ business practices.

Etsy completed a $3.5 billion IPO back in April and is operated as a Certified B Corp, that includes pledges to adhere to social, environmental and transparency guidelines set by independent certifier B Lab.

BrainTrust

"Etsy’s genius is the artisans and the unique products they create. Etsy’s challenge is supply. Most sellers only have very limited quantities. Etsy Manufacturing could be a real difference maker for Etsy and the artisans selling there."

Chris Petersen, PhD.

President, Integrated Marketing Solutions


"Management of the program will be critical. With the potentially wide array of participants, they will have to ensure the quality and legitimacy of their manufacturers."

Ralph Jacobson

Global Retail & CPG Sales Strategist, IBM


Discussion Questions

What do you see as the pros and cons of Etsy Manufacturing? Will putting designers together with manufacturers change the nature and quality of Etsy offerings?

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Chris Petersen, PhD
Chris Petersen, PhD
8 years ago

Etsy’s genius is the artisans and the unique products they create.

Etsy’s challenge is supply. Most sellers only have very limited quantities.

Etsy Manufacturing could be a real difference maker for Etsy and the artisans selling there. Even when handcrafting something, there are principles of organization which streamline production and increase output. Pottery comes to mind. There are more efficient ways to fire and glaze pottery than to do it one item at time.

Etsy Manufacturing will work if they respect the talent and creativity of the artists. Most will resist mass production that diminishes their unique style and craftsmanship.

The key for Etsy’s future is preserving the differentiation of unique items that can be found nowhere else on the web, with enough supply to keep core customers coming back to shop.

Ralph Jacobson
Ralph Jacobson
8 years ago

Management of the program will be critical. With the potentially wide array of participants, they will have to ensure the quality and legitimacy of their manufacturers.

Craig Sundstrom
Craig Sundstrom
8 years ago

Though I wish them well, it sounds like this company is beset with fundamental identity issues. While many of the craftspersons who signed up no doubt adhere to the “community before profits” ethos, methinks many of the investors who laid out $3.5B—really?—are thinking more along the lines of “community, as long as it doesn’t stand in the way of profits!” Principles are always easy to stick with, until something gets in the way.