Have you seen that post on Instagram that says, ‘when you buy from a small business a real-life human does a happy dance’?! – well we can confirm, when we first started out (and still now to be honest) this is exactly what happened!
In the spirit of collaboration over competition, we wanted to share a round up of our staffs’ favourite small businesses with you – perfect if you’re in need of a few gift ideas for the festive season. Let’s see if we can encourage a few more happy dances up and down the country this festive season!
Even if you’re not looking to buy currently (or have been super organised and bought all your gifts already) but love what they do, don’t forget to follow them on social media and engage with their posts. As they say, every little helps!
We've grouped them by location, but even if these indie makers and shops aren't local to you, you can still get a piece of the action by shopping online!
BRIGHTON
Brighton Daze
Brighten Daze are a wonderful Mother-Daughter duo based in Brighton. They have a beautiful collection of handmade statement jewellery and home décor, and even offer bespoke orders. You can find Brighten Daze Designs beautiful products available on Instagram and on Etsy!
Visit their online shop here.
Dowse
Dowse is a Brighton-based home and lifestyle shop based just round the corner from our store. From greeting cards to wall hangings and jewellery made by independent designers, Dowse has an abundance of wonderful products perfect for gifting!
Visit their online shop here.
Bombie Bling
Next up is some gorgeous homemade polymer clay jewellery by our very own L&Y team member Roxy! Available via Instagram oer her Etsy store, Bombie Bling will have you feeling ready to fight the patriarchy even before your morning coffee. 20% of all profits go to refugee project Common Ground Brighton!
Visit her online shop here.
Backstitch Bay
Backstitch Bay offer a fabulous assortment of homemade gifts, handknitted baby clothes and bespoke bucket hats, with Free UK delivery and international shipping also available. Looking for an affordable gift and want to support an independent business? Look no further!
Visit their online shop here.
Lunar Crystals
Luna Crystal Healing is the home of beautiful macrame crystal jewellery, run by Maddi in Brighton and shipped worldwide
"I am an eco friendly, zero waste business, using only organic hemp, and handmade and plastic free packaging.
As I had no work during the pandemic I decided to try and use it as an opportunity to start my business. I have always loved crystals and their meanings, so I was very excited to get Lunar Crystals going.
Visit their Etsy store here.
Éther Organics
Promoting the power of wellness through aromatherapy + crystal healing, whilst keeping sustainability at the forefront, Tess of Éther Organics hand pours candles with beautiful natural scents natural wax and cotton wicks. The REVIVE candles have submerged Amethyst and Clear Quartz crystals which reveal themselves while it burns and can be kept with you afterwards.
When you've finished burning your candle you can send the jar back for them to recycle and get 10% off your next order! Stay tuned for more lovely products on their instagram here.
BRISTOL
Hystorical
Hystorical is a digital artist based in Bristol, who draws inspiration from mythology and classical sculpture. Lover of art, empowerment and mythology, Uni of Bristol grad Emily has created a collection of wonderful prints depicting Greek goddesses in all their glory! In her work she seeks to reclaim and celebrate the female form, which has historically been viewed through the male gaze. Commissions and bespoke gifts available too!
Visit her online shop here.
We are Hairy People
The wonderful We Are Hairy People are a team of artists who champion the use of art as therapy in promoting mental wellness. WAHP have a whole host of skilfully hand painted and printed products available to buy, as well as some of our collaboration pieces! Have a peep at their website, and nab the perfect ethically-made gift for someone special this year!
Learn more about their incredible work and visit their online shop here.
By Tori Tsui
Beautiful, delicate earrings crafted by – you guessed it – Tori Tsui. By Tori Tsui is a treasure trove of patterned, printed and block colour treasures which mix gorgeous clays, shapes and metals. Even better – proceeds go to some amazing charities, from climate action, mental health and disaster relief causes.
Previous donations have included Unite For Climate Action, Lebanese Red Cross, Refugee Action, and typhoon and hurricane relief in the Philippines & Central America.
Visit her online shop here.
CARDIFF
Mourning Assembly
From a wonderful local artist who focuses her work on transforming the broken & reinventing the repetitive; creating & rehoming the lost, Mourning Assembly puts a beautiful dark twist on handmade jewellery, offering gorgeous bespoke and upcycled pieces. All packaged using recycled materials – from old playing cards, to repurposed wax, shopping with Mourning Assembly is a truly unique and personal experience.
Visit her online shop here.
Blossom and Nectar
Ethical beekeepers spreading the love and promoting a pesticide free, chemical free natural way of life. Blossom and Nectar offer beautiful products for bee lovers focused on nature, sustainability and supporting trade industries without harming the environment - from candles to china and earrings.
Visit their online shop here.
MANCHESTER
Bukky Baldwin
Bukky Baldwin is a beautiful clothing brand based in Manchester, who are flipping the script on ethics in the fashion world - we are obsessing over their prints! They have a variety of products available from bucket hats and face masks, to gorgeous dresses, all in wonderfully colourful prints and patterns, and all ethical, handmade & sustainable.
Visit their online shop here.
Booch & Brew
Booch & Brew are a fabulous family business who brew Kombucha in a traditional way with nutritious organic ingredients, in super tasty flavours like Blueberry, Strawberry & Pineapple and Apple & Elderflower. They began selling at local farmers markets and the feedback was so good that they opened a proper grown-up brewery on a beautiful farm in Manchester. The Booch team were kind enough to send our warehouse gang in Barnsley some bottle and it's safe to say they went down a treat! If you don't believe us, they won a Great Taste award so they officially taste great!
Shop online here.
Ash Stitch
Our very own lovely Ash from Customer Happiness Team expertly hand stitches empowering messages and delicate imagery on earth positive, ethical and organic cotton tees! She also takes custom requests for the richest of slogans so you can get the perfect gift for the pickiest friend!
Shop online here.
Oklahoma Manchester
Oklahoma is a staple for all your home décor, gift and lifestyle needs! Buried in the Northern Quarter, Oklahoma is the most perfectly kitsch place in town. Find colourful and quirky gifts beyond your wildest imagination here!
Visit their online shop here.
LONDON
Ecologi
We partner with Ecologi to help offset our carbon emissions, and this holiday season they are offering a selection of giving back gifts. You can give the gift of planting trees and offsetting carbon footprints for 3, 6 or 12 months!
Grow your own forest and give a climate positive gift this year.
Visit their website here.
Lotta Blobs
You may have seen our recent Instagram tutorial with the wicked Shantelle from Lotta Blobs, where she talked us through how to make a hanging wall ornament! If crafting isn't your thing, no worries – Shantelle has created an array of fab home décor pieces that would make the perfect gift!
Visit her online shop here.
Molly Smith Designs
Jazz up your plants with these colourful pots in all shapes and sizes from Molly Smith Designs. Inspired by patterns in nature, Molly creates beautiful clay pots in unique designs to suit a variety of houseplant babies. The only question now is, how to stop from buying them all!?
Visit her online shop here.
Prick London
Got a special talent for killing off your houseplants? The wonderful team at Prick have got you covered with their Insta-worthy array of cute cactuses and super succulents. If you’re local to Hackney, pop in and see for yourself why this prickly paradise was nominated for High Street Shop of 2020.
Visit their online shop here.
FoxSea Designs
Beautiful handmade Ocean inspired resin artwork, homeware and gifts! Stunning colours and designs for any sea-lover in your life!
Visit their online shop here.
LIHA
Trust us, you’ll want to gift something from LIHA just by looking at their homepage. Using natural organic ingredients and renewable materials, LIHA has some wonderful gift sets available as well as standalone products. If you’re stuck, we’d recommend their sleep aid set and Queen Idia Candle as great places to start!
Visit their online shop here.
Dolly Rocket London
Make this holiday season a vibrant one with Dolly Rocket London, founded by the wonderful Sara Brown. Sara has your tableware and accessory dreams covered with her aesthetically pleasing products! And be sure to follow her personal Instagram for colourful styling, décor and DIY tips!
And coming soon - luxury womenswear in sizes 8-32!
Visit her online shop here.
Manners London
Our whole team is crushing over Manners London, from their ethics to their clothing, this brand is doing it right. “Clothing for the too fat, too thin, too soft, too tall, too much womxn! Made for your body, just as it is”. If that’s not a brand to stan, we don’t know what is!
Visit their online shop here.
Madeleine Milton
Beautiful hand embroidered upcycled shirts inspired by paintings of nude women! Madeleine Milton’s work is inspired by the work of Vanessa Bell, Alice Neel, and Artemisia Gentileschi. These delicate designs would look lovely under a pair of dungarees perhaps! Madeleine has some gorgeous paintings for sale too.
EXETER
Sanchos
https://www.instagram.com/wowsancho/
Two beautiful sustainable clothing and lifestyle shops based in Exeter, Devon - of course with an online store too! They source and bring together a carefully curated range of clothing, accessories and gifts from organic and fair-trade producers. They were one of our very first suppliers when we used to sell wholesale and we were always in amazing company with the other amazing brands they stock!
Founded in 2014 by the lovely Kalkidan and Vidmantas, who while travelling, saw the detrimental effects on parts of the world from the fast fashion industry and wanted to do something about it. They literally built their shop and business by hand, so are super helpful and knowledgeable, and want to support a community of like-minded individuals that want to know the truth behind their clothing and the effect it has on our planet. They ultimately want to make it easier for customers to make conscious decisions about what you buy and encourage you to ask questions wherever possible.
LEEDS
Hattie Clark
Hattie Clark is an illustrator and artist based in Leeds, her beautiful prints and greeting cards are bold, colourful and fun! We’re big fans of Hattie’s art and have previously done a tee collaboration with her fab designs.
Visit her online shop here.
The Plant Point Leeds
Described as ‘a jungle in the heart of the city’ – The Plant Point has it all! If you have any green fingered friends, look no further - Plant point’s website is full of greenery for you to choose from. Free delivery within 10 miles and courier options for further afield are available too!
Visit their online shop here.
SHEFFIELD
Hudakay Ceramics
Also from our lovely Customer Happiness team, the fabulous Beth is an amazing ceramicist, making super colourful, fun and functional treasures featuring all sorts of quirky characters.
She handmakes in small batches wonderful so restocks happen every so often, shop online here.
SCOTLAND
Indie Edinburgh
Indie Edinburgh is the one stop site to explore the top independent stores in one online space! Shops include – Pie in the Sky, Eden, and Cookie and Mysa, placed on the iconic Cockburn street but recently brought online so you can have a slice of the action wherever you are! With a collection of 20 brands between them, you’ll be sure to find that perfect gift. Indie Edinburgh have even created budget pages, so you can shop to your needs nice and easily! Pop culture and fun gifts are their forte, and you may even spot some prints by one of our lovely staff members (@flatlaydesign) on the website too!
Visit their online shop here.
Leinad
Fabulous contemporary crochet & knitwear handmade in Glasgow by Leinad AKA Daniel McGeough, using super soft chunky yarns in beautiful earthy colours. From coaster to baskets, wash mitts and tote bags, these pleasing, tactile beauties make perfect gifts for so many people we can think of!
Visit their online shop here.
Our Lovely Goods
A family run business based in Aberdeen, Our Lovely Goods are passionate about creating products that are good for you, your home and the environment - whilst being beautifully designed too. They handcraft natural wax candles, botanical skincare and work with talented artisans in Nigeria to curate their collection of homewares. They also promote wellbeing and exploring creativity through workshops and events.
Visit their online shop here.
NORFOLK
Elm
A couple of independents in the lovely city of Norwich have come to our attention recently, one of them being Elm. This is a lovely lifestyle store with beautifully crafted ceramics, wholesome prints, a grand selection of plants, festive favourites and much more!
Visit their online shop here.
KENT
Elizabeth Whibley
Elizabeth Whibley, our pal and model has her own independent store! All her products are made in the UK, with an eco-conscious mindset! Statement jewellery, lovely art prints and jaw dropping handmade clothing in her iconic pattern designs.
Visit her online shop here.
Kitsch Witch
Colourful, powerful figures and fabulous illustration and pattern design created by design graduate Yana Smith. Beautifully illustrated, styled and photographed with a mystical witchy theme - we love it!
Visit her online shop here.
Little Bit Margate
This brilliant shop of colourful joy is everything you need to brighten up someone’s day! Whether you need a stocking filler or that one special present, Little Bit Margate is worth a visit on your next day out to the seaside.
Visit their online shop here.
THE MIDLANDS
White Rose Shops
White Rose is an independent based in Nottingham that’s home to handpicked recycled Fashion - a charity shop with a difference! You can shop online or instore. White Rose Shops support the work of Aegis Trust, preventing genocide and building peace. Give the gift of giving back this festive season!
Visit their online store here.
Sugar and Fizz
Sugar and Fizz are a wonderful small biz, based just next to the midlands! Bag yourself a sweet treat just in time for the festive season be that a chocolate slab or a jar of pick and mix, they offer local collection and wider delivery options.
Message via Instagram to order.
Handmade Nottingham
A brilliant gift, card and print store based in the heart of Nottingham, Handmade Nottingham offer an eclectic range of stickers, pins and patches to fill those stockings as well as wonderful prints by local artists! If you’re local pop by their shop window for a wonderfully aesthetically pleasing display!
Visit their online shop here.
Sweetmeat Inc. Confectionary
Stuck for a gift for your sweet-toothed Secret Santa? Sweetmeat Inc. in Birmingham may hold the answers! With over 10 fudge flavours to pick from, including Irish cream, and turmeric flavour (!) Sweet Meat may be exactly what you’re looking for. They’ve even won awards too! All their packaging is biodegradable and made from plant waste materials. For high quality, environmentally conscious fudge – look no further!
Visit their online shop here.
Shopping small is more important than ever this year. 2020 has highlighted the disparities between those with a monopoly on the market and those without. So why not make someone happy dance this festive season!