Etsy CEO on ETSY IPO - perhaps an insight why Etsy after Blugrin?

[2014onEtsy]

Yesterday I put my tinfoil hat, dug out my psychology major and profiler tendencies and stayed home to watch Etsy CEO interview on CNBC.

Here is a video of that interview

http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000371687

I wanted to try to figure out why would Etsy terminate such a valuable tool for 30.000 + Sellers

Here are some observations:


Chad, Etsy CEO comes from IT Background Yahoo Ecosystem, so he must be pretty proud of Etsy's Technology Team as most likely they would fall into his area of expertise. 

- He also might feel threatened by smarter independent developers who single handedly outdo the team of "gurus" he hired for inhouse  Etsy's headqaurters in Brooklyn
- In that interview Chad mentions they recently hired a large number of in house developers focusing on mobile platform and seller interface
- He also mentions that seller services ( exactly what Blugrin does ) are ETSY's largest source of revenue.  Does that mean ETSY needs a larger cut or piece of the pie from Blugrin's subscription?
- I also noted Chad stressed Etsy's continued commitment to sellers. Etsy even created Etsy.Org site and set aside something like $300,0000 to help female sellers in disadvantaged areas.  How does termination of Blugrin app BETSI help sellers?  This appears to be exactly contrary to one of the core principals of Etsy.  I cannot possibly find Etsy's decision to terminate Blugrin's API access to be in any sellers benefit or interest.  Such decision could only benefit Etsy, if it is of any benefit at all.  It will certainly just hurt the sellers.

Yahoo Finance Message boards are perhaps the most active when it comes to uncensored discussion of each stock

http://finance.yahoo.com/mb/ETSY/

Perhaps it would be beneficial if potential investors knew of the way ETSY treats one of it's most successful developers.  I have no problem keeping a thread on that stock forum alive if other users are a game.  Investors - and I am one, need to be aware of things that go beyond the prepared investor statements.

[unnamed]

I suspect you are right--Graeme is smarter than the IT gurus etsy hired.  I believe that Etsy feared Graeme had the potential to see "into" etsy and once etsy discovered this, terminated the app and cut all ties with him.  It's the only explanation I can come up with in my mind to make any sense of how they treated him, the no warning just WHAMMO, bye Graeme, your team, your forum privileges.  I don't even know if Graeme might have known he had this potential but etsy knew it, or at least feared it.  That also would make sense why etsy would not talk to him afterwards about it--in case Graeme really didn't know he had stumbled upon this potential to see "into" etsy, etsy sure didn't want to tell him about it.  I don't know.  But I am still trying to make sense of this subject which doesn't make sense to me.  I hope some day we know what happened.

[anon1]

I don't think there is anything to stop Graeme going freelance and writing scripts for sellers on an individual basis.

It could be simple modules for bulk editing:

Just change titles
Add / remove details to each description
Change prices

etc.

You buy the module that you want.

[2014onEtsy]

That is an AWESOME idea.

Custom Module.  For Each Seller.  I am game  and would certainly love to purchase it from Graeme!

So I would purchase custom module from Blugrin
I would sign up for developer access under my credentials
I would deploy the custom module written for me under my own developer API credentials.

If I needed my developer who provided me with custom module to upgrade it, I would pay my developer upgrade/maintenance fee.  I could purchase yearly maintenance contract, kinda like BETSI membership so I can forecast my yearly expense on custom development.

Brilliant.

[LiveLongAndProsper]

Does Etsy need to allow each developer to have access? And so would they allow it, or are they trying to cut back on all API access eventually?

[Barbra White]

I am particularly disturbed by Etsy's statment that Betsi violated their terms of use.  How is this even possible?   I have been a corporate executive and I am appalled at the actions of Etsy.  They close people's accounts for no apparent reason without even giving them the courtesy of knowing why.  They discontinue apps like Graeme's Besti app when they feel they want to copy it and make money off of it.  Etsy is not the company we made profitable.  I hope Graeme sues Etsy as they appear to have taken advantage of his ingenuity and his app he made.  How can any body trust Etsy anymore. 

I don't really know what this handmade site has morphed into.  My partner and I continually are disgusted at all the shops that are suppose to be  "handmade"  goods. My partner worked as a designer for the company(s) that designed all of Anne Klein, most of Chico's , Guess, Express, etc.  I have designed and sold at several boutiques in the United States.  There are so may items that are listed as homemade that are obviously not that is appalling.  Graeme business was eliminated based on the profits Etsy Management wanted to hijack for themselves.  The management is destroying Etsy by allowing anything and everybody on their site.  Once Etsy announced they were having IPO, they finally destroyed Etsy.  Somehow, someway, Etsy will have to make profits for their investors on the backs of those barely making a living on Etsy.  Look at the statistics.  I contacted Etsy a year ago as our sales declined by 60%.  I wanted to know if we were doing anything wrong.  Their response was since they have 30 Million stores versus 7 million just a couple years ago we are harder to find.  As soon as they changed their policies back in October 2013. everything changed.  One of there top stores that offered knitted an crocheted goods swore they made their handmade items.  Then they omitted to having industrial looms.  Now they saw they embellish goods from India.  I have looked at their listings, I cannot find any embellishments.  This is just an example of what has happened at Etsy.  I would suggest that the handmade community protest and in mutiny go over to another handmade site.  The quicker the better.  Then maybe Chad's IPO would be a disaster and his compensation would fall like many of the Etsy sites.  

[LiveLongAndProsper]

Etsy didn't outright state that Graeme violated policies. It was only implied. Crafty, trying to make us think Graeme is in the wrong.

[blugrinCo]

I can't comment as we are still talking with Etsy.