You can sell handmade online via your own store built with a platform like Shopify, on third-party marketplaces like Amazon and eBay, with niche sites like Etsy and Big Cartel, and on social media sites like Instagram and Facebook. You can also sell handmade items wholesale to other businesses.
Where is the best place to sell handmade items in the UK?
Folksy is the largest handmade selling site in the UK and is known for having a great community of buyers, as well as sellers offering support and advice to each other. You can list your first three items for free, and each additional item costs £0.18 (plus a 6% commission and VAT).
25 Places To Sell Your Crafts Or Handmade Products Online
Is there a better place to sell than Etsy?
Amazon Handmade
It also offers a higher level of customer service than Etsy, with Amazon's customer service team available to assist with any issues that may arise. To sell on Amazon Handmade, you must have a Professional selling account, which is $39.99 per month.
While Folksy offers less features than Etsy, it still provides enough functionality to build a basic store. Some standout features are: Unlimited product listings with Folksy Plus. Opportunity to feature listings on Folksy's social media, newsletters and blog Posts.
Not all areas of business require a licence. When it comes to crafting, there are very few areas in which a licence is essential. If you are working with and selling alcohol, food or have a business premise that isn't your home, you may need a licence.
What is the best selling platform for handmade items?
Etsy. Etsy is the number one online market place for handmade products, with 5.3 million sellers (2022) worldwide with over 88.3 million buyers! It's the best-known global marketplace for unique and creative goods from unique handmade products to vintage treasures.
While Etsy is undoubtedly a more niche marketplace well suited to smaller businesses that sell handmade, creative, artistic, unique and vintage products, eBay can potentially work for any seller because of its massive reach and vast diversity of inventory.
Shopify is a great place to sell your handmade items because there are no marketplace fees and you own your customer list while having more control over your business.
- sell a large number of brand new items, including items with tags (second-hand items which are in a “new” condition may be sold on Vinted provided that they are unique pieces); - sell items you made as hand-crafter and/or designer.
Shopify is the better choice for e-commerce businesses that sell manufactured goods, since Etsy's niche is handmade goods and handicrafts. Shopify is also a better fit for high-volume sellers, since its transaction fees are quite a bit cheaper than Etsy's.
What is the Law for Selling Handmade Items in the UK? To register as a sole trader, you must be self-employed and have your own business. You don't have to register the name you are going to trade under, but if you want to stop people from trading under your business name you'll have to register it as a trademark.
Amazon. Amazon is the most popular and successful eCommerce website right now. It could very well be the best place to sell things online because of the sheer number of buyers who visit Amazon. 23% of all online shoppers start their search on Amazon before buying anything.
As touched on above, you do not legally require public and product liability insurance to sell at a craft stall. However, it is a good idea. If, for example, a member of the public trips over your stall and becomes injured, this cover will protect you.
Do I need to register my craft business with HMRC?
As a new business owner, you'll also need to deal with HMRC. It's important that you register as self-employed so you can pay your taxes. Then you'll need to keep up with tax deadlines for your business, filing your tax return and paying your bill on time (including corporation tax if you establish a limited company).
Check-list for Starting a Craft Business: Register as Self Employed with HMRC. Obtain any permits or planning permission that you may need from your local authority. Contact your local authority to find out whether you need to pay Business Rates.
Listings last for 120 days (approx. 4 months) unless the item is sold out or the quantity is reduced to zero. You can re-list items before their expiry date, up to once per day.
It is free to join Folksy – there are no sign up costs and you get your first 3 listings for free. We charge fees for listing items (there are two ways to pay listing fees, outlined below), and we charge a commission fee when you sell an item.
Similar to Etsy, Amazon Handmade has fairly low seller fees. There is no monthly subscription fee (unlike a normal professional Amazon seller account), no listing fees (unlike Etsy), and a 15% per-sale fee (compared to Etsy's 6.5% fee.) Customizable shop.
Did you know that 61% of sellers on Amazon Handmade are making more than $1,000 in sales each month? That's quite an achievement! And the best part is, with Amazon's huge customer base, there are countless potential buyers just waiting to discover your products.
Etsy collects a 6.5% transaction fee in your indicated listing currency for every sale you make. Once a customer purchases from your store, the transaction fee will automatically process for Etsy Payments users. Etsy's transaction fees are a percentage of the total cost of the product, shipping, and gift wrapping.
