Rob Kalin was 25 years old and living with three cats when he came up with the idea for Etsy. It was 2005 and he was living in a wood shop an aspiring furniture designer with a dream of making a living off of selling his furniture online. He searched endlessly to find a site that he could sell through, and after not finding any he came up with the idea and design of Etsy.
Etsy has now transformed into a multi million dollar site. Etsy today is a place where the public can buy directly from artisans, and where sellers can purchase materials from crafts suppliers. Directly competing with eBay, Etsy focuses on handmade items and has a passionate community of buyers and sellers.
Rob Kalin is inspiring because he saw a problem and figured out a way to fix it. He created a community for craftsmen and women to meet, share ideas, buy materials, sell what they create and to make money doing what they love. There is nothing else out there quite like it.
Kalin has a nice market because he is pitching to the passionate buyers who might not be able to find exactly what they want or the quality of what they want over ebay or amazon. This is a great model because it draws in like minded people for better quality and higher prices.
This is a great way for for young artists to market and sell their stuff as hobby job, or a stepping stone for a bigger platform. Also, it gives people like us access beautiful handmade items. Such a great platform for marketing and innovation.