Profile of Etsy

Founder/Co-Founders: Who founded the company? Are they still involved in day to day operations?

The site was launched on June 18, 2005, by iospace, a small company composed of Robert Kalin, Chris Maguire, and Haim Schoppik. Later Jared Tarbell joined the team. Former NPR executive Maria Thomas joined as COO in 2008, was promoted to CEO and left Etsy in December 2009. Robert Kalin resumed his role as CEO from December 2009 until July 2011, when Chad Dickerson was named the company’s CEO.

Office/Headquarters: Where is the company located? Do they have a single headquarters, or do they have locations throughout the country/world?

The company is headquartered in the DUMBO area of Brooklyn. There are additional offices in Berlin, Dublin, London, Melbourne, Paris, San Francisco, Toronto, and Hudson, NY.

Investors: Who invested in the company when it was in its start up phase?

Investors include Sean Meenan, Spencer and Judson Ain, Union Square Ventures, and founders of Flickr and Delicious. Union Square Ventures helped raised about $1 million in two rounds.

Products/Services: What does the company offer its users/subscribers? Services, products, consumer goods?

Etsy provides a platform for crafters, and hobbyists to sell their goods. Registration is required for both sellers and buyers who want to engage in transactions on the website. Originally, items that could be sold on the site were required to be handmade and vintage by at least 20 years. However, recently the current CEO, Chad Dickerson, has altered some of the limitations on items listed for sale.

Method of making money:

Etsy makes money by charging a listing fee of US$.20 for each item and getting 3.5% of every sale. The average sale is about $15 or $20. Sale prices of products are determined by the shop owner. They are sent a bill at the end of every month payable by the 15th of the following month.

Revenue:

Etsy’s revenue for 2014 was $195.59 million.

Target customers: Who are the target customers for the company?

Etsy targets creative entrepreneurs located worldwide. The company provides a place for people to make, sell, or buy unique items. Etsy customers can find unusual products which are not readily available elsewhere.

How many current users/customers, etc: How many customers do they currently have?

According to their website, Etsy has a global network of 1.4 million active sellers and 19.8 million active buyers.

How does the company advertise its product/services?

Etsy has created an online community where prospective and existing Etsy sellers are supported. Etsy advertises to enlist vendors to join their marketplace through its website, educational workshops/clinics hosted at the Etsy Labs, and events hosted by Etsy sellers sponsored by Etsy through its “Teams Fellowship Program.” This program provides “Etsy teams” with curated packages that are a great advertising opportunity. Educational workshops and team-produced pop-up shops or craft shows as well as direction and feedback for online promotional campaigns are some of the ways Etsy provides advertising support to its vendors.

Etsy advertises to consumer buyers through its website by posting new product features in the site’s main showcase, blog posts and promotional listings by sellers in the community/forums section. Many Etsy shopping apps such as “Esty-fu,” “Etsy On Sale,” “Smart Etsy,” “Etsy fAn,” “Browsing for Etsy” as well as the “Sell on Etsy App” function as advertising/support tools for vendors and help prospective buyers navigate through the vast Etsy marketplace.

Etsy also has its own press team that works extensively with journalists around the world to share “compelling, unique stories,” provide press releases and special reports as well as create submissions to Etsy’s online News Blog.

Competitors/Competitive Advantage: What companies offer services/products that compete with your chosen company? What sets your chosen company apart from its competitors?

Hoovers has listed the following top three competitors for Etsy, Inc:

Amazon.com, Inc., Ebay Inc. and Craigslist, Inc.

Smaller competitors for Etsy include:

DaWanda, based in Germany, this company’s downside is the 5 percent closing fee on sold items, which is considerably higher than 3.5 percent charged by Etsy. Also all items are priced in euros resulting in foreign currency charges for domestic buyers.

Bonanza is a company that focuses on higher-end clothing and fashion but is considerably smaller than Etsy.

Zibbet, based in Australia and small in comparison, has the competitive disadvantage of all payments settled only through PayPal.

iCraft ,based in Canada, is exceedingly smaller and items are listed in Canadian or US dollars, depending on where the seller is located. Most sellers don’t ship across the border so shoppers must check each item to see if they can legitimately purchase it.

By encouraging “competitive positioning,” Etsy has set itself apart from its competitors by providing a community where “sellers of all kinds are continually trying to satisfy customer needs in innovative ways.” Unlike its competitors who house junk resellers to peddlers of mass produced knockoffs, Etsy has created an alternative marketplace devoted to the sale of handmade and vintage items only.

References:

https://www.etsy.com/about/?ref=ftr “About Etsy”

https://www.etsy.com/careers/job/ooNy0fwt “Seller Education Intern”

https://www.etsy.com/help/article/342 “Teams Fellowship Program”

https://www.etsy.com/community/events/?ref=ftr “Events”

http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/competition.Etsy_Inc.f6a918ae255cc94d.html “Top Competitors for Etsy, Inc.”

https://blog.etsy.com/en/2013/5-steps-to-stand-out-from-the-competition/ “The Etsy Blog: 5 Steps to Stand Out From the Competition” Jeff Shah 3/12/13

http://www.pcworld.com/article/255698/the_5_best_online_marketplaces_for_selling_handmade_goods.html – “The 5 Best Online Marketplaces for Selling Handmade Goods.” Christopher Null, PCWorld 3/18/2012

https://www.etsy.com/press/?ref=ftr “Press,” “From the blog,” “Press Releases, “Reports,” “Press Coverage”

https://www.etsy.com/apps/?page=1 “Apps for Etsy”

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/16/business/media/etsys-success-raises-problems-of-credibility-and-scale.html

Etsy’s Success Gives Rise to Problems of Credibility and Scale By HIROKO TABUCHIMARCH 15, 2015