What is the Etsy Captains’ Summit? Well let’s start with what is an Etsy team? Some of you will know I am one of the Captains of our local team of Etsy sellers, Etsy Team Leeds, alongside the fabulous Laura from Elsie & Nell. An Etsy team is a group of sellers with a common interest, which is usually location specific, but not always. As Captains we keep in close contact with Etsy themselves, receiving news and information about new changes on Etsy.com and being able to give feedback on how things are working for the sellers themselves.

At Etsy Team Leeds we keep in touch daily using a Facebook group that all our members are part of and we meet up in person once a month in the Leeds area to share knowledge, chat over a cup of tea (or a beer!) and just get the chance to see another human being, which can be a luxury when you work for yourself.

Last weekend all the team captains from across the UK were invited down to the Etsy HQ in London for the Etsy Captains’ Summit to spend the weekend with Etsy Admin and each other talking about small businesses, how to improve our shops and how to lead our teams of sellers.

We gathered at Etsy HQ early on Saturday morning where the team had laid out a fabulous, healthy breakfast with loads of options for meat eaters, vegetarians, vegans and gluten free folks. There was constantly a pot of tea on the go and you could help yourself throughout the day. We sat on long benches to eat and get to know our fellow captains, always turning the person next to you or across from you to ask about their shops and their teams.

After breakfast we headed into the conference style room where wheely desk chairs were laid out in rows. The chairs were super comfortable, which is more important than you’d think and being on wheels it made it so easy to wheel into groups for discussions and pop over to see another team captain that you hadn’t had chance to speak to yet. It was an ideal touch.

A number of the Etsy Admin team lead talks on PR & marketing, what’s new in the community and ways we can use making for good. There were also a number of external speakers from amazing people in the handmade community like Jessika from Oh My Handmade. These sessions were run on coaching, burnout and ideas for creating a community feel within our teams.

Lunch was also provided which was a huge spread of healthy treats with fresh chicken and salmon for meat eaters and chunky falafel balls and various salads for vegans. I wish I could eat like that every day.

On the Saturday evening we had a social event where Etsy wined and dined us by bringing in the amazing pop up restaurant, Fabulous 698b (more on them in another post!!). It’s lovely to be looked after so well and shown we are an appreciated part of the Etsy community. Being a team captain is a voluntary role, which can be a lot to take on if you run your own business as well. Some captains even work full time as well as running their shops. The meal was incredible and such a great way to get chance to chat to the members of Etsy admin and fellow team captains. I was sat next to Erin from the Toronto offices and we chatted about Etsy of course, but also music, food and the traditions from where we’re from. Erin has a fabulous Etsy shop of her own selling Feminist zines and books.

On Sunday morning we were treated to breakfast again before delving straight back into talks and workshops. It was great to be able to feedback our thoughts to the people who can make changes happen as well as sharing tips with and learning from other captains and more importantly, other Etsy sellers. Lunch and cake was provided and we headed home with full heads and hearts.

The whole weekend was so inspirational, especially for me. I learned a lot of tips from the workshops, but mostly I just felt like I could. Whatever I wanted to, I could do it. Now I’m back home in my office I feel ready to face the world again and even more amazingly, I feel excited again to get to work.

If you have any questions about the Etsy Captains’ Summit, please do leave them in the comments or ask me on Twitter! More soon!
Loves x xx