Etsy Opens Wholesale Online Venture

Etsy is expanding its online presence to include retail and wholesale business.

Forbes is reporting that Etsy, an online store that specializes in one-of-a-kind and handmade items, has opened Etsy Wholesale. Etsy is aiming to attract both small and large wholesellers by making their service member-based. Each member would pay an initial, one-time $100 fee to join, then 3.5 percent of each transaction thereafter would be collected.

Vanessa Bertozzi, Senior Program Manager at Etsy, believes this would be a very good seller-buyer marriage.

“It’s very exciting for us to think about these wholesale buyers — independent boutiques, museum stores, specialty shops, gift stores — as a new type of member on Etsy. Through Etsy Wholesale, we offer a platform for buyers and sellers to build relationships while also providing tools and special opportunities for them, as well,” Bertozzi said.

She continued:

“Etsy has become a beacon of authenticity, supporting the idea that buying something doesn’t need to be a nameless, faceless act of consumption. Etsy Wholesale supports this whole ecosystem of retail where independent retailers are curators that bring their point of view and expertise into their local communities. An example of this is Mockingbird Domestics, an Austin-based retailer who uses Etsy Wholesale and is focused on sourcing directly from her local community. The tools on Etsy Wholesale enable her to source independent designers across the US from the convenience of her own small in Austin, Texas.

“Etsy is taking several steps to promote its wholesale marketplace. This week, for example, it is showcasing its Etsy Wholesale Pavilion in New York at the NY Now, the Market for Home + Lifestyle trade show at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. 24 of the merchants who participated in the Etsy Wholesale beta test will display their products in the Etsy Wholesale Pavilion.

“The pavilion will also provide a cyber lounge where retailers will have online access to all wholesalers selling on Etsy’s e-commerce site. In addition, more than 70 Etsy wholesalers will be exhibiting independently at the New York show.”

Internet Retailer is reporting that since Etsy Wholesale has now completed an initial beta-testing and found that both Etsy and Etsy Wholesale can create store integration, meaning that retailers and wholesalers can sell seamlessly to both retailers and wholesalers alike.

Etsy merchant Moxie & Oliver, which sells items like leather wallets and guitar straps, has started selling through the wholesale section and has found it easy to manage product listings for wholesale as well as retail customers, Moxie and Oliver owner Caitlin McNamara says.

“I love the integration of wholesale into my retail shop,” McNamara explained. “It’s making my life so much easier to manage my listings on both platforms.”

Etsy is taking several steps to promote its wholesale marketplace. This week, for example, it is showcasing its Etsy Wholesale Pavilion in New York at the NY Now, the Market for Home + Lifestyle trade show at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. Twenty-four of the merchants who participated in the Etsy Wholesale beta test will display their products in the Etsy Wholesale Pavilion.

The pavilion will also provide a cyber lounge where retailers will have online access to all wholesalers selling on Etsy’s e-commerce site. In addition, more than 70 Etsy wholesalers will be exhibiting independently at the New York show.