Etsy has been one of the biggest e-commerce platforms for a while.

But, recently, several sellers have been complaining regarding the downgrade of Etsy features, leading to them wanting to close down their shops on the platform. 

Be it the low-quality customer service, multiple fees, and payment delays, Etsy can sometimes work against the favor of sellers, making them say goodbye to the platform and also their business. 

Moreover, sellers might also need to close down their shops for personal reasons or if they do not want to continue with their businesses anymore. 

Thus, if you are one such seller who wants to know how to delete shop on Etsy, we have got your back with this instructive article! 

Why Do You Need To Stop Selling on Etsy?

Let’s face it: running a business isn’t a piece of cake. It requires utmost dedication and can even wear the most hardworking business owners down.  

Due to this, many Etsy sellers often want to temporarily stop selling on Etsy  to catch some breath and rethink some things.

What’s more, Etsy poses a lot of problems for the sellers as well, making them want to quit the site altogether.  

Below we have discussed some of the reasons why you may need to close down your Etsy shop. 

  1. High competition: With so many similar businesses selling their products on the platform, it can be difficult to make your business known. Amidst the crowd, your products can soon become unnoticeable. 
  2. Massive Etsy fees: Even though your products might be selling, you might not be able to make the profits you anticipated due to the high Etsy costs. Listing fees, payment processing fees, and transaction fees are some of the fees that you have to bear for a sale. 
  3. Shipping charges: Sellers also have to bear shipping costs which can be high, especially if the buyers live far away or if the packages are too heavy. 
  4. Low conversion rate: You might have a lot of visitors on your account and users might even be interacting with your content but you do not seem to have your desired number of paying customers. In such cases, you might want to close down your shop. 
  5. Personal reasons: Apart from business-related reasons, you might also have personal reasons to close down your shop. Family issues, health issues, or lack of work-life balance are some of the reasons why you might need to shut down your account. 

How to Delete Shop on Etsy

Once you have decided that you want to close down your shop, it is now time to take the right steps.  

Below we have provided step-by-step instructions for how to delete shop on Etsy. 

This is a gentle reminder that it takes Etsy around 30 minutes to process your request and close down the store. You can change your mind during that time if you want. 

Step 1: Go to the official website of Etsy and log in with your account credentials. 

Step 2: Next, you will notice the Shop Manager on the top right-hand side. Tap on it. 

Shop Manager

Step 3: Go to Settings and then choose Options. 

Settings and select Options

Step 4: Select the Close Shop tab and provide a reason for why you are closing down your shop. Tap on Close Shop and finalize your decision. 

Close Shop tab

When choosing why you’re closing down your store, make sure to choose a legitimate reason. 

Close Shop

Etsy does this to improve its services to prevent future users from closing down their shops due to business or platform-related reasons. 

How to Delete an Etsy Account

Deleting your shop doesn’t mean that your Etsy account will also get deleted. You can still keep your account and use it to buy products from other sellers. 

However, if you are looking to delete your account altogether, you need to follow particular steps for that. We have discussed the steps for that below. 

Step 1: Go to the official website of Etsy and log in with your account credentials. 

Step 2: Next, you will see your account icon in the top right corner. Tap on it. 

Step 3: Tap on Account Settings and go to the Account tab. 

Step 4: Scroll down a little until you find the “Close Your Account” section.

Step 5: Tap on “Close Account.”

Close Your Account

How to Temporarily Close Down Your Etsy Store

All the above-mentioned methods were for closing down your shop permanently. But, what if you are not ready to say goodbye yet and just want to see where things take you?

What if you are just in need of a vacation and can come back to the store completely fresh after the break? 

If that is the case, the best thing you can do for your account is to change it to Vacation Mode.

This will help you catch a break when you are having difficulties managing your work and everything else. 

Below we have shown the step-by-step instructions for enabling the Vacation Mode. 

Step 1: Go to the official website of Etsy and log in with your account credentials. 

Step 2: Next, you will notice the Shop Manager on the top right-hand side. Tap on it. 

Step 3: Go to Settings and then Options. 

Step 4: Go to the Vacation Mode and turn it on. Here, you will get the chance to create a temporary Shop Announcement as well as an auto-responder that will reply to all incoming messages. 

Step 5: Tap on Save and you are done! 

While the Vacation Mode is a great option that allows you to shut your shop temporarily, it might not be the best for some sellers, since it does have some restrictions.

For instance, your shop name won’t be available on the search bar. 

To not face such restrictions, one thing you can do is leave your shop as it is. And, change your shipping date to a future date. 

Make your shipping date according to the date you would return.

Furthermore, don’t forget to put an announcement in your store saying that you’re away from business and will return as soon as possible. 

This way, you will still be able to enjoy all the features of Etsy and not face the restrictions of the Vacation Mode.

Moreover, try to give your potential customers some discounts for complying with your break and waiting for you to come back. 

Things to Consider Before Closing an Etsy Shop

Etsy

As you can see, closing down your Etsy shop isn’t exactly rocket science and only takes a few steps.

But, it is still a big decision and you need to consider a few things before you actually go ahead with it. 

Here are some pointers before you make the decision: 

Your Shop Won’t Be Visible

Once you decide to close down your shop, your listings will no longer be visible to shoppers.

Remember that your shop along with all the listings will completely disappear and whoever tries to access your Etsy store will end up back in your profile. 

Customer Can Still See Reviews

While you may have been successful at closing down your shop, it doesn’t mean that your reviews will be removed too.

The reviews for your listings will still be public which means that users can see them. 

Thus, deleting your shop because you have received unfavorable reviews may not be the best idea since they will still be visible to future customers.

Instead, you can try to take feedback and improve your services. 

Download Your Sales Data 

If you are thinking of closing your Etsy shop and reopening it somewhere else or on Etsy itself, it is a good idea to download your sales data.

This will give you an idea regarding which of your items are best-sellers and which ones are not so popular among customers.

Download Pictures

Apart from sales data, it is also a good idea to download the pictures of your products and everything else, in case you don’t have a copy of them already. 

Final Thoughts

Etsy is a great place to sell your products and make decent money.

However, as the holidays approach, you might be looking for a break from your business and want to spend more time with your family and yourself. 

And that is absolutely fine. Running a business can be overwhelming sometimes and breaks are necessary to make sure that you are not getting too carried away with your work. 

Apply the steps outlined in this article to give yourself some time off and maybe go on that vacation you have always wanted to but could not earlier.