When traveling through my day I am frequently asked "Where do you sell your stuff?" After the initial reaction of hearing my products referred to as "stuff", I regroup and proudly announce "On Etsy." "OH!" they respond with glee, "... where?" Inevitably, I end up providing them with a brief and well rehearsed description of the Etsy site and a slow spelling of the name "e - t - s - y dot com."
Having unsuccessfully named two successful companies in my "illustrious" self-employed career, Domiciles Interiors (unbeknownst to me, some people don't know what a domicile is, and think it is a Greek tragedy), and Gizzy Gear (oft times mispronounced in a very unfortunate manner. It has now been changed to Hot Pink Frosting, and received a much more positive response), I understand the importance of a well placed name.
Every time I find myself describing Etsy I think "I should really look up the origin of the name." And so I did. Or at least I tried. After a moderate Google search, the internet is way too shiny to dig too deeply into any one topic, I landed on Wikipedia ... so you know it's true! and found the closest thing to an explanation. Wikipedia ... so you know it's true, admits that there remains much speculation surrounding the meaning behind the name Etsy, but sites one "story" (I do love a good story) in which Robert Kalin, the original brainchild behind Etsy wanted a nonsense word (mission accomplished!) because he wanted to build the brand from scratch. Inspired by Fellini's 8 1/2, he was drawn to the word "etsi" which in Italian means "oh, yes" (Again, you have to go with this because its on Wikipedia), and in Latin means "and if".
Well ... okay. I don't know if I will incorporate that information into my synopsis of Etsy. But I do know that I am eternally grateful to the Etsy founding fathers for creating the site and staying true to their mission statement, especially the "fun" part. If you have not checked out the Etsy site, you really should! That's E T S Y dot com!
