61 Handicraft Industry Statistics

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These handicraft industry figures cover the measurement periods and populations identified in the available source material. Estimates, surveys and forecasts retain their reported scope.

Key Handicraft Industry Statistics

The main findings are:

  • 73% of UK adults had bought craft in 2019 (United Kingdom).
  • England and Wales had an estimated 32,000 professional makers in 2006.
  • Etsy marketplace GMS was $10.9 billion in 2024.
  • BAME makers represented approximately 2%-4% of makers in 2020 (United Kingdom).
  • UK craft exports totaled £3.5 billion in 2023 (United Kingdom).
  • Culture accounted for 4.1% of Philippine GDP in 2018 (Philippines).
  • UK consumers bought almost 25 million handcrafted objects in 2019 (United Kingdom).
  • Those England and Wales professional makers generated an estimated £826 million turnover in 2006.
  • Consolidated Etsy, Reverb and Depop GMS was $12.6 billion in 2024 (Etsy Inc. marketplaces).
  • The Crafts Council’s 2022 Maker Needs Survey had 639 respondents (United Kingdom makers).
  • Craft accounted for 0.84% of total UK exports in 2023 (United Kingdom).
  • Cultural employment represented 1.6% of total Philippine employment in 2020 (Philippines).
  • UK craft sales exceeded £3 billion in 2019 (United Kingdom).
  • The 2020 report said the number of makers likely far exceeded 32,000 (England and Wales/UK craft sector).
  • Etsy marketplace represented 86.4% of Etsy Inc.’s 2024 consolidated GMS (Etsy Inc. marketplaces).

Contents

Handicraft industry statistics: UK market size and consumer demand

  • 73% of UK adults had bought craft in 2019 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • UK consumers bought almost 25 million handcrafted objects in 2019 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • UK craft sales exceeded £3 billion in 2019 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • 85% of surveyed Americans said they would buy a piece of craft (2020 report survey). (Market for craft)
  • 88% of surveyed UK consumers said they would buy a piece of craft (2020 report survey; United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • 28% of surveyed consumers had bought from a UK maker (2020 report survey; United Kingdom consumer survey). (Market for craft)
  • 59% of surveyed consumers would consider buying from a UK maker in future (2020 report survey; United Kingdom consumer survey). (Market for craft)

Consumer survey result; craft is broader than handicrafts alone.

Crafts Council market estimate; not an administrative count.

Estimated craft market value, not pure handicraft turnover.

Survey respondents, not all US consumers; craft is broader than handicrafts.

Survey respondents, not all UK consumers.

Survey result; maker purchases may include many craft disciplines.

Stated future intention, not completed purchases.

Handicraft industry statistics: maker businesses, employment and incomes

Historical estimate using the report’s professional-maker definition.

Historical craft-sector estimate.

Report wording is directional rather than a precise count.

Maker survey population; not all craft workers.

Historical maker-study result; not a current workforce estimate.

Comparator for makers, not maker income itself.

Maker survey result; website ownership is not equivalent to online sales.

Subgroup result using the report’s career-level classification.

Company-reported marketplace count; Etsy includes handmade and unique goods beyond traditional handicrafts.

Handicraft industry statistics: Etsy marketplace scale and handmade commerce

GMS is the value of items sold net of refunds and excluding shipping, not Etsy revenue.

Consolidated figure includes Reverb and Depop, so it is not a pure handicraft-market total.

Company-reported share; denominator includes non-handmade-focused Reverb and Depop.

Consolidated users across Etsy, Reverb and Depop; excludes Elo7 after divestiture.

Company-defined active-seller metric.

Company-defined trailing active-buyer metric.

Listings are not necessarily unique products or completed sales.

Company-defined custom/made-to-order category; not all handmade merchandise.

Categories include homewares, jewelry, apparel, craft supplies, paper/party supplies, and toys/games.

Company-reported year-over-year change.

Trailing-twelve-month company metric.

Company-defined active-buyer metric.

Ex-U.S. domestic definition is based on seller billing and/or buyer shipping address; company changed presentation after 2024.

Company’s ex-U.S. domestic metric; not the same as seller nationality or export value.

Based on buyer shipping address and net of refunds.

Handicraft industry statistics: craft participation, inclusion and audiences

  • BAME makers represented approximately 2%-4% of makers in 2020 (United Kingdom). (Market for Craft: Executive Summary)
  • The Crafts Council’s 2022 Maker Needs Survey had 639 respondents (United Kingdom makers). (Maker Needs Survey)
  • The 2022 Maker Needs Survey had 24% more respondents than the 2021 survey (2021-2022; United Kingdom makers). (Maker Needs Survey)
  • The 2021 Maker Needs Survey had 491 respondents (United Kingdom makers). (Maker Needs Survey)
  • The 2020 Maker Needs Survey had 850 respondents (United Kingdom makers). (Maker Needs Survey)
  • In 2016, 48% of makers flagged funding and marketing advice as a top priority (United Kingdom makers). (Maker Needs Survey)

Report’s BAME grouping and survey population; not an official workforce census.

Respondent count; not a population estimate.

Change in completed responses, not necessarily change in the maker population.

Respondent count; the survey included pandemic and Brexit questions.

Historical annual-survey result; priority selection is not an outcome measure.

Handicraft industry statistics: exports, trade and cultural-economy contribution

  • UK craft exports totaled £3.5 billion in 2023 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • Craft accounted for 0.84% of total UK exports in 2023 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • Gemstone trade accounted for around 12% of UK craft exports in 2023 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • UK craft exports were £4.5 billion in 2016 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • UK craft exports were £3.2 billion in 2020 (United Kingdom). (Market for craft)
  • The EU had 2.03 million cultural enterprises in 2022 (European Union). (EU had over 2 million…)
  • EU cultural enterprises represented 6.3% of all businesses in the business economy in 2022 (European Union). (EU had over 2 million…)
  • EU cultural enterprises generated €199 billion in value added in 2022 (European Union). (EU had over 2 million…)
  • EU cultural enterprises generated 2.0% of total business-economy value added in 2022 (European Union). (EU had over 2 million…)
  • Creative, arts and entertainment activities represented 27.4% of EU cultural enterprises in 2022 (European Union). (EU had over 2 million…)
  • Publishing represented 14.9% of EU cultural-sector value added in 2022 (European Union). (EU had over 2 million…)
  • Architecture represented 14.6% of EU cultural-sector value added in 2022 (European Union). (EU had over 2 million…)

Crafts Council policy summary based on government export figures; craft classification includes gemstone trade.

Crafts Council interpretation of government trade data.

Included within the report’s craft-export definition.

Historical government export estimate as presented by Crafts Council; classification changes may affect comparisons.

Historical government export estimate as presented by Crafts Council.

Eurostat cultural aggregate covers 21 activities, not handicraft businesses alone.

Business-economy denominator covers industry, construction and market services.

Cultural aggregate, not handicraft-only value added.

Cultural aggregate denominator and Eurostat SBS definitions apply.

Activity group is broader than handicrafts.

Related cultural-sector measure, not craft production.

Handicraft industry statistics: country-level craft employment and business indicators

UNESCO indicator covers formal private cultural production and excludes informal and unpaid activity.

UNESCO profile notes limited data availability.

Cultural and creative sectors/occupations, not handicraft-only jobs.

Occupation share within cultural occupations; not share of all national employment.

Occupation share within cultural occupations; not a pure handicraft measure.

Occupation share within cultural occupations.

Sex-disaggregated cultural-occupation measure, not handicraft-only.

UNESCO cultural-business indicator, not handicraft businesses alone.

UNESCO reports ornaments and ICT-related products as important physical exports; cultural goods are broader than handicrafts.

Related cultural-services indicator, not handicraft goods.

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