Etsy Seller Interview with Josie of JosiesMaineTreasures

How JosiesMaineTreasures got started

Introduce your Etsy shop and tell us your story. How did you begin and decide on what to sell on Etsy, and how do you create your products?

I started selling vintage dishes to clear out my closet and included other items I had, such as vintage blue Ball canning jars. These sold well and quickly. I started finding these for sale at yard sales, estate sales, Goodwill, and Marketplace, cleaning them up, and reselling them.

One customer reached out and asked if I had replacement lids, which I did. I had some chipped and broken jars, so I sold the lids, and now I’m also selling the bail wire, since reproductions are not made to offer a replacement, and customers love their antique jars; many times they’ve been handed down in the family, or they’ve bought them for decoration or use in their homes.

Favorite items

What are your favorite items? What makes these so special? Why do you think these items might be selling well?

The vintage Lobster buoys are my favourites. I enjoy the character and charm.

Getting sales on Etsy

How long did it take for you to earn your first sale and how do you currently attract customers to your Etsy shop?

I believe it took only a few days or a couple of weeks for my first sale. I do not do any advertising, pay for extra advertising, or subscribe to mailing lists. I have a couple of vintage niche items that I sell multiples of, and they sell themselves. I run sales regularly.

Managing JosiesMaineTreasures

How do you manage your shop? Are you running solo or do you have any team members? What tools or services do you use to run your shop and how do you handle fulfillment?

I run my shop by myself. I work full time for the government in a federal hospital, so I’ve been very busy the past 3 years. I pack up the items before or after work.

I get free moving boxes and packing paper to use for shipping. I have to purchase bubble wrap, but I’m moving away from breakable items. I bought a $30 scale to weigh items.

I use flat rate shipping as Etsy will only offer customers USPS when they check out, and shipping the buoys takes big, bulky boxes, and USPS is too expensive for these. So I have figured out approximately what to offer for a flat rate to ship via FedEx, and they will pick up the boxes at my home. I scheduled a pick-up the night before and put the boxes on my porch for Fedex to pick up the next day.

I use Etsy Desktop and the app.

The future of JosiesMaineTreasures

What goals do you have for your shop in the future?

I’d like to increase sales, but due to Etsy’s fees for listing, transactions, credit card processing, and shipping fees, I am not netting what I’d like.

Advice for new sellers

What’s your advice for a new seller starting an Etsy shop?

Give yourself time to learn. Don’t pay much for shipping supplies. The USPS has free boxes, and you can often get free moving boxes and shipping materials locally.

You don’t need to get a fancy printer that prints stick-on labels. I use cellophane tape and regular printer paper.

Be prompt in responding to customers, as Etsy has a "star seller" algorithm.

If you don’t need to offer custom orders, don’t! I’ve spent so much time taking individual photos of specific items at customer requests, switching out items for extremely finicky customers, for them to ghost me and not end up purchasing from me.

If you cannot help them, then let them know up front. I sometimes tell customers I don’t have time for custom orders. I did just create a listing in the drop-down that offers custom orders with a higher charge, and if I don’t have time, I just switch the listing to not visible, so it’s not an option.

Be honest and maintain boundaries. If they’re being rude, too pushy, etc., you can report them to Etsy and simply tell them not to contact you again.

There are riches in niches. If you’re selling something that the market is saturated with, then be aware that you have too much competition and may not do well.

People like personalised items for weddings and special occasions.

I’m on Reddit, which has Etsy seller groups,, and it’s a helpful community.

Some sellers really get inspired by hearing numbers. Feel free to share these if you like.

Question: How much is your monthly revenue?
Answer: Jan 2022 was $3600 and Jan 2023 was $1800, so my sales have cut in half. I believe that due to inflation, customers aren’t able to spend like they used to.

Question: What is your average profit margin?
Answer: ⅓-½ of the selling price is my net; closer to ⅓.

Question: What is your shop’s conversion rate?
Answer: 2.9% which I don’t pay any attention to.