I thought tindie was meant for the normal people out there. Why are companies allowed to sell on here? There is nothing wrong but doesnt make much sense. For instance. SeeedStudio. Why in the world do you have to have a shop on tindie when you are already a large enough shop with your own site? I understand you want to get out there but doesnt it make it harder for the norms?
So basically why are they allowed?
Good question and something I’m happy to discuss. Tindie is an indie hardware marketplace. Our mission is to help inventors bring their products to market.
To turn that question around, as a seller grows, does it ever become inappropriate to sell through Tindie? I think the answer is no. As long as they are an independent company, it’s great. Bigger sellers attract more customers, and that ultimately grows the ecosystem for everyone.
However the ultimate point is - “Is Tindie still fair for everyone?” and the answer is overwhelmingly YES! If you look at the Featured page, it is still full of indie hardware from smaller companies.
I truly do understand and think its not a real issue but…
If a seller STARTS on tindie i think its fine that they grown into huge businesses but then should leave tindie. For example or as an analogy…
kids play at a playground, when they are adults they should not still be playing in a childrens playground. how would you feel if your child has to play in the same area as other adults?
I do think tindie is totally fair. I love tindie and there options and places and etc… Im not saying lets force these guys out. Im just noticing something and thought id voice it 
Also i thought (i read the TOS) that linking to your own store was not allowed… For instance
Good catch - now that does need to be removed.
My apologies for bumping an old topic but I would like to weight in on this.
@atomsoft : I initially wondered the same thing when I saw the “retail” sellers on Tindie. After a little thought about the subject i realized that it was actually a good thing to have them here. As @emilepetrone mentioned it brings traffic to the site and the more people you can put in front of your product the better you will do. More importantly I feel that a retailer presence pushes innovation forward as it encourages the smaller sellers to develop and market new or unique products in order to compete. If you look around Tindie there are number of products that are just rehashed open source projects or copies of “retail” products.The discerning buyer isn’t going to pay a premium if the product is available for much less in the retail environment. I think it also helps to reduce resold product that is listed way above market value by some sellers.
Tl;dr
Retailers stabilize the Tindie market place and push innovation forward.
