I was sitting at my work table in my studio this afternoon, listening to the Vermont Public Radio app on my speaker. That’s where I heard about the Etsy Strike.
Sellers on Etsy were striking, closing up their shops from today until April 18th, in protest to the latest increase in transaction fees.
I hadn’t heard about the strike, so I looked online to get the details. Fees went from 3.5% to 5% in 2018 and now are going up to 6.5% on each order. (there are other fees for each sale including listing fees and credit card fees).
In the article, I found a link to the Cancel the fee Increase Petition and I signed it. Then, I closed my Etsy Shop till the 18th in protest and support.
I use Etsy as a convenience. Almost all of my sales come from my blog. I understand Etsy has to make money and they have fees for their services. But they have made record profits in the past few years and it seems an unfair way to treat the people who are making that money for them by raising fees.
There are other things besides the fees that strikers are looking to change. You can read about them here and sign the petition to stop the increase in transaction fees. It has over 57,000 signatures already and can be supported by both buyers and sellers since it potentially affects us all.
I did mail out all the orders that came into my Etsy Shop over the weekend and I will continue selling my work on my blog.
I’ll have some Little Hope Potholders by the end of the week and during the week I’ll be putting the Abstract Hotpads I made last week up for sale. Etsy definitely makes it more convenient to buy my art. But this strike feels like the right thing to do so I’m glad to take part in it.
Thank you for this info
I rarely do anything thru Etsy.
So grateful you are open to selling through your blig still. My preference.
I have also added my name to the petition
Thanks for adding your name DawnMarie, I will be selling on Etsy again. They do make it easy. I’d have to put in a shopping cart system on my blog to sell efficiently there. But we will do what we can, Maybe this will make a difference.
Maria- Thank you for supporting the ‘strike’ against Etsy- it’s an unfair fee increase, and one they do NOT need!
Thanks Bridgett.
Added my name, I did not see any notice about the Etsy strike elsewhere. Of course, when I search I see articles. I am still annoyed that they were going to ban your account when you started making masks many moons ago. Am glad that you can sell off your blog.
Thanks for signing Sharon. I’ll be back on etsy again. It really does make selling easier for me. I did get an email from the saying my shop was back again even though it won’t be till the 18th. Not sure what that’s about.
Thank you for telling us about the Etsy strike Maria. Both my husband and I are Etsy buyers so we support the strike and signed the petition. I do notice most of your art never makes it to your Etsy shop. We feel bad for Etsy sellers and so hope they get the needed signatures!
I do sell a lot of my art on my blog, but for the smaller pieces and reproductions, it’s the easiest way to sell them. I am fortunate that I’m not dependent on Etsy to sell my work. Thanks for signing the petition Joan.