Where You Can Shop Small this Holiday Season

It is more important than ever to support small businesses to make sure that they survive this tough year. I also love to support women and minority-owned businesses, which is a majority of this list. This list comes from shops I have personally purchased from before, or personal recommendations from friends and family.

Please share it with anyone you know looking to support small businesses this holiday season!

1. Women’s Clothing:

A. Shop Whilden (Chapel Hill, NC) (Women-owned): Whilden is a unique women’s boutique offering distinctive clothing, shoes and accessories. The boutique boasts a mix of classic and eclectic clothing, while featuring local and regional jewelry artists who have designed statement pieces to complete any outfit.

B. House of Hanz (Brooklyn, NY): Hanz is a curated retail destination featuring fashion & accessory brands from around the world for men, women, and home. And they sell Emerson Fry!

C. Royal + Reese (Bloomington, IL) (Women-Owned): A boutique for women and kids clothing owned by three sisters. As you guys have seen, I shop here way too often!

D. Phenomenal Women Action (Women and Minority-Owned): Great female-empowerment clothing from a shop owned by Meena Harris (Kamala Harris’ sister).

E. Royal Jelly Harlem (NYC) (Women and Minority-Owned) This shops sells the face masks worn by Duchess Kate!

F. The Tiny Tassel (Charleston, SC) (Women and Minority-Owned)

G. Odin Leather Goods (The Colony, TX)

2. Kids Clothing:

A. Piccolina Kids (Women-Owned): Piccolina’s “Trailblazer” tees (featuring famous women in history were on Oprah’s Favorite Things list last year, and this year they have expanded the collection to sweaters, masks and pjs! I own two of the tees for my daughter and have my eye on the RBG pajamas!

B. Wire + Honey (Women and Minority Owned): This is a wonderful family-owned business in Baltimore that always donates a portion of their proceeds to charity.

C. Typical Black Tees (Women and Minority-Owned): I own their “Elect Black Women” shirt and wear it all the time. They sell clothing for both women, men and children.

D. Lemon Lane Consignment (Falls Church, VA) (Women-Owned): You can shop their IG page for so many good deals on name-brand kids clothes from Hanna Andersson, Mini Boden, etc. I get so many clothes for Maggie from here!

3. Food:

A. Greyston Bakery: The bakery that makes brownies for Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, which has a wonderful “open hiring system” to give second chances to those in need of employment.

B. Katherine Anne Confections (Chicago, IL) (Women-Owned)

C. Raye’s Mustard Mill (Eastport, ME)

D. 1915 Farm (Victoria, TX): Grass-fed beef and gifts.

E. Wonderpuff Cotton Candy (Women and Minority-Owned)

F. Wicked Whoopies (Gardner, ME) (Women-Owned)

G. Oaktown Spice Shop (Albany, CA)

4. Candles

A. Smile + Light (Arlington, VA) (Women-Owned): Hand-poured candles inspired by your favorite books, including a Christmas Carol collection! These are made by my friend Molly, and I can personally attest to how amazing they smell.

B. Big White Yeti (Milwaukee, WI) (Women-Owned)

C. Harlem Candle Company (NYC) (Women and Minority-Owned)

D. KSM Candle Co (Baltimore, MD) (Women and Minority Owned)

E. Southern Elegance Candle Co (Raeford, NC) (Women and Minority Owned)

5. Toys: Here are a few local toy stores you can shop at instead of big box stores!

A. William’s Smart Fun Toys (Macon, GA)

B. Play Toys & Books (Chicago, IL)

C. World of Mirth (Richmond, VA) (Women-Owned)

D. A+X Puzzles (Women and Minority-Owned)

E. Papa Don’s Toys (Walton, OR)

6. Gift Shops

A. Woods Grove (Brooklyn, NY)

B. The Flourish Market (Raleigh, NC) (Women-Owned): Flourish Market partners with 50+ brands that work all over the world, providing dignified jobs and fair wages to inspiring artisans and makers in vulnerable communities.

C. Feliz Modern (San Antonio, TX) (Women and Minority-Owned)

D. New Origin Shop (Austin, TX) (Women and Minority-Owned)

E. Covet (Arlington, VA) (Women-Owned): They have so many fun gift items, including RBG notepads, Fauci masks, and “I’m Speaking” lip balm!

F. Zazu (Ashburn, VA) – they carry a huge variety of gifts, including these super cute Spartina bags for your favorite destination/your hometown.

G. Moore Collection (Denver, CO)

H. Little Peach Fuzz (Chicago, IL) (Women-Owned): A great place to get unique kids gifts!

I. MorningTide (Albany, CA) (Women and Minority-Owned)

J. Humboldt House (Chicago, IL) (Women-owned)

K. Holiday Apparel (Springdale, AR) – how cute are these santa sacks?

7. Jewelry:

A. Stacking it Up Bracelets (Oak Park, IL) (Women-Owned): Gorgeous bracelets hand-made by my friend Erin, who can add “Mama” and your kids’ initials – or really anything else you want – to a bracelet stack.

B. MadexMeg (Fairfield, CT) (Women-Owned): My friend Meg made me a “VOTE” beaded chain for my mask that I am obsessed with, and she also sells mask chains for kids and kits for kids to make their own beaded jewelry

C. By Selena with Love (Montclair, NJ) (Women-Owned): Gorgeous crystal and birthstone jewelry hand-made by my friend Selena!

D. Peach Made Clay (Atlanta, GA) (Women-Owned): My friend Katie makes the most gorgeous and unique statement earrings, perfect for the accessory-lover in your life.

E. Beau + Stella (Seattle, WA) (Women-Owned): Constellation jewelry hand-made in America.

F. BR Design Co (Charleston, SC) (Women and Minority Owned)

G. Oceanne (Women-Owned)

8. Drinkware:

A. MNGlitter Works (Minneapolis, MN) (Women-Owned): My friend Krystle sells these fun hand-made tumblers for the glitter-lover in your life.

9. Artists:

A. Berkley Illustration (Portland, OR): These pet portraits are such fun unique gift!

B. Meenal Patel Studio (San Francisco, CA) (Women and Minority-Owned)

C. Elle Cree (Portland, OR) (Women-Owned): Handmade paint-by number kits to support good causes (“We believe in supporting causes that protect the most vulnerable among us, which is why in 2020 we committed to donating 5% of our net profits to a number of social and environmental causes”).

D. Blessed Willow Gallery (Fort Wayne, IN): This shop sells custom paintings of your home, which I think is a great personalized gift!

10. Makeup/Skincare/Bath Products:

A. Laura Botanicals (Thousand Oaks, CA) (Women-Owned)

11. Book Stores: Amazon will be fine, please consider supporting a local bookstore this holiday season!

A. KidO Chicago (Chicago, IL) (Women and Minority-Owned)

B. Books are Magic (Brooklyn, NY) (Women-owned)

C. Book Shelf Thomasville (Thomasville, GA) (Women-owned)

D. Semicolon (Chigago, IL) (Women and Minority-Owned)

E. White Whale Bookstore (Pittsburgh, PA)

F. Powells (Portland, OR)

G. Hello Hello Books (Rockland, ME)

H. East City Bookshop (Washington, DC) (Women-owned)

I. Solid State Books (Washington, DC)

J. Uncle Bobbie’s Coffee and Books (Philadelphia, PA)

12. Workout Studios

A. Bar Method Baltimore (Baltimore, MD) (Women-Owned): You can currently work out with Bar Method for 50 days (virtually in the comfort of your home) for only $50. This would be a great gift for a friend who is looking for a new way to work out at home!

13. Home Goods