The Business For Good 2021 Holiday Shopping Guide (Part 2)
We are now mere days away from the unequivocal beginning of “The Holiday Season.” Are you ready for it?
This year is probably going to feel different for many of us too. Last year we skipped many aspects of our usual holiday traditions because of COVID safety. Things are much safer this year, but we aren’t totally out of the woods yet. It all leaves a lot to process.
Business For Good is here to help out where we can!
With all the other stressors that come from the holiday season, we felt the least we could do for you and our members is to turn you on to some local holiday shopping options to make your gift giving easier.
We created this Holiday Shopping Guide to help you find local and more sustainable gift options for your loved ones, while getting to know some of our members a little bit better too.
This is Part 2 of our Holiday Shopping Guide. If you missed Part 1 you can check it out here.
This edition of the Holiday Shopping Guide is especially focused on environmentally conscious and local craft beer options, so if you’ve got eco-conscious craft beer aficionados in your life, this is the guide for you. 😉
If we’re missing anything, let us know in the comments. Otherwise, here we go!
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Henkel Smith and Laura Huston of Offset Alliance
What’s your favorite thing about the holidays?
Slowing down, unplugging for a while, and being able to spend quality time with family.
What’s your least favorite thing about the holidays?
If there is plane travel involved, it’s dealing with the chaos at the airports.
Where do you plan to do your local holiday shopping this year?
We try to keep our purchases as local as possible. We always end up doing some shopping at farmers markets and locally owned stores for kids’ gifts. Whenever there’s an option, we prioritize 1) BFG member offerings and 2) Certified B Corp offerings.
What are you looking to get for people on your list?
For the adults on our list, we focus on consumables like locally roasted coffee, local honey etc. Kids (as they should) get what’s on their wish list!
What makes you excited about these stores and gifts?
We love supporting local crafts because we get to meet the people behind them. It also helps us feel more connected to our local community, and is unquestionably better for the environment.
What is a local gift that you hope somebody gets for you?
Don Wapo hot sauce (thank you Ponce’s for making us aware of it!!!), some Thorn Brewing Micheladas, yoga classes at Yoga Tropics or a night at Twelve Senses Retreat.
How do these products/services/vendors align with your values and the BFG values?
We have a great appreciation for local, small business owners and all the effort that goes into getting a business “off the ground”. We want to support the strengthening of the local community and commerce. Choosing to buy local is central to that success. BFG is all about making sure small businesses have a voice in local policy decisions, so the stronger we can help make them financially, the stronger their voices will become.
Tell us about your business.
Offset Alliance helps small businesses demonstrate credible climate action through our Offset Climate Certification. Using our MORE Framework (Measure-Offset-Reduce-Engage), businesses make measurable CO2 reductions that co-benefit communities and biodiversity.
Check out our climate action gifts for the holidays too: https://www.offsetalliance.co/climate-action-gifts
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Tara Hammond of Hammond Climate Solutions
What’s your favorite thing about the holidays?
In non-pandemic times, I love that the winter holiday season brings additional gatherings with family, friends and colleagues!
What’s your least favorite thing about the holidays?
I think it’s unfortunate that holidays have become such wasteful, consumer-driven events.
Where do you plan to do your local holiday shopping this year? What are you looking to get for people on your list? What makes you excited about these stores and gifts?
In general, I prefer giving experiences over material gifts. I enjoy giving gift cards to Earthwell Refill, a fellow Business For Good San Diego member, since I can help my loved ones be more sustainable and save money with the useful items from my favorite zero-waste shop! I also enjoy giving gift cards to my favorite local, vegan restaurants and gifting trees in someone’s honor through Tree San Diego, which plants and maintains trees in San Diego County, bringing more shade to local communities lacking trees while reducing CO2 emissions.
What is a local gift that you hope somebody gets for you?
The best gift for me is when others make commitments to getting (more) involved with stopping the climate crisis.
How do these products/services/vendors align with your values and the BFG values?
I believe that we vote with our dollar, so when purchasing gifts, I like supporting local companies that source ethical and sustainable goods that are also reusable. Hammond Climate Solutions is a member of 1% for the Planet and I like to support other companies that are committed to giving back to stop the climate crisis and helping protect a just and livable future. I like supporting Business For Good members and appreciate fellow members’ commitments to supporting mission-driven values.
Tell us about your business:
Hammond Climate Solutions is on a mission to expedite positive change for a just and livable future. HCS focuses on climate-related project management, policy and advocacy to stop the climate crisis.
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Diolinda Monteiro of 5th Dot Studio, LLC
What’s your favorite thing about the holidays?
I love spending time with family and friends.
What’s your least favorite thing about the holidays?
The pressure involved in gift giving and the big retailers that take advantage of that stress.
Where do you plan to do your local holiday shopping this year?
A local favorite of mine is the San Diego Public Library book store. It’s a great way to support our local library and find reasonably priced gifts.
For adult beverage type gifts, I recommend Village Vino and Clem’s Bottle House. The staff at Village Vino know their wines and Clem’s has a very impressive variety of beers.
Speaking of beer, we are so very lucky in San Diego to have so many independent breweries! The San Diego Brewers Guild has a comprehensive list of breweries in San Diego.
For the true beer nerd in your life, consider a gift card to either Citizen Brewers or Home Brewing Co. Citizen Brewers is a place to go if you are interested in brewing your own beer but don’t have the space to do it. As a home brewer, Home Brewing Co. (also a BFG member) is my go-to for equipment and ingredients. They also host classes on how to brew for beginners and advanced brewers.
What makes you excited about these stores and gifts?
I love supporting local businesses, finding unique gifts, and avoiding the traffic and congestion that comes with shopping at malls.
What is a local gift that you hope somebody gets for you?
I have always wanted to try axe throwing but haven’t gotten around to it. 🙂
How do these products/services/vendors align with your values and the BFG values?
San Diego is an amazing city with so many things to do and places to explore. We are fortunate to have so many small businesses offering goods and services and it makes sense to support them when we can.
Tell us about your business.
5th Dot Studio focuses on visual design with an emphasis on infographics. We nerd out on data and love presenting it in unique ways. 5thdotstudio.com
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Katrina Oprisko of Earthwell Refill
What’s your favorite thing about the holidays?
Celebrating life and spending time with friends and family.
What’s your least favorite thing about the holidays?
Having to see them end.
Where do you plan to do your local holiday shopping this year?
Home Ec in Little Italy, Kiko and Sven and Wild Island Collective in Normal Heights, and Yipao Coffee in University Heights
What are you looking to get for people on your list?
Plants, Jewelry, Coffee and maybe some kitchen stuff.
What makes you excited about these stores and gifts?
I know my family will be so excited to get a present from these stores, especially since I’ve given presents from these places before and saw many smiley faces from the recipients. 🙂
What is a local gift that you hope somebody gets for you?
A yoga class from Pilgrimage of the Heart or a massage from Zen Sanctuary.
How do these products/services/vendors align with your values and the BFG values?
Self care is good for everyone.
Tell us about your business.
Earthwell Refill is your local refill shop in Kensington. We encourage our customers to bring their own containers and fill them up with our non toxic shampoos, conditioners, body wash, hand soaps, laundry detergents, dish soaps, household cleaners and more. We also offer many plastic alternatives to items like toothbrushes, water bottles, shavers, hair brushes, kitchen cleaning tools and so much more.
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George Thornton of Home Brewing Co.
What’s your favorite thing about the holidays?
Time with family. And lots of cookies.
What’s your least favorite thing about the holidays?
I don’t have enough time to attend all the events and get together.
Where do you plan to do your local holiday shopping this year?
I’ll be shopping all over the stores and boutiques in North Park and South Park.
What are you looking to get for people on your list?
I like to give a variety of quirky gifts from less traveled options. I especially like to focus on small sentimental items they can use and appreciate on a regular basis.
What is a local gift that you hope somebody gets for you?
Ice cream gift cards, of course! There are so many wonderful ice cream shops in my neighborhood.
Tell us about your business.
Home Brewing Co. offers homebrew supplies, classes & workshops + a brewery and tasting room onsite. We’ll also have some great holiday options at the shop for beginning/curious/advanced homebrewers 😉
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Isabel Wen of A Stellar Co
What’s your favorite thing about the holidays?
My favorite thing about holidays is giving my nephews and niece handmade gifts that they cherish more than any of the store-bought toys.
What’s your least favorite thing about the holidays?
My least favorite thing about holidays is how long it takes to make something for each of my nephews and niece!
Where do you plan to do your local holiday shopping this year? What are you looking to get for people on your list?
I plan on making gifts for everyone on my list so my holiday shopping will be with online craft suppliers.
One gift I plan to make a lot of is candles. Wooden Wick Co and CandleScience have options for products that are vegan, cruelty-free, ethically sourced, FSC, packaged with recycled content, and sent via carbon neutral shipping. I believe Wooden Wick Co is a small business in OC. CandleScience is a bit larger but also US-based.
What makes you excited about these stores and gifts?
It always feels nice to create gifts for people in my life.
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About the Author
Nathan Cody Young is a life transformation and public speaking coach. He also does some occasional copywriting and content development on the side. His specialty is storytelling, helping people and organizations find the stories that represent their truth and share them out with the world.
