9 Etsy Shop Ideas That Can Make More Than Your Job 

“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty." - Winston Churchill $$

The 9 Etsy Shop Ideas: 1. 3D Printed Cookie Cutters 2. Resume Templates 3. Bridesmaid & Groomsmen Boxes 4. Pet Portrait Prints 5. Gender Reveal Decorations 6. Instagram Highlight Covers 7. Map Prints 8. Nursery Decor

Just a small technicality: if startup cost is low, it should get a *higher* star rating 😅 Same with skills required: low skill required = higher star rating

Like your videos especially the one on Etsy shops vs expectations. Although our shop has cut back about 25% from last year we still are fans of selling on Etsy yet we do realize that fees start to add up. As one of the original shops that sold Stickers before the big explosion clearing 3 to 400,000 a year we replicated a brand new shop not having any entry on the Etsy market about six months ago and was able to bring the sales to about 20% of where we are now within six months. It takes a lot of patience but I think your videos are extremely well done and directly to the point

very cool vid! One minor suggestion is that you might want to reverse how you did the stars. That would be more intuitive to me at least (i.e. 5 stars means it's easy and everyone can try, 1 star means big barrier to entry)

You’re the first Etsy RU-vidr I’ve found that talks about barrier to entry. My son is an economist and he says if the barrier to entry to too low the business is on a trajectory to fail, the lower the barrier, the sooner it will fail. This is so important to understand at the beginning before an entrepreneur makes their first move

I'm curious if you use other social media to drive your sales to your etsy shop. I've seen small etsy businesses blow up overnight on TikTok. Even just doing order packing videos might gain additional traffic. Just a thought. But thank you for this video; I stalk youtube waiting for your content because I find it so valuable and inspiring. Thank you!

I do handmade soaps and candles and it's really not that expensive. Moral to the story is you want your candles to smell extremely well you may have to put a dab more of scent into it. As for the soap you want to make sure that it's good quality soap. It's always nice to throw in something that is a form of an exfoliator and one or more that is something that will moisturize your skin as well. It really doesn't cost that much and all it takes is about 4 months to become somewhat of an expert. It takes time and patience and if you take your time and pay attention to all that you're doing I can promise you you will prevail and your money will be coming in. Beware there is a lot of competition out there so don't be stingy when it comes to doing the very best you can because after all you want to be the best out there don't you?

You fail to recognize just how SLOW 3D printers are. A shop making anything in any numbers requires a printer farm.

Hey just wanted to fill in here. I make candles and will soon move on to soap among other things. To fill in costs to get started, there's testing involved, which can take some time to get the hang of. Between filing for my LLC and Trademark, that was a cost of $500 combined, plus another $500-$1000 for materials to make the products. Not to deter anyone, but it definitely costs way more than people let on. By far, not passive, I make all of the design work on Photoshop. I use Avery label to make the tampletes for printing labels and can either print them on sticker paper at home or have the company print and mail.

I like the way that you rate everything business model on three different category. It really is very practical and easy to understand

You're one of the most genuine youtubers I've seen! I can tell if someone is randomly giving out etsy advice just for attention/money, but you seem to really care about your audience and giving out helpful advice. Thanks Tim

There is no way anyone is making genuine custom pet art with that many sales unless they have a massive team of artists. It's most likely some automatic conversion process that takes the photograph to make the art.

I like that you’re being so transparent, so I thought I’d share two business ideas I know of via friends that I’ve never seen anyone share: - bachelorette / bachelor party decor: my friends sister made around 300-500k in her first and second year selling things like p*nis straws and other adult themes silly decorations for bachelorette parties. She buys her things from overseas in bulk and sells them in individual boxes or by individual items... she started at home and the hardest part she says is shipping everything on time... but after she got it down and so many people ordered her stuff (really basic stuff but she’s even had celebs order online) her husbands quit his job and they kee outgrown my the business warehouses they buy. It’s crazy! Baby/kids birthday cards digital templates/ my sister will get a theme in mind fir a birthday (unicorn or dinosaurs for example) and buy a template online where she can just click and update her address and kids name and print them locally at a store on nicer paper or even just at home. They’re like $3 a template and digital and easy to use but those people have like 5,000+ reviews on each birthday card design and have 30+... that’s a lot of passive income! It’s obviously easier said than done, I’m currently in need of money and watching this video so it just goes to show things are never really as passive as they seen, it takes a lot of time and research and organization and skill to get all pieces of the puzzle together to do these things and no easy feat

Another great video Tim! Staying curious and finding inspiration from unlikely sources are great practices for entrepreneurs! I really enjoyed the way you breakdown each option! I have definitely had ideas that are just not practical to pursue- gotta balance the excitement with realism😄

Can you talk about advertising costs? Because I'm pretty sure these shops don't become visible and popular just by creating them and putting them out there, that's generally not how online commerce works! The market, no matter which one you enter, is saturated and finding a way to stand out and/or tweak the algorithm is a MUST. What did you do to get seen and how much did you spend?.

Such a wealth of information so well-presented. You are a very engaging speaker and so upbeat. I think I’ll give my Etsy shop a revamp and a second chance. Thanks for the inspiration, Tim!

So glad I've found u! I'm planning to start my etsy shop and these are the most helpful videos I've seen I'd love to see your takes on sometging another than buisness just because of your geniuine vibe ♥️ much love and blessings 2 u

3D printing food safe products require more work than just printing them. Regardless of the plastic 3D printing leaves a lot of tiny layers sand voids for bacteria to grow so you'll have to coat the print with something like polyurethane or shellac. Shellac needs to be reapplied later on since it'll wear off. Polyurethane, once fully cured, is food safe and will last a very long time.

What a video bro! Can't thank you enough! Thank you so much you made life so much easier!

your star rating system is hard to understand

This is a good informative video. As someone else says further down on the comments, Part 2 needs to be how to promote and advertise these shops effectively

Just subscribed. I like your straight-to-the-point presentation, cool, calm, and collected demeanor, and your knowledge. You obviously do your research and share information in a relatable way. Thanks so much! Look forward to using this info and see what I can do on Etsy.

why didn't i discover your channel years ago?! Your content is insane!

I opened my store almost 2 months ago and still waiting for my first sale.❤

You have to think about being business consultant, you have a pretty way of convincing people, and you attract their attention to hear you... 👏

A great Adobe Photoshop alternative is Affinity Photo.

Hi Tim, thanks for sharing all of this information, it is truly selfless and so kind(: I'm an animation artist myself and hope to soon start up my own sticker business! Finding the time to start has been quite difficult for me as I do work 2 jobs, but I want to make this business work. I'd love to see if you have any new advice on starting up an Etsy shop and time management when it come to having a side hustle. Looking forward to your future videos! ~ Monica(:

I have a soap and candle company.I learned both crafts by my mother who made soaps and candles my entire life! I used to spend my summers helping her. I established my company back in 2001 when my mother handed me her recipe books. I feel so blessed. I have an Etsy,a Shopify and an Amazon hand crafted account. I do A LOT of events and marketplaces to get my name out there, & that does help to drive traffic to each site. 👍😁 publicly

J.P. Getty said to become wealthy, sell something that people consume, use up, wear out, and must buy again. The example he gave was toilet paper, even though he was in the gas and oil business. Most of these Etsy ideas are a one-time purchase. You buy the cookie cutter once and use it for 10 years. Maybe you’d use the résumé every time you changed jobs, so once every 3-5 years. I have a friend who made those fizzy bath bombs, but found most people don’t take baths as much as showers, so she switched to making shower related products. Her business got much stronger after the changeover. For the laser cutter, many libraries have the machines and will teach you how to operate and maintain them.

I appreciate you for sharing this, excellent!

I had no idea embroidery kits were that popular! I started an embroidery shop on Etsy but the turn around time took me too long. I wonder if I should start selling kits 🤔 thanks for the video!

Brilliant and very inspiring! Thank you for sharing your valuable research!

"I've always had a problem finding exactly what i like to do in life" Oh yeah this guy is me

I have a digital products shop and I currently get about 1 sale every other day (15 sales total). Almost all my sales are from 1 listing. How do I get traction with my other listings? Thanks for your videos!!

Your videos inspire me. Thank you!

What video editing softeware are you using?

Just curious, are u still holding on your full time job?

Super interesting and diverse ideas, and I really appreciated your commentary on each one. However, your use of the 5-star system was very confusing because you used it in two different ways. Typically a 5-star system is for rating something according to satisfaction or "worst to best" but you used it as a sliding scale of "low to high" for Startup Costs and Skills Required, while sticking to the traditional "sucks to excellent" rating for Passiveness criteria. It made for a confusing metric when trying to evaluate and compare visually.

Great ideas! The Glowforge is super easy to use, though, compared to some of the other lasers... if that's the niche you wanna get into. It was literally like a money-printing machine, we couldn't keep up with orders!

I love your videos, always great information and advice. Many thanks 🙏💕

Your star ratings are confusing as to whether the positive scale goes up or down. 🤔

Good ideas, but as an embroiderer myself I had to laugh at your suggestion. It takes hours just to do a small embroidery project like those. Let alone the design aspect and translating a physical design to digital. And that is for someone like me that has been doing embroidery since I was a kid! Wouldn’t recommend it as a quick and easy income stream lol.

Loved this video ! One thing you said about always learning and things might be easier than you think sometimes....like the pet portraits. I have dabbled in it a little. I have used Photoshop for years (self taught) and you really dont even have to draw these pet portraits. Learning skills on photoshop is amazing watching tutorials on RU-vid ! Great video man! I have the problem of always trying new things and not picking one and just going for it ! I just need to jump ! Haha Because one thing I have in my head might not work out but I wont know unless I try and then maybe try something else :)

I’m in the latter category lol Have been thinking to open store selling templates so that I can be home more with my son who has autism. However there is so much competition with those that I don’t think it’s a productive effort unlike when they first started. Cookie cutting sounds better, more unique. Am looking to volunteer somewhere so I can learn some skill 🤞

""Success is walking from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm." ---Winston Churchill"

Hi Tim, I really like your videos and was wondering, would you say that Etsy is a market more for Americans and Canadians? I live in Europe and was thinking about maybe starting an Etsy shop but I'm unsure since I live in Europe. I guess if you sell printables it doesn't matter where you live but was thinking more of stationery and tote bags.

Nice vid thank you for sharing with us

I am making coloring pages and sold a few coloring books on Amazon KDP, but I also am now trying to put up more coloring pages on my Etsy shop as well. 😊 No sales yet but I am hopeful.

Great video:) I have a quick question. Is it legal to sell something one didn't make? For example if I'm selling my original artwork and I want to give my customers the option to buy just my artwork or to buy it with a frame, is that fine even though I didn't make the frame and bought it from somewhere else? Also is it legal to see a product that I have modified? Like if I bought picture frames and then painted them and sold them

Gracias por compartir . En ocasiones es muy evidente el tipo de negocio y nos parece que es tan sencillo que muchos ya lo hacen, pero resulta que podría ser una gran idea. Otras veces, hay una barrera que nos parece insalvable, pero con el tiempo esa barrera es nuestra salvación contra la competencia. Gracias de nuevo.

Most of the nursery stuff can be made on a cricut machine.... i paid 150 quid for my machine from local ad , to see if i could master it before buying brand new... it can be used to cut things out, write in caligraphy ... add ons include mug press and t shirt press.... cricut fab for starter hustles

Thank you brother!! Really helpful 🎉

Amazing how much revenue these shops can make, very inspiring 🙏🏻

You have inspired me so much! Thank you for blowing the cap off of my limited way of thinking of going about business, money and possibility! Thank you!

Here I am thinking inflation, recession, can I afford food? And people are making money online selling things that I wouldnt have imagine would make so much.. thanks for the video.

This is an excellent and eye-opening video, Tim. However, somewhere along the way you seem to have got mixed up on the ratings :-) If Startup Costs are cheaper, they should have more stars, and vice versa. For example, with Embroidery Kits, the startup cost is less, so it should have got more stars (like a 4), not the 1.5 shown. Same goes for Skills. Passiveness seems to have got all the right ratings :-D thanks again!

Thank you so much for sharing ❤ 10/10

it was 12:10 for me. liked & subscribed. thank you for this content!

Earned my sub. Well presented brother.

i am 14 years old and i asked my parents to open etsy store with their name and they said ok and it is my first day i have sold 15.99$ i am sure i will make more money if i watch this video

Thank you for sharing...that's kind from you

Tim, I want to say you are such an inspiration! I've started watching your videos since you started uploading and I get a lot of encouragement from your videos and yet I still haven't started my shop haha I'll keep planning and going to your videos for a boost up! Thank you for another great video!

Mine unfortunately requires skill, creativity and hard work. I make solid wood flower presses. I love it thou

Another awesome video, THANK YOU!

All these costs are missing one big part. And that is your marketing budget.

Very good content, I appreciate. Thanks!

Loved this video, your name is so dope. I have subscribed.

Great video, very detailed and informative, well planned with supporting graphics. Maybe you could make money instructing people on how to create videos with graphics.

Thanks for a great view about 9 Etsy ideas. Wondering if people illustrations or painting are as big an item as pet portrait illustrations. Lots of people are using illustration conversion software, or illustrator programs, and some are doing traditional illustration techniques. Would that be a good market?

Thank you very informative

Wow! it's Amazing I did it well ! Perfect work !

I did it and I got 1 sale in 3 months 🤣🤣🤣

Very good video! I love how you show the breakdown of each niche! ✌️

One thing missing in this analysis is the customer acquisition costs.

Thanks for the ideas, though your choice for example business for instagram stuff only has 14 insta story items, their mainstay is iPhone app icons. Seems weird to compare.

Niche business idea: Etsy competition, because Etsy has a near monopoly which they're taking advantage of and their fees are insane🤣 I'm honestly shocked Facebook hasnt made a "homemade" marketplace.

Thanks for sharing your research. More videos about what others are succeeding in to help give newbies a path to start would be great.

Good ideas, but many of these stores are selling many items besides what you are detailing. It is difficult, if not impossible, to say what the sales of the specific items you are listing are.

something i think to keep in mind with 3d printing i think is also just the amount of time it takes to print something, it can take several hours to print something small which isnt as big a deal given you dont have to do much while its printing but its not as easily scalable as other businesses, like you'd have to get a whole extra printer just to make 1 extra unit at a time

A great alternative to photoshop and illustrator is Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer.

Damn you are such a nice human being. Love you ❤🎉

Great video and cool keyboard :)

pet portraits were edited by software! I guess not many people see that or just don't care

Hi Tim! I love to hear all of your helpful tips! I’ve been thinking about starting my own Etsy shop but my biggest question is do I need to trademark my name and logo before I launch?! Or is that something I should do later on in my process? Thanks so much!

Very good information !

I like how you maintain the smile and sell Etsy to us all!!

I think the rates are a little bit messed up and confusing

3-d printing isn't as passive as it sounds. You have to tend to them as they run.

I cannot believe people would pay 10 bucks for a resume template, there are so many free ones online!

Lol I've bought custom cookie cutters from Etsy shops

Very cool ideas

why is your voice so calming lmaooo

Great information

Hi Tim, can you please make a video on some Etsy alternatives? I got suspended right after opening my account and reaching out to them did nothing. Thank you!

Great Content Thanks

IThank you for this information, but I don‘t think cookie cutters are a good idea for most of us. Reason being: It’s not just food save filament you need. The nozzle has to be stainless steel because brass nozzles could contain lead and the filament has contact with other part of the hotend and perhaps with the spool holder. The whole process has to be food save. So if you used non food save filament at any point before, you need a completely new hotend, because it might already be contaminated. Also, if theres any tiny bit of plastic that comes off of the cookie cutter when cutting it lands in the dough and an appendicitis of one of your customers might just end your business and more.

I assume that you should give more stars for it's being easier, otherwise it's confusing.

Your scoring scale is inconsistent. Sometimes a one star is good, sometimes it's bad

Hi Tim, 'If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't always correct"; Tim can you be honest? Could you, Tim, kindly inform us whether you are paid by Etsy for these glowing recommendations? It seems that Etsy is "tightening the net" for its merchants. If I were Etsy's marketing manager, I would locate 2-3 RU-vidrs with a significant following that would comment about us positively. Can you tell us honestly IF YOU GET PAID BY ETSY FOR THIS PROMOTIONAL WORK? Please..