Magickal Realism

I’ve been on Etsy since October of 2006.  With a memory that predates Internet time perception, under ordinary circumstances I’d likely still refer to myself as a newbie. But the way Etsy is set up, I’m a veteran there. The only thing preventing me from wearing the old-timer label is that the date on my shop opening says 2005 and not 2006. And while I admit it took a little legwork to understand the entire concept of Etsy, I pretty much got it - it was a place to sell the stuff I make myself. It was not the place to sell the weird stuff I found on thrift shop runs that I knew some other nut would want.

You know, the entire handmade thing.

This is why I cringe whenever I see someone write about Etsy saying “It’s like eBay for handmade stuff.” Etsy bears no resemblance to eBay. The only thing these sites have in common is that you can buy stuff at each of them. Beyond that, there is no more similarity between Etsy and eBay than there is between JCPenney and Etsy.

Handmade items are a niche, oft forgotten and neglected since the days of the Industrial Revolution. It’s not that we don’t still benefit daily from handmade items - most of us completely forget that while machines produce our textiles, the majority still need someone physically at a sewing machine, stitching the clothes shapes into wearable clothing. Way back in the day - back, in this case being less than 10 years ago - eBay was actually a decent place for handmade artists to sell. I was off eBay long before it priced cottage industries right off of its pages so I wasn’t around for the sad downfall, but from what I hear, it was ugly.

The people that designed Etsy weren’t old enough to legally have an eBay account when that all happened.  Sure, they all know what eBay is, but they aren’t looking at it as the shining commerce example to emulate that other businesses do - while Etsy as a company may be guilty of reinventing the wheel at times,  all that wheel rolling is a good sign that they’re not looking to eBay as an example.

They’re certainly not inviting eBay philosophy over to their site.

Where eBay’s principle is “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” Etsy’s philosophy is “bring your treasures to those who would treasure them.” Etsy, when used in the correct spirit, is about finding genuinely unique items made with care that are made with care and treated as though valued.
Etsy is a place for treasure hunters, not bargain hunters.

So when exploring Etsy, here is the mindset to have in mind:

• Is this something that fits with my household, lifestyle or aesthetic?
• What can I genuinely afford?
• Who will I be supporting?
• Who do I want to support?
• Is this a skill I respect?

Etsy removes both mass marketing and a good chunk of anonymity in a transaction. It’s not about consumption. It’s definitely not about trying to get off as cheaply as possible.

It’s about treasure - by inviting buyers to put their money on exactly what they truly value.