Back in 2015, I was researching the best e-commerce platform for selling my art and crafts. I knew about Etsy’s existence and had an account as a customer (not as a seller); however, the store’s set-up seemed complicated, the fees were intimidating, and the lack of coding or customizing the website prevented me from selling there. That is until I stumbled upon Storenvy.

What Is Storenvy

Storenvy is an e-commerce platform that catered, back then from what I remember, to artists (illustrators, fashion designers, and musicians), crafters, independent brands, and merchants focused on thrift stores (apparel) among other creatives to show and sell their unique creations. A curated platform launched between 2010 and 2012. Besides being an online store builder, it is also combined with a social marketplace.

What Makes It So Special?

There are several things that I used to love, don’t get me wrong, I don’t hate it, it is just I’ve grown so much that it no longer suited me, yet it became my first store and I have fond memories from my college days era.

• Dedicated and responsive staff whenever issues arise.
• It has a user-friendly and clean interface, and allows you to navigate your dashboard.
• With the free plan, you can list up to 1000 20 items for free in your store.
• Code your storefront with “liquid language” (open-source template) with HTML, CSS, and Bootstrap.
• The “Hobbyist Plan” (free) has an integrated marketplace and cart abandonment function.
• Choose your monthly subscription plan to enjoy exclusive, powerful features and promotional services such as discounts, BOGO, and more.
• You can opt in between selling on the storefront and/or marketplace (you keep 85% of the income).
• A platform that is community-driven by engagement between users and foster values such as authenticity, creativity, and community.
• Flexible Product Guidelines: Storenvy’s less restrictive product guidelines allow for a wider variety of merchandise, opening doors for sellers who may find Etsy’s rules limiting.
• Potential for Less Competition: Although Etsy and Storenvy have similar niches and cater to similar audiences, Storenvy makes it easier to stand out with those unique, versatile brands due to their flexibility with their payment plans and customization of the storefront.
• Amazing tools for marketing, analytics for traffic, cart abandonment, review system, and much more!

Working With The Dashboard

This may seem complicated and intimidating, but I can assure is pretty easy to navigate since it’s user-friendly, simple, and clean. Everything is organized by section, detailed with several analytics (for each function), but overall it contains useful guidelines and explanations of each protocol.

Pop-Ups & Announcements

When I used to operate my Storenvy, it drove me nuts the constant pop-ups and the sounds it made whenever I tried logging into my dashboard. I can’t remember if there is a button to disable it, but is the only thing I can think of as annoying.

These pop-ups and announcements serve as reminders for promoting their plans and special events, where you can join (with your products and depending on the theme) to increase traffic and sales.

What Fee Does It Charge?

The good thing about Storenvy is that you have multiple options to earn money by opt-in to their services with different fees, structures, and functions. It accepts PayPal and Stripe as payment services. Remember that credit card processing fees will be deducted from your orders regardless.

Marketplace – they charge a 15% fee commission per transaction promoting your products in their marketplace and, possibly, the front page.

Storefront – you’ll keep 100% of the income, however, the storefront handling fee is 6% for each transaction. In this case, you can have the option to deduct it from your transaction or charge it from your customer’s orders.

Managed Marketing – they charge a 25% commission fee when you opt into their marketing program. The marketing team will study your products, analyze data, and search or target customers visiting sites like Google, Facebook, and Opensky to increase your sales by advertising.

Engage Email Services – they charge a 15% commission fee that works as a marketing tool that sends reminders and discount codes to customers whenever they abandon their cart via email. This tool works on both your marketplace and custom store traffic.

The Downside

• 1x Free Template – Storenvy has one official basic free theme called “Copper”.
• Few Plugins – Some free, limited, useful plugins can be integrated into your store.
• Basic E-commerce Features – You get access to the basic functions and analytics compared to a WooCommerce of Shopify.
• Recognition – Even if the site has stood still for years, it does not possess the same recognition and awareness as Etsy or Shopify.
• Small Niches – Even though Storenvy is composed of a variety of versatile, unique merchants from specific niches, it cannot compete with the bigger, important targeted audience (crafter) from Etsy.
• Marketing & Promotion System – Although Storenvy does offer great marketing tools to boost your sales and increase your traffic, unfortunately is nothing compared to Etsy’s system and marketing tool. When I was in Storenvy I did struggle a bit and the only I could sell was by doing manual labor with my expertise and tools for successful transactions.
• Basic Coding – You can only customize your storefront with some basic HTML, CSS, Bootstrap, and “liquid language” templates with limited tools. Yet, it’s nothing compared to having your website integrated with WooCommerce and having flexibility in tweaking functions and codes.

Why I Was Never Fond Of Etsy

Besides the lack of flexibility in coding (I just learned the “Pattern” tool exists on Etsy for custom websites which are free for 30 days only), constant pressure for sellers and clients, and the complexity of the intimidating fees, other stuff stood out. For years, I’ve been hearing horrible stuff that rang alarms due to the lack of control of these specific services that I’ve never experienced in Storenvy, such as:

• Lack of human-staff support whenever the AI system suspends, closes, or lists off something from your store by accident or bug. All my interactions with Storenvy support staff were always met by humans.
• Automated refunds to clients whenever they escalate or dispute an order due to not reading the instructions, remorse, or fraudulent transition, yet the seller pays the consequence if unable to tackle the situation with Etsy’s staff support.
• Search visibility impact gets compromised by Etsy constant pressure if free shipping isn’t offered, or having no control of wrongful/mistaken rating reviews by clients.
•  The ever-raising mandatory fees such as the Set-up fee (one-time $15), Listing fee ($0.20 per item), Transaction Fee (6.5%), Payment Processing fee (vary based on the seller’s location with a 3%+$0.25 per transaction), Offsite ads (high volume sellers of 10k sales with a 12%) Currency Conversion fee (2.5%) and Regulatory Operating fees (varies).

My Opinion About Etsy

Honestly, for me, Etsy is all about them contrary to the dedication to their sellers. Sure, everything keeps evolving, adapting to new challenges, and they can raise their fees to make a profit and maintain their business while dealing with capitalism. I think any platform, the majority, will think about their corporation first and then their audience/consumers. It’s very rare to find a company that truly cares about its community and makes balanced decisions to decrease any negative impact on its consumers.

But Etsy seems unstable each year, and with so many battling these challenges, it has become clear I don’t want to be part of them as a seller. Some sellers have remained unaffected by Etsy’s decision and have thrived in the long run, yet that’s not the same situation for others. Each to their own.

Conclusion

Remember, any third-party platform (Etsy, Storenvy, Big Cartel. Ko-Fi, Square, PayPal, etc.) has, unfortunately, any right to cease your operations or account regardless if you are just a client or a store owner. Any scammer, suspicious ethical practices, and absurd policies can exist on these platforms; they will have the final word on what stays and what does not.

In my early days in Storenvy, things did run smoothly as a client and store owner, especially when I encountered issues within their site. I’m aware that it’s been 4 years now since I left for a self-hosted website with more autonomy and creativity (visually as technically). Just because I did enjoy it a few years ago, doesn’t mean it will be the same experience for others. Is about taking risks and dealing with the consequences.

For anyone who is looking for flexible options, loves to code, and can coexist with a “less competitive” niche, then Storenvy is for you. However, to avoid paying for extra services or subscriptions, you may need to market and promote your products organically on your own.

Thank You For Reading!

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