GoImagine’s Closure Underscores Challenges of Scaling a Values-Driven Marketplace
Handmade marketplace GoImagine announces shut down, highlighting the steep financial, marketing and network-effect hurdles facing independent marketplaces competing against publicly traded giants like Etsy, Amazon and eBay.
The marketplace was founded in 2020 by Jon Lincoln as an online home for for sellers of handmade goods that differentiates itself by donating 100% of its profits to children's charities.
That philanthropic mission and promises of more seller-friendly policies appealed to many creators who were looking for alternatives to larger corporate marketplaces - particularly sellers who took part in the Etsy Strike movement in 2022 that went out to establish groups like the Artisan's Cooperative and Indie Sellers Guild.
GoImagine was even featured in an Indie Sellers Guild blog post in 2023, with Lincoln providing a look under the hood at what made GoImagine different from other marketplaces - and the unique challenges that posed for the site.
Kristi
...Jon also shared with me the reason he believes Etsy went bad. He talked about how starting a tech company typically works. You have an idea, and when you pitch it to investors, they buy into your idea in return for a share of ownership. You sell off your idea piece by piece, until you don’t own your own company anymore. Once that process is complete, it doesn’t matter if your vision was rather benevolent in the beginning. Your company is owned by other people, who only care about profit.
That’s exactly what happened to Jon in his last tech startup. He was able to lead that company to success, but he didn’t truly own it anymore, so he couldn’t stop it from straying from his vision. He decided to do things differently the second time around, cashed out, and started Goimagine...
...Jon told me that for every new signup to the platform today, they’re able to put 27% of those seller fees straight into advertising. He also told me that the bill to run Goimagine is around $40,000 every single month. That doesn’t include any wages for Jon. For the time being, he’s a full-time volunteer.
Unfortunately, supporting worthy charitable causes and appealing to sellers looking for alternatives isn't enough - as ecommerce consultant Cindy Baldassi points out, without traffic and buyers, there's no incentive for sellers to pay to list there.
GoImagine posted a notice on their site advising users they plan to shut down on March 23, 2026 and that access to dashboards and listing exports will end on April 6, 2026.
Why is goimagine closing?
After careful consideration, we’ve made the difficult decision to close the goimagine marketplace.We took a chance on a new philanthropic marketplace model for makers and artists. While it resonated with a passionate group, we ultimately were unable to reach the scale required for long-term sustainability. We came close, but sadly fell short.
This decision was not made lightly. We are incredibly grateful for every seller who trusted us with their business.
