Long article (seven pages) in the New York Times covering the online craft marketplace Etsy and the broader movement towards handmade crafts. The article looks at crafting mostly from the point of view of the craftsmen - actually the vast majority are craftswomen - and nicely captures many of the reasons people are starting small and personal craft businesses. Values play a role, but it is more than values. Key quote:
"Meanwhile there is also the more salient matter of how to make a rewarding, meaningful and satisfying living without having to give up on those ideals. The women who have led the craft movement don’t want to work for the Man. But many are also motivated by having reached adulthood at a time when the Man is slashing benefits, reneging on pensions, laying people off and, if hiring, is looking for customer-service reps and baristas. This is not a utopian alt-youth framework; it’s a very real-world, alt-grown-up framework."
The article also does a nice job of explaining the importance of the Internet to the growth of this business. It also has updated numbers on Etsy's business - over 70,000 sellers and more than $4 million in sales in November alone.
The rapidly growing craft market reflects the convergence of multiple trends. Consumers are increasingly looking to buy local and/or handmade items (see our prior posts The Emerging Buy Local Coalition and The Handmade Consortium and Mass Customization). Craftsmen and women are increasingly looking to - or needing to - start small and personal businesses. They are starting these businesses to satisfy their artistic interests, create an income stream, and often to work in a manner than reflects their values (for more on this see our forecast report "The Changing Face of Entrepreneurs). Key quote on this from the article:
".... Making a living from what they love to do. It’s a goal that reconciles ideology and self-branding, not so much to change the world as to stake out a place in it."
The third converging trend is technology. As discussed in the article, the Internet allows these new artisans to reach buyers much more effectively than before. The second technology driver is new production and manufacturing technologies and methods are making it much easier for craftspeople to build things. We will cover this in more detail in our next forecast report.
Converging trends is a clear sign of rapid growth and we expect this market to continue its strong growth over the next decade.
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