Dear Etsy Community,
My name is Angel Liang, and I am the owner of the Etsy store MeissaHandmade (https://meissahandmade.etsy.com).
For over six years, my team and I have cultivated a loyal community of jewelry enthusiasts, completing over 54,000 sales and receiving more than 12,700 customer reviews with an average rating of 4.7 stars. We’ve consistently maintained a Star Seller badge and always strive to provide the best for our customers, earning their trust and loyalty.
On September 4, 2024, my shop was unexpectedly placed in vacation mode for 28 days, with a notice that it will be permanently closed afterward due to a violation of Etsy’s Creativity Standards. This decision was based on Etsy’s determination that several of my listings did not comply with your creativity policies.
About a month ago, Etsy deactivated four of my product listings, citing creativity standards. These listings, which include rings and earrings, have been active on Etsy since 2020 and 2021 and are some of our bestsellers, purchased over 3,000 times. I am struggling to understand how these items, designed and produced in-house, suddenly no longer meet Etsy’s standards. All product images and videos are created by us, with my own face and hands featured in many of them.
We contacted customer service to seek clarification and offered to provide proof of our original designs and production processes. Unfortunately, we received no detailed explanation, and were only directed to the seller handbook without further assistance. To make matters worse, it appears there is no appeal process available for this type of case.
Losing these four bestselling listings has caused a significant financial impact on my business, and to add to that, two weeks later, my shop was suspended without any further communication. After researching the situation, I discovered that sellers on platforms like SHEIN have been stealing my product photos, enlarging them to remove our logo, and selling counterfeit products that don’t even match our original designs. These stolen photos are the exact ones Etsy flagged and deactivated. I believe this could be the reason Etsy mistakenly deemed our items as unoriginal. I am deeply disappointed that Etsy did not conduct a more thorough investigation or allow us the opportunity to explain the situation before suspending our store.
This isn’t the first time my designs have been stolen by SHEIN or other platforms. We have filed complaints in the past and successfully had listings removed. I am more than willing to provide Etsy with records of these complaints.
I want to reaffirm that I am fully compliant with Etsy's policies. My team and I design, produce, and photograph our own jewelry, and the flagged items have been listed on Etsy since 2018, with an overwhelming amount of positive customer feedback.
Here are the titles of the deactivated listings:
- Simple Minimalist Tiny Heart Ring Stackable, 925 Sterling Silver Gold Dainty Promise Ring, Bestfriend Friendship Ring for Her, Size Adjustable
- Simple Minimalist Tiny Heart Ring Stackable, 925 Sterling Silver Gold Dainty Promise Ring, Bestfriend Friendship Ring for Her, Size Adjustable
- Elegant Leaf Diamond Ring, 925 Sterling Silver Open Size Adjustable Minimalist Dainty Delicate Gold Cuff Ring, Gift for Her, Bridesmaid Mom
- Moon Dreamcatcher Earrings, 925 Sterling Silver Crescent Moon Celestial Statement Earrings, Dreamcatcher Feather Bohemian Boho Jewelry for Her
To support my case, I am ready to provide:
- Video documentation of the full production process for each of these items
- Original product photos with metadata proving the date of design creation
- Information on the long-standing nature of these listings, which Etsy can verify through its internal records
Our customers love our products, and some have even sent us links showing where our photos were stolen. We want to work with Etsy to resolve this misunderstanding and demonstrate that we are dedicated to upholding the platform’s policies. I hope Etsy can review our case closely and reach a fair resolution.
Thank you for your time and attention. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Angel Liang
