Maine trappers and other small business owners are losing a key online marketplace after Etsy updated its policy to ban the sale of most fur products.
The change, announced Thursday, prohibits products “made from or containing the fur of animals killed primarily for their pelts.” The ban takes effect Aug. 11.
The decision follows a protest campaign by the Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade, which organized demonstrations targeting Etsy and its affiliates.
The move is raising concern among Maine trappers and other small business owners.
“This is going to impact a lot of people,” Joshua Dostie wrote in a post on the Maine Fur Trappers Facebook page. “Most are small-scale operations … that have depended on platforms like Etsy to connect with customers.”
Brian and Cassie, who run Maine Wild Harvest Co., said in a statement Thursday that the business is directly affected by the policy change.
“It’s disappointing to see decisions like this driven by misinformation and pressure from anti-use groups, especially when what we work with is only sustainably and ethically harvested,” they wrote.
The company has operated Maine Wild Harvest Co. since February 2022, selling fur products on Etsy for about three years, with more than 1,300 sales. Its listings include a range of Maine-sourced pelts — such as coyote, beaver, raccoon and fox — as well as finished items like beaver hand and foot warmers.
Despite the setback, the couple said they plan to adapt and move to a new platform before the ban takes effect.
With some fur markets stalled or flat — and certain pelts difficult to sell — platforms like Etsy have provided trappers a way to add value by selling finished products directly to consumers, rather than relying solely on fur auctions.
Maine has about 4,200 licensed trappers, with roughly half actively trapping each year, according to the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.
Another Maine seller, East Wing Taxidermy Co. in Washington County, joined Etsy two months ago. Current listings include a raccoon fur hat and headband-scarf, and past sales include items such as whitetail deer tail keychains.
Owner Olivia Jones said while the news is disappointing, she feels worse for others in the community who have been on the platform for years and now have to direct their customers elsewhere.
“The best part about Etsy is that you’re reaching so many different people who are buying these things for different reasons,” Jones said. “It’s like going to the mall — you’re not really sure what you’re gonna get, but you need to get a gift for somebody.”
For many sellers, the shift also highlights the cost of doing business outside major platforms, where building a website or maintaining a physical storefront can be expensive.
Jones plans to focus on wholesale, local marketing, as well as building a website and growing her social media presence.
R.L. Mercantile and Trading Post, another small business that recently joined Etsy, has been on the platform for four months.
“It was going really well for us,” owner Brea Willette said.
They plan to move their inventory to their own website and continue selling through their store in Vassalboro.
Glacier Wear, based in Greenville, is one of the more established Maine businesses on Etsy, having been on the platform for 13 years, and has also supplied fur, hides and custom costumes for films such as “The Revenant,” “Night at the Museum” and “The Hateful Eight.”
Some trappers say the move reflects a broader trend of online platforms restricting fur sales, raising concerns about where they will be able to sell their products in the future.
“Losing that access does not just change where they sell, it changes whether they can realistically reach buyers at all,” Dostie wrote.
Others pointed to trapping as a regulated practice and its role in wildlife management.
“Fur is a sustainable resource. It’s all state regulated — from what kind of traps you can use, how many you can harvest and when the season is,” Lacombe said.
