Online shopping this holiday season? Start shopping early and support mission-driven brands that give back. Shop for good, ethically made, fair-trade, and sustainable gifts by looking for certifications like B Corp and Fair Trade Certified. By purchasing gifts from Certified B Corps and Social Enterprises, you’re not only giving a gift, but you’re also supporting mission-driven companies that are balancing purpose and profit by working towards sustainable, ethical, environmentally friendly business practices.
We created a list of brands that impressed us this year with how they use their profits to do good.
DoneGood.
Use your purchasing power for good. Americans give $400 billion to charity each year, but we spend $130 trillion buying everyday items, reports DoneGood. DoneGood aims to redirect even a small percentage of this spending to brands that are reducing poverty, fighting climate change, and otherwise making the world better. Because “the dollars we spend can be the world’s most powerful force for change.” Shop the DoneGood site for brands that are “good for people and good for the planet.” You can also download the Ethical Shopping assistant Browser Plugin for free!
For Wellness
Savhera
Give the gift of freedom. Savhera provides customers with premium essential oil products that contribute to wellness, justice, and sustainability at home and around the world.
Every essential oil purchased is a celebration of new beginnings and restored joy, and contributes to dignified employment for the brave survivors of sexual exploitation in India and the United States they employ. See their new aromatherapy jewelry line!
Shop for Good While Shopping for For Her
The Worthy Co
Because every woman is worthy. The Worthy Co is a social enterprise of The Net FW, a non-profit based in Fort Worth, Texas that serves survivors of trafficking. 100% of every purchase benefits local trafficking, prostitution, and addiction survivors. You can purchase apparel, home goods, and jewelry for the woman in your life while empowering survivors.
For the fashionista
Symbology
Fair trade made sexy. Symbology merges artisanal fabric techniques with fashion forward designs that give our customers a one-of-a-kind item that connects women in a global community. Symbology uses fashion as a platform to empower women, preserve handmade crafts and provide sustained employment and fair wages to marginalized artisans. Each piece is handcrafted by women artisans in developing countries using traditional fabric techniques like block printing, tie dye and embroidery.
For the Thrifter
Loot Finer Goods
Practice conscious consumerism. Co-founders Anna and Rhoda make sure to choose items that are created to support fair trade with different countries, items that are created from previously loved materials, or items that sustain local artisans. Loot Finer Goods promotes living with items that support your clean, minimal lifestyle without extra fluff of unnecessary clutter … all in the name of beauty. They encourage you to buy for need or because you find joy in the treasure at hand, not purely for want. The real way to change the world is not by consumerism but by volunteering, donating, and contributing to the community.
Uncommon Goods
A Force for Good. As a founding B Corp, Uncommon Goods is an online marketplace to connect makers and their creations with shoppers looking for truly unique goods. Find environmentally friendly, one-of-a-kind gifts for your friends and family from across the globe!
For the Professional
MarieMae Company
Practical, Professional Gifts that Give Back. Each item purchased equals one hour of training for one person at the Marie Mae Business School. The Marie Mae Business School includes classes and training for women and entrepreneurs around the world, in places such as Rwanda. The current business school is ongoing in Dallas, Texas empowering trafficking survivors with the business skills they need to succeed.
They offer leather goods, stationery, and pre-designed gift packages for The Achiever in your life. They also work with you to create perfectly branded corporate gifts that are the perfect fit for your employees, clients, and holiday events.
For Him
Global Goods Partners
Buy Handmade – Change Women’s Lives. This Travel Kit, BackPack, Wallet, and Card Holder are all made from Recycled Tires. Perfect for travel and everyday use. Even better, these products are handcrafted by Friends International. With the sale of these items, children in Cambodia, who formerly worked to support their relatives, are able to go to school. Friends International helps strengthen families by training out-of-work parents and offering services.
For Everyone
Bombas
“A hug for your feet.” For every pair sold, Bombas donates one pair to organizations that help people experiencing homelessness. They’ve engineered a special sock specifically for those donations that doesn’t need to be washed as often and stands up to more frequent use. They’ve made holiday gifting super easy with gift boxes of four pairs of socks for women, men, and kids, which means less time choosing socks and more time having fun.
The Greatest Gift Catalog Ever
For the person who has everything. The Greatest Gift Catalog Ever is a list of alternative gifts that give happiness. It has 20 partner organizations that “help the hungry, homeless, and helpless.”
Most donations to the charitable programs are matched, dollar for dollar, and those dollars are leveraged by each organization in amazing ways.
