Etsy users are struggling to find everything from glass to boxes on the site, despite chief executive Josh Silverman claiming the site is “immune” from the supply chain crisis.
Sellers however are struggling to get the materials they need for their products and some have been forced to raise prices or discontinue lines.
Silverman said in the company’s quarterly meeting on Wednesday that it was immune from the supply-chain crisis issues that are causing problems for traditional retailers.
Many of the sellers that use the ecommerce platform disagree with his statement however, saying it is not their reality.
“More than once, they have said, ‘Well, you know, we don’t have supply-chain issues because we have all these little, small sellers,'” Etsy seller Cindy Baldassi told Business Insider.
“Well, small sellers have supply-chain issues — do you not understand how we work?”
Etsy’s community forum is full of comments from sellers who claim they are struggling to source materials needed and are worried about their business ventures.
READ MORE: Etsy revenues fall short of analysts expectations
Many of the company’s third-party sellers buy their supplies wholesale from companies that import goods from overseas.
An Etsy spokesperson responded however and said that the company’s survey of sellers found them to be less concerned this year than they were last year with getting raw materials and claimed that most sellers have already stocked up on materials.
“I usually stock up and keep well ahead of my inventory,” another seller said.
“I bought twice as much as I thought I needed for a period of time, waited until we were about halfway through before I checked the website again, and, sure enough, they’ve been out for months.
“I’m really frustrated right now. I cannot find the appropriate quality for my goods. I can find some garbage ones,”
“I’ve not been able to really do anything except realise that I will probably have less income because those products are not available.”
Silverman painted a very different picture of the situation by saying: “The Etsy marketplace is structured differently than many retailers — most of our sellers are businesses of one and don’t rely on just-in-time supply chains to create their unique and handmade inventory.”
“The average Etsy seller works from home without complex overseas production lines and fulfillment requirements, and their supply chain looks a lot more like locally-sourced raw materials and two hands.”
