Cross-shopping between Etsy and Depop increased ahead of acquisition

Second Measure ,  September 9, 2021

In June 2021, global ecommerce company Etsy announced that it would acquire Depop, a UK-based resale marketplace that has also been gaining traction in the US. Consumer transaction data shows that during the pandemic, a growing percentage of U.S. customers at Depop have also been making purchases at Etsy. Additionally, cross-shoppers between the two companies are more likely to buy more frequently at each company compared to customers who only shop at one of the companies.

A growing percentage of Depop customers have also been shopping at Etsy

The percentage of Depop customers who also shop at Etsy has grown significantly during the pandemic. In January 2019, only 11 percent of Depop customers also shopped at Etsy, and that proportion held steady throughout the rest of 2019.

Between February and April of 2020, the percentage of cross-shoppers at Depop nearly doubled from 11 percent to 21 percent and has remained elevated since. This corresponded with a boom in Etsy sales, likely driven in part by soaring demand for face masks early in the pandemic. December 2020 had the highest percentage of Depop customers who shopped at both Depop and Etsy, with 32 percent. In July 2021, 22 percent of Depop customers also made a purchase at Etsy.

Among cross-shoppers, more than half of sales are at Etsy

Looking at the breakdown of Etsy sales vs. Depop sales among cross-shopping customers, Etsy generally accounts for a greater share of sales. The exception was November 2019, when Depop’s share of sales among cross-shopping customers reached 59 percent. Etsy had its greatest share of sales among cross-shoppers in February 2020, with 88 percent. As of July 2021, Etsy had 54 percent of sales from cross-shoppers.

However, since the pandemic started in early 2020, Depop has accounted for a growing percentage of sales among cross-shopping customers. The monthly average share of sales for Depop among cross-shoppers is 41 percent year-to-date in 2021, compared to 34 percent in 2020 and 31 percent in 2019.

One potential factor that could influence Depop’s increasing share of sales among cross-shoppers is that Depop is experiencing a higher rate of growth for average customer spend than Etsy. Since January 2019, the average monthly sales per customer at Depop increased 153 percent, compared to 27 percent at Etsy. Fashion resale platforms in general have also experienced explosive growth during the pandemic.

Cross-shopping customers generally transact more frequently at Etsy than Etsy-exclusive customers

An analysis of cross-shopping behavior since January 2020 reveals that Etsy customers who also shop at Depop have, on average, more transactions per month than customers who shop exclusively at Etsy.

The gap in average transactions between cross-shoppers and Etsy-exclusive customers was largest at the end of 2020. In December 2020, cross-shopping customers made an average of 2.4 purchases at Etsy, compared to 1.8 for Etsy-exclusive customers. In July 2021, cross-shopping customers made an average of 1.7 purchases at Etsy, the same as Etsy-exclusive customers.

A similar pattern has emerged for Depop, with cross-shoppers generally transacting as frequently or more frequently than Depop-exclusive customers. In July 2021, cross-shopping customers made an average of 1.5 purchases at Depop, compared to 1.4 for Depop-exclusive customers.

Etsy’s recent acquisitions are aimed at reaching new audiences

Etsy’s acquisition of Depop is reportedly part of its strategy to reach Gen Z and millennial consumers. Shortly after the Depop acquisition, Etsy also acquired Brazil-based marketplace Elo7 in a bid to expand its presence in Latin America.

To learn more about the data behind this article and what Second Measure has to offer, visit https://secondmeasure.com/.