I am Clueless!? (but it's not my fault)

[MoreDessertPls]

I have had my Etsy account for several years. I recently started my own e-commerce business. I listed a handful of listings. I worked with my mentor, who recommended creating a second Etsy shop and listing my kid's items separately from the adult-related items (career-related t-shirts, etc..). I took weeks trying to pick out a name that would be applicable. I set up a new email account, added bank accounts for this shop, and started verbally advertising my 2nd shop that it was coming soon. I finally set up a 2nd Etsy shop. Proud and excited with my new name and the potential that it could have. I added some items to the new shop and removed them from the original shop. I decided to activate the 2nd store. It asked for the $15 payment. I added the payment information, and the payment was processed. WITHIN MINUTES, my account was suspended. The message said I should receive an email explaining why. I waited,.............and waited,......................and waited. DAYS later, I submitted an appeal. Again, within minutes, I received a message from a supposed employee saying my account suspension was reviewed and it would still stand. I still have NOT received a reason for the suspension or how to resolve the issue.

NOTE: My main shop is listed as my LLC. The 2nd shop was listed as a DBA through my LLC, but the DBA is not official with my state yet. Could that be the issue? With it almost being automatic that I was suspended, I did not think it was this.

[EccentricHandbags]

Just a guess.  Were there T shirts in both shops? 

[MoreDessertPls]

No! I do know they do not allow the same listings in your shops, so I made sure of that.

[PoochandTabby]

It could be because you have IP issues in your current shop. 

You are not allowed to make money off the likeness of a celebrity and you are selling Taylor Swift t-shirts. It's against the law and Etsy announced this month that they are making a bigger effort to crack down on shops not following the rules and they are quicker to target a newer shop than a shop that has been around for a while, although they eventually come around to it.

The other issue can be is that you're not allowed to sell the same thing in both shops. If you hadn't deleted them from your current shop before you added them to your new shop, that could've also been an issue. 

[MoreDessertPls]

My new shop did not have the Swiftie t-shirt in it. It had 3 items that had my original designs (no likeness) and different products.

I did end listings of items in my original shop, that I was going to copy and paste into my new shop, but my shop was closed down before that.

[PoochandTabby]

Your shops are connected. When Etsy takes down a shop for policy violations, eventually they will take you completely offline. 

Since it was in minutes, you say, it probably wasn't something you were doing in your new store and something you were doing in your current store.

[ExtremeCreation]

@MoreDessertPls  but your current shop does have that celebrity on a shirt you sell. Maybe that's why?

[JustMeToo]

@MoreDessertPls   It sounds like you may have received really poor advice from your "mentor".

[stuartroadvintage]

I hope they have a money back guarantee!

[PlatypusDream]

Koozie is trademarked. You can't use it (or Kozie / Cozie).

You really need to learn about the legalities around trademark / copyright before you shop is shuttered or you are sued.

https://www.etsy.com/seller-handbook/article/22398703823

Also:

https://help.etsy.com/hc/en-us/articles/360024112614-What-Can-I-Sell-on-Etsy?segment=selling

"but it's not my fault"

It is your fault, because it's a professional business owner's responsibility to learn about and adhere to the law.

[PlatypusDream]

Important reading:

https://www.etsy.com/legal/terms-of-use

https://www.etsy.com/legal/sellers/

[stuartroadvintage]

"It asked for the $15 payment. I added the payment information, and the payment was processed."

What was this for? Are you sure you weren't hacked?

[ThePurplePuppy]

@stuartroadvintage 

doubtful this is a hack.

Etsy is now charging $15.00 to open a shop.

[LynnsLittleShop]

New shops are now paying $15 before they can open a shop.

[MoreDessertPls]

They now charge $15 for new shops. Not sure if they think this will deter fraudulent shops or just to cover the cost of the research efforts it takes to get rid of the hackers/fraudulent people.

[CarpetCollectionAU]

@stuartroadvintage In an attempt to "slow down" the proliferation of new shops opened with the sole intention of sending "fake" messages as the start of a "scam" attempt, Etsy iplemented a $ 15.00 fee for "on-boarding. All newly opened Shops are being charged tis fee, even if the Seller has had other Shops for years.

[ExtremeCreation]

Where did find your mentor? Sounds like your mentor didn't read Etsy's policies however, it's really you the owner of the shop that should have don't that.

And you had to pay $15 to open another Etsy shop?

[LynnsLittleShop]

Yes, Etsy implemented that when all the  scamming started.

[ExtremeCreation]

@LynnsLittleShop 

Wow! That's good to hear.

[stuartroadvintage]

@ThePurplePuppy Really? I had no idea. It has been a long time for me....

[stuartroadvintage]

@CarpetCollectionAU  That actually makes sense! I wonder if it's helped slow down the scammers.

[CarpetCollectionAU]

@stuartroadvintage Judging by the slow down of reports of Shops being "scammed" it does look like this $ 15.00 fee, combined with the changes to Messaging and increased / refined "Spam" filtering has been relatively successful.

[CarpetCollectionAU]

@MoreDessertPls That the suspension happened instantly, it is most probable that this was related to the Banking / ID verfiication / documentation you entered and uploaded.

Name and address on the Bank Account must match the Name and address on the ID documentation exactly. Yhe initial verification process is conducted entirely by "Bots" ie: it is automated. 

As I am not in the US, I do not know if there is a difference between LLC and DBA. However, over the years when people have had difficulty with LLC they have used SSN and the verification was successful.

However, a word of warning.It would be unwise to seek Etsy assistance until you have addressed any potential IP issues in either Shop.

[MoreDessertPls]

I don't know. I thought it might be something like you mentioned, but the personal ID shows as verified. The bank info shows as verified. The other info does not show anything.

[Natalya1905]

If you want to save your current Etsy shop, be sure to check all your listings for potential IP infringements: Koozie, Superhero costume, Swiftie (both word and image), Snuggle and so on.