From Etsy’s Merchandising Desk: September’s Harvest

marymary

Story by marymary

Published on Aug 06, 2010 in Seller Handbook

Photo by pinkelephunk

We’re on the verge of the holiday season, and it’s time to hunker down, keep organized and on top of the plans you’ve been strategizing for your business. As the season picks up, it can be easy to get lost in the shuffle and feel overwhelmed. Stay efficient and in the know with some of our merchandising plans for September. It is our goal to create a healthy balance between promotions for traditional holidays, seasonal changes, cultural events, and lifestyle trends.

Rounding Out August
Keep up with August’s seasonal themes, holidays, dates to remember and trends in August’s Merchandising Desk Edition.

  • Promotional Opportunities for Sellers:
    1. 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.
    2. Create and tag Treasuries fitting August’s merchandising themes for a chance to have the collection featured on Etsy’s Homepage.
    3. Follow the Showcase column on Etsy’s blog to find out upcoming holiday themes we’ll be promoting via homepage banners. This will allow you to secure holiday and Category Showcase spots.
Stay Engaged in September
Our central merchandising topics this month will center around autumn, the harvest, Halloween and holiday preparations. You’ll find the extended list of topics we’re excited to highlight below. We’re looking for your creative voice on each of the upcoming seasonal motifs.
  • Celebrations and Traditions: Look for references to the activities classically surrounding Labor Day, the U.S. Tennis Open and Oktoberfest, weekend cookouts, family gatherings, references to sports, beer drinking, festivals, and German traditions.
  • Back to School Wrap-up: All-encompassing essentials for back to school, off to college, starting a new job, first apartment, studio update, or space reinvention. Think wardrobe and decor updates, office and organizational supplies.
  • Fall Fashion: The height of 2010 fall fashion in clothing, accessories, and jewelry. More specifically, key basics, layering elements, the introduction of winter accessories and outwear components, thick fabrics and rich leathers, autumnal tones, and the return of the beloved boot and leather bag. See the trend section below for more granular fashion forecasts.
  • Harvest: In the decor frame of mind, think about bringing the autumn harvest in from the outside. Industrial farm accents, orchard and vineyard references, classic fall fruits and vegetables, and glass and clay jars spread across a bountiful table all signify and celebrate the change in season. Woodland emphasis, natural colors, rich fabrics, the hearth, and played-up textures come back into play as classic autumn mainstays.
  • Halloween: Notice emphasis on this creative holiday throughout September, as party-goers plan every aspect of the celebration from decor, costumes, and creepy refreshments. Focuses include full custom costumes, ready-made accessories, makeup, decor, favors, treats, treat bags and creative carriers, treat alternatives, and DIY options. Different takes include young, old, scary, creepy, cute, and funny.
  • Weddings and Celebrations: Coinciding with our Halloween promotions, unconventional approaches to pulling off a creative event will have their time to shine. Don’t forget to stay a step ahead for brides currently planning and shopping for winter and spring weddings.
  • The Sapphire is September’s birthstone, and September’s astrological signs are Virgo and Libra (August 24 – September 23: Virgo), (September 24 – October 23: Libra).
  • Seller Holiday Prepping: Summer months are the best time to plan and get your shop ready for the holiday season. Etsy’s holiday season picks up from October through December. Harvest and Halloween seasons have already begun, so start stocking up on and listing your holiday offerings now in preparation for the seasonal rush in store.
    • Media Tip: Press outlets begin finalizing their holiday issues and series in the summer. Have your holiday items listed, tagged, and available now for buyers and PR reps looking to pull items for holiday gift guides.

 

September Trend Forecast and Mainstays:

  • Fashion Runway Report: Emphasis on the leather bag, tall boots, shiny embellishments, high waistlines, skinny and wide waist belts, the leather jacket, pencil pants, equestrian leggings and sheer basics. Animal, plaid, brocade, and geometric prints complement the more understated muted gray and camel looks of the fall season. Continue to look for cargo and military styles, faux furs, clean cuts, big silhouettes, a renewed bohemian style and the concept of over-the-top grandeur in the form of loud prints and big jewelry.
  • The World in Sports: The U.S. Tennis Open Tournament through the middle of the month and the football season starting after Labor Day will resurrect classic sports gear, tennis references and football fever.
  • Halloween: Celebrity references, film and pop culture reinventions, clever costuming plays on words, pet costumes, group options, vampire themes, folk and vintage decor, photobooth props, and the classic color combinations (orange, black, yellow, white, red, green, purple).
  • Woodland Emphasis: Forest animals, especially foxes, bears, and owls. Feathers, acorns, wood-grain, branches, logs, and leaves.
  • Geometric and Tribal: Colorblock patterns and weaves, bold stripes and shapes, warrior references, intricate beading, and over the top collar necklaces.
  • Personalization: Customization is key for the holidays as gift givers and media outlets plan ahead for sentimental keepsakes. Think names, initials, monograms, quotes, phrases, fingerprints, and numbers. Prep your offerings now so large custom orders don’t bog you down in the busy season.
  • The Technical World: It’s all about portable gadgets this season and how to accessorize them for function and style. Clever and luxurious plays on gadget cases/carriers, docking solutions for the iPad, along with accessorizing your e-reader are topping the list.
  • Natural History: Nature, taxidermy, raw minerals and stones, feathers, foliage, claws, scientific charts, diagrams, bones, antlers, and species.
  • Color Trends: Punches of turquoise, richer earth tones, mustards, cranberry, deep berries and wine, muted greens, gray and camel solids.
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 it needs 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 throughout the site. Please tag your Treasuries accordingly.

Upcoming Dates to Remember

  • September is know as National Honey, Classical Music, and Self Improvement Month.
  • August 11 – September 9: Ramadan
  • August 30 – September 12: U.S. Tennis Open Tournament
  • September 6: Labor Day
  • September 7: Brazil’s Independence Day
  • September 8 sunset – sunset, September 10: Rosh Hashanah
  • September 10: Eid
  • September 10: Sewing Machine Day
  • September 12: Grandparents’ Day
  • September 13: National Peanut Day
  • September 15: Make a Hat Day
  • September 16: Mexico’s Independence Day
  • September 18: Oktoberfest
  • September 18: Yom Kippur
  • September 19: Talk like a Pirate Day
  • September 22 Sunset: Sukkot
  • September 22: Chinese Moon Festival
  • September 23: Autumnal Equinox
  • September 26 International Rabbit Day
  • September 28: Confucius’s Birthday

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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