18 Small Queer Owned Online Stores Holiday Guide 2023
Living in the time of Amazon, I hope that you will choose to support one or several of these incredible small queer owned businesses! Please note, yes it might take longer than 24hrs to ship to you. Yes, they might make a mistake (they are human). All of these businesses are run by a handful of people and are not large corporations. Happy shopping and thank you for supporting queer entrepreneurs :)!
1. Queer Candle Co. / Candles
Queer Candle Co. is a trans + queer owned small batch candle company. All of their products are hand poured using soy wax and naturally derived fragrances. They're also decorated with visual representations of the scent, usually pressed flowers and herbs! Sniff sniff, hooray!
Redwoods scent is my favorite!
2. THE ATHLETIC / ATHLETIC APPAREL
Meet Jess and Vanessa Ditto, the shepherds of The Athletic! They have been athletes all of their lives, from soccer to judo, to cycling to running, nothing has brought them more joy and community than moving their bodies. To them, The Athletic is, and will always be, a love letter to movement.
The Athletic is bold and unconventional, just like you. You carve your own path and you do it with flair. They make technical socks and high quality sportswear for the everyday athlete. Designed for performance and for style.
"The Athletic is a love letter to movement. We make technical socks and high quality sportswear for the everyday athlete. Form + performance." -Jess and Vanessa Ditto
3. Samar pitcrew / gender-fluid perfumes
POC and BIPOC Queer Owned! Na-Moya and Debbie, the founders of SAMAR, are a duo of self taught perfumers on a mission to craft captivating unisex perfumes for both perfume lovers and non-perfume lovers alike. Their unisex fragrances are lovingly handmade in small batches using high quality ingredients sourced from around the world. Their line of perfumes, "The Scentuary" is our homage to timeless beauty, the uncanny, and the surreal. They aim to defy expectations and create an olfactory experience that is intriguing and pleasurable from your first inhale to the final lingering moments on your skin. Inspired by the tenacity of moments past, they draw from fond childhood memories, their love of literature, and a fascination with the dark and arcane. The Scentuary was created to explore the liminal space where uncanny realism and dreamy fantasy unite. They personally have found urgency sales haven't aligned with their values around making fine fragrances more accessible, so instead they offer three discount codes that are available (mostly) year-round. In their view, being able to purchase an item when it makes sense for your lifestyle is more sustainable and leads to more conscious purchasing! Below are the active codes for their website:
-SAMARBDAY2023 (15% off, no minimum purchase, expires Dec.31, 2023 and renews on our anniversary in May 2024)
-MANYTHANKS15 (15% off, minimum $25 purchase, no end date)
-NICETOMEETYOU10 (10% off, subscribe to our newsletter - we don't spam, promise!)
Donation based discount | They are currently matching donations to the following organizations: Islamic Relief USA (providing food, water, and medical supplies to Palestinians in Gaza).
4. Old growth alchemy / teas
Old Growth Alchemy is a goblin market of seasonal and perennial curiosities to tempt your senses and enchant your imagination. A purveyor of handcrafted teas, botanical bitters, and wild wonders ranging from reliquaries to flower crowns-each creation is inspired by stories, fandoms, land, lore, and the occult. Use code: EIQHOLIDAY for 10% off!
5. It’s Madison ryan / pride apparel + more (pride flags!!)
Madison Ryan is a lesbian owned online clothing store featuring pride merch for over 20 different sexualities and identities. Their most popular collections are the Lesbian and Bisexual Pride collections, which each have well over 100 unique items, including graphic tees, flag printed pants, subtle pride flag accessories and home goods, and even stuffed animals! They also carry their TikTok viral protest sweatshirts, some political and feminist basics, and clothes inspired by Taylor Swift's gayest songs. Their sizing ranges from XXS-6XL depending on the piece!
6. Abstractbyrabrams / greeting cards + More
AbstractbyRabrams is a shop for the abstract mind that creates greeting cards, paintings, and everyday household items. Founder Rachel, or Rabrams, pours all of her love and creative juices into each piece. She strives to be an environmentally and socially conscious company, donating 10% of their profits to different organizations that support queer youth, check out their Linktree to see who they are currently supporting.
Discount codes: EIQ20 for 20% off orders over $40 on Etsy all the time. Code: EIQ20 for 20% off orders of over $80 on Faire through the end of December.
7. Coast & Clearing / soaps + more
Coast & Clearing is a handcrafted soap and skincare company located in Milwaukie, Oregon. Made with vegan-friendly ingredients, C&C’s product line includes cold process soaps, bath bombs and shower steamers, soaking salts, body butters, gift sets, and aromatherapy items. Book a date with your bath tub and make self-care a priority!
8. DR DHT / beard oils + More
DR DHT creates premium hormone-safe beard growth products (and more; such as scar care products) for the trans community. They are fully trans-owned and operated. Their goal is always to help others in the community feel euphoria, whether that be from getting a boost from their facial hair products, or simply feeling good about their self care routine. They are continuously working on expanding their products to offer more hormone-safe alternatives for the trans community. Currently, they have a solid line of beard products including Hormone Safe Beard Grower Oil & Balm, Hormone Safe Beard Wash, derma rollers, brushes and other beard care accessories. Their scar care products include their vegan Scar Salve, silicone scar strips and scar massage tools. They built DR DHT on many important principles such as using DHT safe, vegan & natural ingredients. The message they’d like you to understand is that they do this for our community, and they love what they do! Use code: EIQ15 for 15% off!
9. Sasquatch botanicals / chili oils & spice blends
Sasquatch Botanicals is a wildly delicious apothecary featuring the works of Timber V Wolfe. Timber is a culinary artist that works with layering flavors, textures and aroma to create Wildly Delicious staples. From umami bursting hot chili oils, to mouth watering spice blends & soul nourishing mushroom coffee drops each blend is crafted with queer joy & questionable dance moves! Use code: QUEERJOY for 10% off.
Their hot honey is SO GOOD
10. Pleasure Society / card game
The Pleasure Society a queer owned Amsterdam based platform for sexuality. She's your sexuality curator in helping you explore your sexuality in the form of pleasure products, services, stories and experiences. Sexual wellness and pleasure should be treated and seen as an essential part of our overall wellness. The Pleasure Society believes that art and creativity can directly contribute to this!
11. taryn builds / handcrafted functional wood art
Taryn Builds is a small Phoenix based woodworking company that specializes in making handcrafted functional art. From cutting boards and bowls to decorative vessels each piece created is done with meticulous detail and care!
12. Upper valley coffee roasters / coffee
Upper Valley Coffee Roasters, a queer-owned small-batch coffee roastery nestled in between the serene Green and White mountains of Vermont and New Hampshire. Visit their website to explore their offerings and become part of a community that values uniqueness, authenticity, and, of course, an exceptional cup of coffee! From the comfort of your phone browse their unique coffee blends, each made from specialty-grade Arabica beans and roasted to perfection. See why locals have adored their coffee since 2015 and let the joy of freshly roasted coffee be the perfect gift for any occasion!
13. Audra’s brooches / brooches
Audra’s Brooches make the perfect accessory for you and a wonderful gift for them.
Audra’s Brooches is an independent vintage jewellery business that supports sustainable fashion values. The latest collection includes iconic styles designed and manufactured in London before 1989, mid-century glass brooches from the Czech Republic and Victorian silver as well as 1930s pins by Jakob Bengel. Audra created a unique fashion fix to secure any pin to any fabric. If required, your brooch is paired with a pad to ensure weighty brooches are supported and sit up properly wherever and on whatever you put them.
Popping up weekends at Canopy Market in King's Cross, London, Audra goes live every Friday at 1130 GMT on Instagram showcasing her latest finds. Maximalist Style. Elegant Glamour. Authentic Vintage.
14. Origami customs / handmade lingerie and swimwear
Origami Customs is a trans-owned line of swimwear and undergarments that feature free custom sizing to support folks of all bodies and genders. Their unique gender and body-affirming gear is handmade in Montreal by a small team of queer and trans people. Rae’s mission is to get affirming products to anyone who needs them, even when they face financial barriers.
15. Nik kacy - genderfree Footwear + more
Born out of the frustration of not being able to find shoes that fit both their gender identity and their biological feet, NiK Kacy founded NiK Kacy Footwear as the first gender equal footwear and accessories brand created to inspire equity and equality in footwear and fashion. By creating a genderfree sizing system and creating a genderfree fit that breaks away from traditional binary sizes, NiK Kacy designs allow all gender expressions to choose the shoes that fit them best. The footwear industry has always separated styles and sizes between men and women, neglecting a large population of gender expansive folks who do not always fall into these categories. NiK Kacy Footwear creates high quality shoes and accessories at the same price points regardless of gender and allows all bodies, gender spectrums & identities to choose what fits them; hopefully inspiring equity along the way.
16. fungal / mushroom stickers and prints
Meet Annie, your friendly neighborhood mycology nerd and the brain behind FunGal.ca. With a Bachelor's in Applied Sciences, she’s danced through the fields of regenerative agriculture, battled the chaos of peat bog destruction, and fallen in love with the mysterious world of mycology. Currently on a wild ride pursuing a Master's in forest ecology in Vancouver, she spends her days drawing mushrooms. Correction: she’s on an epic, slightly obsessive adventure to draw ALL the mushrooms. She. Loves. Mushrooms! It's her thing. She’s all about spreading the spore love and turning everyone into a full-blown "myconerd." So, if you are into giggles, fungi, and maybe a bit of forest-themed dirty jokes, hop on this wild ride with her. She wants to GET MUSHED and make kingdom Fungi the coolest club in town with you! Use code: FUNGAL15 for 15% off!
17. jax / Hats + More
JAX are an Eco friendly accessory solutions brand. They curate our beanies, buckets, fingerless gloves, scarves and legwarmers using recycled clothing. They believe that taking something that exists and creating something new can help slow the consumption of fast fashion and save the landfills hat by hat. "Saving the World with Ugly Sweaters"- JAX Upcycled
18. Sticky peach co. / digital prints
Starting at $1.99 Sticky Peach Co. is a queer-owned and operated etsy shop with playful art for your home, kitchen, apartment, classroom, dorm or anywhere else. All recommended printing sizes on each product page. 50% off all products already applied via shopping link below!
