Etsy completed the sale of Depop to eBay on July 30 after agreeing to a transaction valued at approximately $1.2 billion. Days later, the company approved a restructuring affecting approximately 220 Etsy marketplace employees, or 12% of that workforce.
The decisions point to a focused strategy: fewer businesses, fewer organizational layers and more attention on the Etsy marketplace. That focus is sensible. Etsy cannot out-Amazon Amazon or compete with Temu through price and endless assortment. Its advantage is differentiated products, personalization, seller stories and the belief that shoppers are buying something meaningfully different from mass-produced alternatives.
But simplification alone will not restore momentum. Etsy must make authentic inventory easier to discover while removing products that weaken its handmade positioning.
AI can improve search and personalization, but it should reinforce human creativity rather than make the marketplace feel more automated. The strategic test is whether a smaller organization can move faster without reducing the seller support and buyer trust that make Etsy distinctive.
