From Etsy’s Merchandising Desk: May Flowers

marymary

Story by marymary

Published on Apr 02, 2010 in Seller Handbook

Photo by WeddingAisle

Can it be spring already? As we adjust to the changes in temperature, we’d like to share our merchandising findings and plans for May. It is our goal to create a healthy balance between promotions for traditional holidays, seasonal changes, cultural events, and lifestyle trends.

Rounding Out April
  • Keep up with April’s seasonal themes, holidays, dates to remember and trends in April’s Merchandising Desk edition.
  • Promotional Opportunities for Sellers:
    1. Etsy’s Voting Series: Keep an eye on the Announcements section of the Forums each Monday morning to find out about calls for nominations. Nominate an item from your own shop and other shops that fit the theme for a chance to be entered into the weekly vote. Items with top votes, along with other nominated items, will appear on Etsy’s home page and possibly an Etsy Finds email.
    2. Promotional Forum Threads:
      • Are you a new seller or know of an undiscovered shop? (Specifically Etsy shops that have opened in the last three months or have had under 15 sales.) Let us know in this Forum thread for upcoming promotional opportunities.
      • Suggest an item for Etsy’s home pages fitting April’s curation themes in this Forum thread.
Stay Engaged in May
Our leading merchandising topics this month will center around Mother’s Day, milestones, an introduction to summer weddings, fashion, decor, and a look ahead to Father’s Day. You’ll find the extended list of topics we’re excited to highlight throughout the month of May below. We’re looking for your creative voice on each of the upcoming seasonal themes.

  • Mother’s Day: With Mother’s Day the first full weekend in May, now is the time to think about offering expedited shipping options on your items nearing this holiday as a final marketing push.
  • Cinco de Mayo: A time to celebrate and honor Mexican culture: Think beverages, food, festive decor, bright colors, and music.
  • Graduation and Teacher Gifts: Personalization and customizable gifts, cards, clever sleeves and containers for monetary gifts, keepsakes, and gear for the next big life step are all ideas to keep in mind for graduates. Photos, mementos, vases, edibles, spa goodies, office accoutrements, and totes are examples of ways to show appreciation to the mentors in your life.
  • Father’s Day: With Father’s Day approaching in June, think about items that would make a great gift for the many types of dads out there: personalization, customization, business and office accessories, gadgets and tech gear, the cases to carry them in, outdoor equipment, sports gear, men’s fashion, keepsakes, and luxury gifts. Keep in mind the home chef, the auto enthusiast, the handyman, the trendsetting, the classic, and those dads who seem to have it all.
  • Fashion: An introduction to summer fashion, showing some skin, swim and beach wear, over-the-knee socks, punches of vibrant color and neutral palettes, lightweight fabrics, detailed embellishments and bold accessories: bags, shoes, jewelry, and hair. References to Americana, Grecian motifs, nautical, folk, tribal, classic prep, and equestrian styles are making appearances in this summer’s fashion trends.
  • Home Decor: Lighter fabric weights, colors, patterns, and textures. Think open air, breezy, bright window dressings, accessories, and creative organizational solutions. Candles, tea lights, vases, jars, and vintage renewal as decor.
  • The Art of Collecting: Collections come into play in the form of decor. Think summer flea markets, vintage gems, grouping and staging your items as a set or collection, and uncovering rare pieces to complete the ultimate compilation.
  • Gardening: Cultivating season at its prime: watering cans, aprons, gloves, soaps, seeds, tools, planters, containers, potting, indoor gardens, flower beds, blooms and bulbs, garden markers, labels, and an emphasis on the benefits of local and organic options.
  • Artisanal Food: Celebrating the idea of garden to table, local food, taking the time to plant, cook, and visit the neighborhood farmer’s market. Think recipes, tabletop items, whole foods, seeds and gardens, markets, bikes, baskets, and totes along with the emergence of dining alfresco.
  • Weddings and Celebrations: A lighter summer take on the details of milestone events, including formal attire, accessories, decor, invitations, favors and gift ideas.
  • Summer Travel and Outdoor Adventure: The international vacation, souvenirs, travel gear and luggage. Biking, hiking, camping, backpacking, outdoor sports, gear and other activities.
  • The emerald is May’s birthstone, and May’s astrological signs are Taurus and Gemini (Taurus: April 21 – May 20, Gemini: May 21 – June 21).
  • May Trend Forecast:
    • Kentucky Derby: Large artistic hats, equestrian, and competition themes.
    • Look for French, film, and tennis references in daily culture with the Cannes Film Festival and the French Open.
    • Alfresco living and home: Market baskets and totes, bikes and bike imagery, picnics and flea market finds, components of creating “the outdoor room” with the idea of blending the indoors with the outdoors.
    • Personalization: Custom names, initials, monograms, quotes, phrases, and numbers.
    • Natural history references: Nature, taxidermy, raw minerals and stones, feathers, foliage, claws, charts, diagrams, bones, antlers, and species.
    • Animal hats and accessories with ears for babies, pets, and adults are still trending well this entire season.
    • Clever, classic, and luxe interpretations of the gadget cozy and sleeve.
    • Color trends: Combinations of navy and yellow, light pink and grey, and light green with beige. Lavenders, violets, and bright shades of purple. Cooled down versions of aqua and light blues.
If you’d like to stay engaged and involved with the approaching merchandising themes, use them in your own artistic voice as you add to your shop. This can be translated in your listings, photos, shop announcements, descriptions, tags, titles, sales promotions and more. We’re excited to see your creative interpretations!

If you make items that would fit well with the themes outlined, try stocking up and listing them in advance to take advantage of potential shipping deadlines and site features. Do you already have items in your shop that meld well? That’s great! Now it’s time to revisit those items to make sure your tags, titles, and descriptions reflect keywords that shoppers might be looking for this time of year. This is also a great opportunity to revamp your item photography with a new look if you think they need some work. Check out some great how-to’s for item photography to get started.

If your items fall under the main thematic categories we’ll be highlighting this month, consider purchasing a spot in a Category Showcase. For those of you who enjoy making Treasuries, we’ll be looking to highlight lists that interpret these themes in a creative and cohesive way.

Upcoming Dates to Remember

  • May is known as National Barbecue, Photograph, and Bike Month.
  • May 1 May Day
  • May 1 Fete du Travail, Labor Day
  • May 1 Kentucky Derby
  • May 3 Constitution Day (Japan)
  • May 4 National Teachers Day
  • May 5 Cinco de Mayo
  • May 8 VE Day
  • May 9 Mother’s Day
  • May 15 Saint Isidros’s Day (Spain)
  • May 12-23 Cannes Film Festival (2009)
  • May 18 International Museum Day
  • May 21 National Bike to Work Day
  • May 23 – June 6 French Open Tennis Championships (Paris)
  • May 24 Victoria Day (Canada)
  • May 31 Memorial Day

We’d like to hear from you!
Do you have a date to remember that you don’t see on the list? Let us know in the comments section below. We are currently working towards incorporating a more detailed calendar of international holidays into Etsy’s thematic merchandising plans, so we’re eager to hear which dates you would like to see included. We appreciate your support and look forward to your feedback and suggestions in the comments section below.

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