Why your Etsy shop needs a store of its own

Etsy is a great place to start. It brings buyers who are already looking for handmade things. But everything on Etsy belongs to Etsy: the address, the rules, the search ranking and, above all, the relationship with your customers.

You rent your shop, you don't own it

On Etsy, one change in the search algorithm can halve your sales overnight. A policy update, a suspended account or a new fee is decided for you. Sellers who only sell on Etsy have no plan B.

Your customers are not yours

Etsy keeps the customer relationship. You can't build an email list from your buyers, and Etsy shows them other sellers' products right next to yours. On your own store, every visitor sees only your work, and every buyer can become a returning customer.

Every sale costs more than you think

Listing fees, a 6.5% transaction fee, payment processing and, for sales that come from Etsy's ads, an Offsite Ads fee of 12 to 15%. On your own store you pay a monthly plan and card processing, and that's it.

Your own store doesn't replace Etsy

You don't have to choose. Keep your Etsy shop for the buyers it brings, and send everyone else to your own store: your Instagram followers, your returning customers, the people who find you on Google.

• Your own address, which you can print on packaging and cards
• Your own brand, without other sellers next to you
• Your customers' emails, to tell them about new pieces
• Products found on Google Shopping, not only on Etsy