Does anyone use Etsy to sell handcrafted items?

[espana94]

OK, I need some help from my budget board pals...

DD16 is fund raising for a school choir trip to Europe next summer. She does not want to rely solely on the fund raising that the school is offering and DH and I have told her that soliciting sponsorships from family and friends is not an option. (If she were going on a mission trip or something like that, OK...for a fun trip to Europe with school, no.)

Anyway...

DD makes beautiful bracelets with beads, crystals and pearls. She has decided to market and sell them to finance her trip. She has already sold about 15 pieces to friends and family by posting photos on her facebook page. We are looking for the best place to set up an online shop for her jewelry.

Does anyone have experience with Etsy? Or, what else is out there that she can look into? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for the input!

Espana

 

[justbishop]

Etsy can be a great venue for selling for a crafter just starting out, because it offers so much "window shopper" traffic that she wouldn't have to bring in herself. The downside, though, is that Etsy makes it's money from it's vendors the same way eBay does...with fees per item. I would sit down and do the math to see if the fees she would rack up per month (estimating how many pieces she will likely sell at what types of prices) will be more than she'd pay going with a venue that charges a flat monthly fee for selling an unlimited number of items instead.

That said, if she DOES go with Etsy, I understand that the best practice is to list things one or two at a time, rather than stocking her store up with listings all at once. Etsy searches and category browsing shows items in order of newest added, I believe, so posting things periodically will help keep her in the first few pages of items people are browsing for.

 

[JandJ]

Thanks for the information! I've been thinking about selling on Etsy. I actually set up an account a long time ago, but the legal mumbo jumbo they make you agree to scared me off. I'll have to give it another look.

 

[omghidanielle]

I do! I enjoy it.

I don't know how well that would go for fundraising, because you really have to claim that as income on your taxes. Maybe check with your accountant?

How much does she have to raise?

 

[amoggio816]

She can do flea markets

 

[mena292]

Hello! I have been selling on there since 2008 and I LOVE it! Feel free to pm me for info! Currently they are doing search results by relevancy so it makes more sense to get it all on as soon as she makes items, if they arent online, people don't know they are available for sale!

 

[DizneyDogs]

I sell on etsy and ebay and I actually sell more on etsy but their fees are higher than ebay.

 

[njmom47]

Does your area do craft shows? Sometimes the churches or local organizations hold them and you pay for a table and sell your crafts.

 

[espana94]

I do! I enjoy it.

I don't know how well that would go for fundraising, because you really have to claim that as income on your taxes. Maybe check with your accountant?

How much does she have to raise?

The trip is $3500. She has raised $500 so far, mostly selling bracelets to friends.

I am not too worried about the taxes aspect, DH has a consulting business as a sideline so I am very comfortable with teaching her how to keep her books and document all of the expenses. She won't be making enough to have a significant tax liability. In all honesty, if she found a job to pay for the trip, she would subject to income taxes there as well.

 

[espana94]

Does your area do craft shows? Sometimes the churches or local organizations hold them and you pay for a table and sell your crafts.

We are also discussing that option...Our only issue there is that DD is very involved in a local youth theatre program. She just got a lead in one of their shows and will be rehearsing every Friday evening and all day Saturday through mid-October. That would leave me to run her table at the craft shows.

I'm actually making DD draw up a business plan and flesh out how she is going to earn the money. Once we put down the deposit, she is committed to the trip...I don't want to hit next May and find that she is way short of the goal and DH and I end up footing a large chunk of the trip.

Also, I think this is a good lesson for her in business basics and setting/achieving goals.