Etsy's controversy makes us wonder: how do you know it's really handmade?
One of the most successful websites to offer handmade, artisan products – Etsy – quietly changed its policies last Fall and allowed in manufacturers. One year later and the site is flooded with items like $3 wrap bracelets supposedly "handmade" in China. Many of the true artisans on Etsy have seen their business plummet as their goods are much harder to find among Etsy's one-million-plus storefronts.
Even as the movement toward handmade, local, artisan-produced products grows, there is a struggle to define and maintain true handmade status. Etsy broadened its definition of handmade to include "partnering with manufacturers." Yet they still define themselves as "a marketplace where people around the world connect to buy and sell unique goods." The same thing has happened in Italy, where companies selling leather goods are allowed to ship pieces overseas and have most of the manufacturing done there while still using the "Made in Italy" label.
At Marcopoloni, our owners travel to Italy every summer to visit the artisans who make many of the leather goods for sale on our site. We are able to see with our own eyes that these products are truly handmade, and offer that assurance to people who buy from our site. So, if you are looking for true handmade products, you have come to the right place!
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