Resources for Etsy Teams

A Guide to Team Shops

Team Shop / Group Shop Guide
This is a set of guidelines for Etsy Team shops, primarily compiled from the Do's and Don'ts, Terms of Use and the General FAQ. For more information on Etsy Teams, including what Etsy Teams are and how you can join, please visit the Team pages. This list is intended to be a set of guidelines and terms that cover issues and considerations specifically brought up by Team or group shops. Group shops, like all Etsy shops, must abide by the Do's and Don'ts and the Terms of Use for all Etsy members.

For more information about selling on Etsy, please check the Selling FAQ. While group shops and Team shops are allowed, you organize and run them at your own risk. Please be aware, when the new Community Section with improved features for Etsy Teams launches, the Team shops program will be re-evaluated. Since there will be many other useful tools for Etsy Teams when these new features are launched, we may discontinue our allowance of Team shops at that time.

Etsy Team Accounts
Etsy Teams, like individuals, can either have a profile account (a buyer account) or a seller account.

Etsy Team Buyer Accounts:
The advantage of having an account for your Etsy Team is the ability to generate an Etsy Mini to be placed on members' blogs and other websites, generated from the account's favorites. We think this is a fabulous idea, and a great tool for marketing your Etsy Team's items and shops.

• Do use an email account dedicated specifically to the Team that several team members have access to, and be sure to use a password that's difficult for others to figure out, but easy for Team members to remember when setting up the account.

Etsy Team Seller Accounts:
The advantage to setting up your Etsy Team's account as a seller account is that, in addition to generating Etsy Mini's, you can sell items that the Team has made and generate income to offset the cost of outside advertising, events or other group activities for the Team. However, there are many considerations to keep in mind when setting up a seller account for an Etsy Team.

Opening a Team or Group Etsy Shop
As you probably know, running a successful Etsy shop is no small task. There are many consideration to keep in mind before jumping into a Team shop. We recommend working together as an Etsy Team and getting to know your fellow Team members for a length of time before opening an Etsy shop, to determine how you best communicate and work together effectively.

Set-Up Considerations
To designate an account as a seller account on Etsy, you must associate a credit card number with the Etsy account, for the purpose of paying bills incurred by the account. The team should decide carefully how to handle this, as likely it will be one individual's credit card which is put on file with the account, since Etsy Teams typically do not have joint bank or credit accounts (as they are not formally organized or recognized by governments as a business or an organization). The card holder of the card which is on file is responsible for payments, and all late penalties that apply to regular shops apply to Etsy Team or group shops.

• Do understand that multiple people sharing one account can be complicated.
• Do be up front about each person's role in your shop; add that information to your public profile.
• Do decide on guidelines about how payment is to be accepted for items sold in the shop, and what is to be done with this money after it is received. If your Team plans on using Paypal, do some research on the Paypal site to find out how an account can be accessed by your Team there before accepting payment with it.
• Do make alternate plans for shipping and collecting payment in the event a Team member cannot fulfill their responsibilities to the Team shop. All members should have complete contact information of other members involved in this process.
• Do have a clear plan and budget for money collected as payment for items sold in the Etsy shop. Be sure all Team members are aware of this plan and budget.
• Don't ask Etsy to mediate disputes between multiple people fighting over the same account.
• Don't expect Etsy to split bills between partners or otherwise offer special services to group shops.
  

Shop Management Considerations
Your team must decide what and how it is going to sell items.
Team shops can sell items donated by Etsy Team members or items made collaboratively by the Team. Items made collaboratively by a Team would also fall under the category of a Collective. Please see the Do's and Don'ts for more information on selling as a Collective.

• Do disclose all members who have access to the Team shop account in the Team shop profile, and be sure all members disclose this access in their individual stores, as required by the Do's and Don'ts.
• Do follow all Etsy rules when running the group account. Breaking any of Etsy's rules will result in account suspension and/or termination. This includes all of your accounts by virtue of association, even if it is a group account. In other words, Etsy suspends the use of the site for a person, whatever account name(s) you operate under. A rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.
• Do decide an organized system for shipping sold items. The items can either be collected and shipped from a dedicated Team member who has volunteered to handle shipping, or can ship from the individual seller who made the item. Clear communication is required when the shop is opened among its members how orders will be processed and shipped.
• Don't buy from a Team shop that you have password access to - this is considered buying from yourself, which is shilling feedback.
• Don't list the same unique item in multiple accounts on Etsy - Team members cannot list a unique item both in their shop and in the Team shop.
• Don't be a reseller. A reseller is a person who sells unaltered items they have previously bought, often at a markup. This includes items which were handmade by someone other than yourself to whom you have no personal relationship. Be sure any promotion items (promos) that are for sale in your shop are handmade.

Overall, we want your Etsy Team Shop to be a tool to help your Team accomplish its goals. If you have questions, please email support@etsy.com, teams@etsy.com or check in the Forums, the FAQ's and the Do's and Don'ts, as you would with your own individual shop.