ShopatSullivan resells vintage style items on Etsy, and back dates them 40 years! Does being a fan of Anne of Green Gables make you mendacious? #etsysellsvintage

Once again I have to comment that shops on Etsy that professionally follow the published guidelines for sellers-- listing only items designed and/or made by them as Handmade, authentic Vintage items at least 20 years old, and stuff that is actually supplies for crafting -- are there merely to distract shoppers and (especially) stockholders/investors from the reality that about 50 percent of Etsy shops are reselling to some extent.

Meet ShopatSullivan who has been reselling contemporary products for years as "vintage".  Because they are an extremely low volume seller (just 28 sales made as I type), they are the only type of fake vintage shop that Etsy's Marketplace Integrity Team is likely to close.  Maybe giving them a feature here will nudge Etsy into shutting this one down, dunno.  But it's worth a try!

I previously called out ShopatSullivan in my companion blog, Fake Shaming Etsy and its Resellers, in a post dated January 27, 2018 about reselling iPhone related products as "vintage".  I periodically check shops featured in older posts to see what they are currently up to.  The item featured in January, an iPhone case for several obsolete models listed as a "vintage item from the 1970s", set this seller apart as an extravagant liar (and on mendacious Etsy that is quite an achievement!) and worth her own featured post.

The shop has no About section, but the seller's Etsy Community Member Profile says "we sell vintage inspired items" which is a clear admission that they are violating Etsy's published guidelines for Sellers.  Not that there is a problem with doing so -- remember, about half the sellers on Etsy are rule breakers.

Let's have a look at the items listed for sale by this lying sack of a reseller!

Pretending to be "vintage" is this Kazuri-Charleston Necklace offered in 3 colors, with 11 units in stock.  4 units have already been sold.  The mendacious seller's Description for the item explains that these contemporary necklaces are "hand crafted in Africa" "by single mothers in Nairobi".  And that the Etsy price of $18.28 each is half of the "original retail price".  Yup, that is what "vintage" is about on Etsy.

The item's Description also includes the web address of the wholesale source, Kazuri America.  Their Story page explains they are a "fair trade" organization.  Which does nothing whatsoever to justify deceptively listing these necklaces as "vintage".  Pants.  On.  Fire.


Another Kazuri Necklace listing pulls out all the mendacity stops and claims it is "vintage from the 1970s", maybe because Kazuri was founded in 1975.  Offered in 2 color choices, with 8 units in stock.

Finally, here's a deceptive listing for "Loose Leaf Herbal Tea" pretending to be "vintage supply from the 1970s" (anyone see a pattern here?); it's not herbal tea, however, but a blend.  Offered in 4 flavor mixes, 13 units in stock, 7 units already sold.

Of course these teas aren't vintage at all, or from the 1970s.  ShopatSullivan has their own boutique website where these tea mixes are sold.  I guess ShopatSullivan never realized that their deceitful Etsy shop would be link-connected with their stand alone business.  You're welcome, reseller.