Big feature in the NY Times Magazine about online craftsters, specifically Etsy. Thought that this bit about the downside of the site was especially interesting:
Others grouse about another side effect, price pressure: The competition is so intense on the site that new crafters can't break out, and some established ones feel they cannot raise their prices. That's a particularly thorny problem if part of your sales pitch is that you've made a thing yourself; a careful artisan can't respond to lower prices with greater volume.
Artisanship doesn't scale, apprentices take time to train, and people buy products based on price. How do artisans compete?
