E-Commerce has changed the definition of selling and buying in the present world. With the pace at which E-Commerce websites are booming, the world will soon become a digitally dominated place.
As there is an umpteen number of websites available, people tend to get confused between several websites, for instance, Etsy and Redbubble; both are useful in selling your art but are intrinsically different.
Key Takeaways
- Etsy specializes in handmade, vintage, and unique items, while Redbubble is a platform for independent artists to sell their designs on various products.
- Etsy sellers manage their inventory and shipping, whereas Redbubble handles production and shipping for artists.
- Redbubble focuses on print-on-demand products like clothing and home décor, while Etsy offers a broader range of product categories.
Etsy vs Redbubble
Etsy is a marketplace for handmade, vintage, and unique goods. Etsy is majorly focused on handmade and vintage items. Redbubble is an online marketplace created for artists to sell their original designs printed on various items or products. Redbubble is focused on printed designs.
Etsy is a website that allows buying and selling art, handicraft, etc. Etsy allows the seller to supply from their catalog, this ensures that the seller quotes the shipping charges, price of the product, etc.
As readymade unique artifacts are sold, the procedure of customization and designing is not required.
On the other hand, Redbubble is a website that is a boon in every artist’s life. It allows artists to test their art and designs on products like t-shirts, phone cases, mugs, etc.
The seller needs to upload his designs on the website and create a unique personalized logo. As customization is involved in this website, sellers need to be cautious about the design dimensions, color contrast, and several other parameters.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Etsy | Redbubble |
|---|---|---|
| Founded on | 18 June, 2005 | 2006 |
| Founders | Jared Tarbell, Chris Maguire, Robert Kalin, Haim Schoppik | Peter Styles, Paul Vanzella, Martin Hosking |
| Description | Website to buy and sell unique artifacts, handicrafts, etc. | A website that provides print-on-demand products |
| Personalization/ Customization | No | Yes |
| Type of Product Sold | Ready-made articles | Intricately Designed items |
What is Etsy?
Aforementioned, Etsy is an E-Commerce website based on buying and selling of handmade/ handicraft artifacts with no personalized touch.
As there is no step of designing the product, the seller can sell it through his/ her inventory, thus can quote their own price, shipping charges, etc.
Owing to the developing technology, setting up an Etsy shop is the easiest step. It involves 5 step registration, formulating the product list (limit up to 10 items), quoting the price/ bill, mode of payment, etc.
The product list must be elaborate and descriptive, otherwise, the product will be rejected. It requires the seller to upload a good quality photo of the product which serves as the thumbnail, the detailed description about the product including history, product price, etc.
As the products are directly supplied by the sellers, the platform does not demand a base price for the products to be sold, so the entire profit goes to the seller directly.
The website provides a pricing tool to aid the seller in quoting the price of the product.
The only minor issue arises if the seller is not able to produce the products on their own, as a solution the makers of Etsy came up with tools like Production Partners, so sellers can choose their partner, provide their share, and share the workload with them.
Originating in the 2000s, the entry of the website Etsy has changed the E-Commerce scene, on the whole, people around the world can capitalize on their artistic abilities or the unique vintage artifacts they possess.
Websites like Etsy are now analogous with top E-Commerce websites like Amazon, Flipkart, etc.
What is Redbubble?
As mentioned above, Redbubble is an E-Commerce website that allows buying and selling print-on-demand items. The products on this website are perfectly designed and customized.
Sellers need to upload their designs with perfect contrast and dimension and they can also virtually check if their design works on certain products like clothes. It is a website perfectly designed for budding artists, graphic designers, etc.
Setting up your shop on Redbubble is quite easy with a series of simple steps beginning with registration, uploading the design with perfect dimensions, the website also demands the seller to upload their details, social media links, to contact them in case of any query with the available design.
The last step is the same in all websites is deciding the mode of payment.
As the step of personalization is involved in Redbubble, it demands the seller to perfectly design offline based on the product in demand, for instance, a t-shirt or a hoodie, and then upload it to the website.
The designers need to be extra cautious as the design should be perfect in concern with the product, wrong dimensions and designs will lead to the rejection of the design.
Every product listed on Redbubble has its own base price, which will be deducted from the seller’s account if the product is sold. The customers on Redbubble will witness the combination of a base price and product price as the MRP.
Presently, Redbubble has umpteen production centers in The United States, The United Kingdom, and many other prime countries. This allows faster shipping and fewer shipping charges.
The introduction of Redbubble has proved to be a blessing in many artists’ lives.
Main Differences Between Etsy and Redbubble
- Etsy is an E-Commerce website based on buying and selling handicrafts and unique artifacts whereas Redbubble is an E-Commerce website that focuses on buying and selling print-on-demand products.
- The products on Etsy are ready-made and not customized while the products on Redbubble are customized/ personalized designs.
- The products on Etsy do not have a website base price, on the other hand, the products on Redbubble have a Redbubble base price.
- Etsy allows the products to carry the seller’s customized brand, in contrast, Redbubble does not allow the seller’s brand and publish the Redbubble logo on their products.
- Etsy charges a specific amount for every product to be listed on their website, whereas Redbubble is a free and accessible platform and has no subscription fees.
References
- https://search.proquest.com/openview/626463abccb8d08ead1bd8fdf42236ad/1pqorigsite=gscholar&cbl=18750
- https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/symposium/2019/all/57/
Last Updated : 14 July, 2023
I’ve put so much effort writing this blog post to provide value to you. It’ll be very helpful for me, if you consider sharing it on social media or with your friends/family. SHARING IS ♥️
Chara Yadav holds MBA in Finance. Her goal is to simplify finance-related topics. She has worked in finance for about 25 years. She has held multiple finance and banking classes for business schools and communities. Read more at her bio page.
