This holidiay season, it's more important than ever to support local and sustainable businesses. This year has been so tough for small businesses, with so many closing due to the pandemic. When your dollars stay local or support a responsible business, the whole community benefits. Here are some gift ideas crowd-sourced from our board members, volunteers, and friends!
- Give the gift of some greenery and clean air with a plant friend from Knots and Found. This woman-owned, small business boasts a huge selection of plants for any kind of environment and offers a wide variety of fun and cute ceramic pots to house a plant in. House plants can have so many benefits.
- Holiday Gift Collective pop-up is a collection of seven local, all-female artisans just in time for the holidays. Many of the vendors, such as Seriously Imbibed Products (SIP), Hollie's Homegrown and Planet Renu have some neat sustainable gifts this year!
- Hydroflask insulated mugs - perfect for hot chocolate! Or an Arts & Crafts Busy Box to keep young ones happy indoors on rainy days. Check out lots of cool items at Earth Hero, an eco-friendly online marketplace with products that are sourced, manufactured, and shipped in a way that protects our planet’s future.
- K9 Kitchen in Lafayette has amazing and high-quality selection of toys, food, treats, and products for cats and dogs. A small, local, woman-owned business.
- There's just something endearing about handmade gifts! If you're not too crafty yourself, check out Etsy for a huge selection of cute gifts.
- Poshmark is a wonderful place to search pre-owned items as well!
- Zero waste and clean living products from Mighty Market, a women-owned, small business in downtown Martinez - customers can bring in their own containers for refills on items such as shower gel, laundry detergent, and hand sanitizer and buy products sourced from local vendors. They can help you put together cute gift sets too!
- Get some sweets for your sweetie (or treat yourself!) - chocolates from Love + Chocolate are making our mouth water.
- Ecolunch Box has plastic-free, multi-purpose reusable stainless steel containers - perfect for packing snacks for a picnic or storing holiday leftovers in the fridge. Woman-owned, and they have carbon-neutral shipping.
- Lotions and soaps from Dr Bronner's (this organic magic balm looks awesome) or The Body Shop (check out their vegan products) - both companies are Certified B Corps!
- A good book for all those evenings sheltering indoors - Bookshop.org allows you to order online and support small local bookstores. Bookshop helps strengthen the fragile ecosystem and margins around bookselling and keep local bookstores an integral part of our culture and communities; it's als a B-Corp!
Food & Experiences:
- Gift a pizza party for some delicious and easy family fun! Order a DIY Pizza Kit from Queen of Crusts, a local, woman- and minority-owned small business that offers organic, non-GMO, vegan and gluten-free options.
- Consumable gifts: dried apples and persimmons from your tree, or jams, nuts, or cookies. Don't have a garden or time in the kitchen? Pick up some goodies at your local farmer's market!
- A Holiday Gift Box from Imperfect Foods, for the foodie on your list! These "imperfect" holiday goodies reduce food waste and Imperfect Foods is donating $10,000 to Feeding America to support hunger relief this holiday season.
- Zero Grocery is a zero waste grocery delivery service based in Berkeley. It is a black owned business and makes deliveries in plastic free containers that are then collected and reused. They deliver to many Bay Area locations, including El Cerrito, Richmond, Lafayette, Concord, and Walnut Creek
- Although temporarily closed due to COVID-19, the California Magic Club in Martinez will soon reopen to serve up a magical evening with a three-course meal and performances by top-notch magicians. Check out this one-of-a-kind experience - they are currently selling gift certificates for future shows once it's safe to reopen.
- Give the gift of yoga! Many local studios are now offering online classes so you and your friends can practice from the comfort of your home. Square One Yoga says, "You’re welcome if you’ve never owned yoga pants and aren’t sure you ever want to. You’re also welcome if you love your yoga pants and wear them everywhere!"
- Virtual Wine (& Cheese or Beer!) Tastings - learn from knowledgeable staff at these lively events; a great way to taste a variety of wines in a fun setting! Or how about a bottle of wine or 6-pack of beer? Lots of cool businesses in the county such as Vinous Reverie, Prima have online events, and we also love Viano Vineyards, Captain Vineyards, and Calicraft Brewery
- Yummy dinner from local restaurants (we love Sideboard and Sunrise Bistro for those of you in Central County). You could get take-out and eat it at a local park if it's warm outside. We love this comment on our Facebook page: "My son and I rode our bikes into town and bought a gift certificate for a restaurant for my husband! Win win... support small business, experience, and I suspect he'll take me!"
Check out these other Amazon-alternatives for some sustainable gift options!
- Made Trade - Every product adheres to one or more of their seven core values: Sustainable, vegan, woman-owned, fair trade, heritage, made in the U.S.A., and/or people of color owned." Purchases directly supports small businesses, independent makers, and artisans around the world.
- Simple Switch - Convenient one stop shop with more than 3,000+ products supporting more than 50 causes that make a real social and environmental
- Going Zero Waste Blog: "30 Zero Waste Stocking Stuffers"
- Check out the Better World Shopping Guide to search for more sustainable products and ratings.
Wrap it all up sustainably - check out this zero waste wrapping guide for some ideas!
What are some of your favorite local or sustainable gift ideas?
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