[exclusiv]

I scraped all the Etsy stores about 4 years ago and ~80% of stores had never sold more than 20 items. Ever. In aggregate over several years for many stores.

They started as "people above profits" but in reality it was all resellers because that's what did volume. They turned the other cheek and allowed them to take over. They eventually changed policies and alienated a lot of real artisans. That strategy boosted revenue of course but removed their core differentiator.

It's hard to turn down revenue and growth, even moreso when investors are involved. But like most empires, you eventually fall from overextension.