In an interview with Yahoo Finance, Josh Silverman, CEO of Etsy has said they are investing $600 million in marketing this year to keep Etsy on the mind of consumers.
Despite Silverman’s assurance that consumers are still coming back to make purchases on Etsy post-pandemic, many sellers have reported seeing their sales drop. This is likely due to the uncertain state of the global economy with people having less disposable income to spend. Although this is the case, Etsy still maintains strong growth as it satisfies a need for unique, handmade items. As people avoid spending out like they did during the pandemic they begin to crave things that mean more.
I would say that during the pandemic, people shopped on Etsy because they had to shop on Etsy, What felt so great is people are coming back again and again now with limitless choice. They’re coming back because they want to shop on Etsy.
Josh Silverman, CEO, Etsy in interview with Yahoo Finance
In the discussion Josh Silverman made references some of the investments already made, including better support for buyers and sellers as seen in the new Etsy Purchase Protection Program. Support on Etsy is something that has seen vast improvement since the marketplace first launched. Etsy also launched a new seller app this year which aimed to make it even easier for sellers to run their businesses on the go.
There was also mention of the recently imposed fees which caused an uproar among Etsy sellers. Josh Silverman states that these fees will be implemented back into the platform for the sellers as a part investing the $600 million.