![\"Etsy](\"http:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/wp-content\/uploads\/Etsy-Chad-Dickerson.jpg\")
<\/a>Although Wired<\/em> business reporter Liz Stinson calls the policy change \u201ca fundamental shift in the company\u2019s DNA,\u201d Etsy never intended it as such. The changes were meant to relieve sellers whose businesses had grown so much they could no longer handle production on their own. The old policies regarding manufacturing were unclear, leaving many sellers to avoid the use outside assistance\u2014subsequently stunting their businesses growth\u2014for fear of having their store shut out by the site.<\/p>\n Despite the change, Etsy CEO Chad Dickerson wrote in a blog post October 15 that \u201cthe one-person shop is still the heart of Etsy, and one-of-a-kind items, vintage treasures, and craft supplies all have a place in our marketplace.\u201d Many of these one-person shops, however, saw it as a betrayal of Etsy\u2019s original values, a blasphemous shift in ideology.<\/p>\n The policy change has allowed sellers to flood the site with mass-produced merchandise.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n A number of sellers also complained about knockoffs, and multiple stores selling the same \u201cone-of-a-kind\u201d product; one Ottawa-based seller, who also shops on the site, described looking for a purse and finding three images, side by side, of the same bag. Most of these sellers saw it as a sign it was time to pack up and move on.<\/p>\n In the weeks and months after Etsy announced these changes, Stinson says the Australian e-commerce site Zibbet saw its transactions double, as the site positioned itself an alternative to Etsy. Zibbet was opening its arms to those \u201cpissed off\u201d sellers looking for a new home.<\/p>\n Stinson says, \u201cPeople were like, \u2018What the f*@k? If Etsy is not going to uphold this ideal of handmade, then I\u2019m going to go somewhere else that does, somewhere that puts the makers first.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n The initial outcry faded quickly after the most outraged sellers left the site. But a year later, as the dust settles, the question remains: Has Etsy passed the point of no return?<\/p>\n Samantha Brazeau-Wilson, who runs Birch Jewelry on Etsy, says she doesn\u2019t like to think so, but has doubts about how long she can wait for proof the company\u2019s decision was the right one; she says she saw her sales plummet after the policy changes, and they still haven\u2019t bounced back.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are many benefits from supporting the handmade community, but not everyone sees the advantages,\u201d she says. \u201cIt comes down to convenience, availability, and price. Someone who uses an outside manufacturer will more than likely come out on top over someone who takes the time and effort to create something themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n This crafting-disadvantage is not the only drawback of the company\u2019s new handmade policy. Sellers must apply to Etsy\u2019s Integrity, Trust & Safety team to have their chosen manufacturer approved, and while the company does review the seller\u2019s role in the design process and their relationship with the manufacturer, Etsy does not vet the manufacturer themselves. It is the seller\u2019s responsibility to choose the type of manufacturer they\u2019ll partner with. This gap in the policing of manufacturers has allowed sellers to flood the site with mass-produced merchandise.<\/p>\n If Etsy sellers and manufacturers are caught falsifying their product by the Integrity, Trust & Safety team, their store will be shut out. But according to a number of sellers, there is no system in place to prevent such sellers from opening a new store under a different name.<\/p>\nLittle guys are losing<\/h2>\n