Etsy UK Awards 2016

Calling all artists, designers, makers, doers, and dreamers! The search is on for the best Etsy sellers and products from across the UK and Ireland for Etsy Awards 2016.

Got a secret knack or skill up your sleeve for creating something unique? Or maybe you’re a designer-maker who already sells what you make? Or perhaps it’s somewhere in between… Well, it’s time to enter the Etsy Awards for a chance to win an incredible line-up of prizes!

Whats up for grabs we hear you ask? Starting with a whopping £10,000 small business grant, there’s also a chance to showcase your work at Tent London during the prestigious London Design Festival, exciting retail opportunities with John Lewis, expert business training from The Design Trust and much more!

The Etsy Awards

Etsy are really excited to launch the very first Etsy Awards in the UK & Ireland! Celebrating and supporting creativity, they’ll recognise talent across the following award categories:

Home & living.
Kids & baby.
Fashion & accessories.
Etsy New Talent, in partnership with The Design Trust.
Retail Star, in partnership with John Lewis.
People’s Choice, selected by public vote.
Regional awards, the best maker in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland.

Hand picking the finalists, we have an exclusive expert industry panel including Anna Rigby, Head of Home Buying at John Lewis; Pip McCormac, Lifestyle Director at Red Magazine; Patricia Van den Akker, Director of The Design Trust; and Erica Davies, Blogger The Edited.

The Prize

Tailored to support small businesses, they’ve got a corker of a prize line-up on offer including…

1 x £10,000 small business grant
5 x £2,500 small business grants.
1 x chance to stock their products in John Lewis.
1 x One year free membership to The Design Trust Business Club.
Exhibit with Etsy at TENT London during the London Design Festival.
Tailored programme of business training from The Design Trust.

With 21 winners in total, there will be gold, silver and bronze prize offerings for the majority of award categories.

How to apply?

If you share a love for making and creating, based in the UK or Ireland and over the age of eighteen – hop on over to etsyawards.com/uk and complete the short online submission form, easy as pie! (Full eligibility criteria outlined below).

When’s the deadline?

Hurry! Applications close at midnight on 28th April 2016.

Do I need an Etsy shop in order to apply?

You do indeed! But don’t worry if you don’t have one yet… new sellers are always welcome and to kick-start your Etsy journey, they’ve rustled up a 20 free listings code to get you started – simply enter the code: ETSYAWARDSUKIRELAND here and head over to read these top tips on how to get started on Etsy.

How will the selection work?

The 60 finalists will be selected by an expert panel of judges including representatives from John Lewis, Red Magazine, The Design Trust and The Edited. The selection of the Regional Awards will be supported by creative organisations from around the UK and Ireland. Last but not least, the People’s Choice Award will be selected by public vote.