Amazon is launching a site for handcrafted goods called Amazon Handmade on Thursday, hoping to capitalize on shoppers' appetite for homemade goods. Handmade at Amazon (www.amazon.com/handmade) is featuring genuinely handmade items crafted and sold directly from artisans. All products available on Handmade at Amazon are factory-free and must be made by hand. The store features a variety of product categories including Jewelry, Home Decor, Artwork, Stationery and Party Supplies, Kitchen and Dining, and Furniture.

Online visitors can shop by country to find products from artisans in more than 60 countries. Every artisan has a profile that describes how their products are made.

"We had thousands of searches every day from customers looking for handmade or handcrafted items," said Peter Faricy, vice president for Amazon Marketplace.

At launch, Amazon Handmade will include about 5,000 sellers from 50 states and 60 countries offering 80,000 items. Amazon takes a 12 percent fee from overall sales made by Amazon Handmade sellers and includes payment processing, discounted shipping and access to other Amazon services. There's no listing fee or monthly fee to start.

Handmade will be competing with New York-based Etsy, which has 1.5 million sellers and 21.7 million buyers as of June 30. It takes a 3.5 percent fee on overall sales and a 20 cent listing fee per item listed.