Australian ‘mumpreneurs’ are crafting an Etsy export boom

‘MUMPRENEURS’ are leading an online export boom in Australia, with Etsy revealing many of its craft users are female and selling goods overseas.

Businesswoman and mother-of-three Petra Kepic from Petra's Raw Cakes is dominating online sales along with many other Australian mums.

EXCLUSIVE

‘MUMPRENEURS’ have become a surprisingly powerful force among Australia’s online exporters, with Etsy revealing the overwhelming majority of its sellers were women and most were selling their creations overseas.

The company — an online marketplace for handmade and vintage goods — also revealed female “creative entrepreneurs” had pushed Australia into the list of its top five markets worldwide, creating a crafty export boom.

Etsy chief operating officer Linda Kozlowski made the comments while visiting Australia for innovation festival Pausefest, and revealed 94 per cent of its Australian sellers were women, including many mothers who sold items on the site “to establish the work-life balance” they wanted.

“The term ‘mumpreneur’ definitely applies here, although it is a subset of the female movement rather than the entire movement,” Ms Kozlowski said.

“It’s really about the idea of independence and being able to choose the way you work.”

Etsy also attracted younger businesswomen in Australia, with the median age of sellers just 37, she said, and one in four sold goods on the site as a fulltime job while others used it to supplement their existing income.

“A huge number of people are using it to help the family budget, whether that’s paying for vacations or school tuition or something along those lines,” Ms Kozlowski said.

Australian Etsy sellers were also using the site to export their wares overseas, with 73 per cent of local users selling goods internationally.

Ms Kozlowski said the company would seek to recruit more Australian sellers in future, as only 30 per cent of Etsy’s sales came from outside the US “and we really think that could be more”.

“(Australia) has a lot of interesting e-commerce and a lot of creativity, all supported by one of the most tech-savvy populations in the world,” she said.

“It’s a very unique opportunity.”

TOP 10 AUSTRALIAN ETSY STORES

1. Shovava (57,165 sales, handmade clothing)

2. Craftycutslaser (56,975 sales, craft supplies)

3. Lime And Mortar (55,270 sales, handmade paper goods)

4. PeacefulmindDesign (51,214 sales, handmade paper goods)

5. KHDigi (42,982 sales, graphic design)

6. LILAxLOLA (38,949 sales, art)

7. TracyAnnDigitalArt (35,484 sales, graphic design)

8. MadeByElissa (32,469 sales, paper goods)

9. BubnutPatterns (31,833 sales, craft patterns)

10. LittleLaserLab (30,907 sales, craft supplies)

Source: Craftcount

Originally published as Australian ‘mumpreneurs’ are crafting an Etsy export boom