How Your Holiday Shopping Can Be a Force for Good
It’s the time of year to show appreciation for those who brighten our days in big and small ways. You can choose a little something for these everyday heroes and amplify the impact of your gift purchases by voting with your dollars through choosing gifts from companies that also value people and planet.
By choosing a gift from a Certified B Corporation, your participate in a larger circle of giving — to the environment, community, workers and beyond — based on the company’s positive impact and values. The B Corps highlighted in this article offer products at $25 or less so you can be a force for good and show you care — for the recipient and for the other stakeholders who benefit from your purchase.
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Be a Force for Good for $25 or Less
All Good
With products made from high-quality organic ingredients and wild-crafted herbs, All Good supports healthy habits — and consumers support a supply chain that helps people and planet. Its Reef Friendly sunscreen lets you enjoy a sunny day while protecting marine life like coral reefs — the oldest living structures in the world — from damage. Choose among a variety of products that cost less than $25, including moisturizing coconut oil, lip balm with SPF, and Goop, a multipurpose healing balm.
Bee’s Wrap
Created to store food without creating waste and using plastic, Bee’s Wrap serves as a natural alternative for food storage. Made with global organic textile standard-certified cotton and beeswax from sustainably kept hives, Bee’s Wrap is washable, reusable, and compostable. With these gift ideas that cost less than $20, you can encourage recipients to “wrap, rinse, repeat” while supporting the B Corp’s manufacturing practices and impact as a force for good for workers and community.
Bombas
Guided by its mantra to “bee better,” Bombas from the start has focused on creating comfort for others by donating a pair of socks for each pair sold and offering cozy, innovative products that stand apart. Through its giving partners program, Bombas has donated more than 28 million items to more than 2,500 organizations across the country. Pick a pair among its range of colorful designs for children, men and women.
Kotn
Kotn is built around circular traceability — basically a farm-to-table concept for clothing. With products made from cotton grown on and purchased directly from a network of nearly 700 small, family-run farms in Egypt, Kotn doesn’t follow the typical apparel sourcing path. Instead it enhances its work as a force for good by partnering with farmers as they adapt to growing conditions, providing subsidies like fertilizer and agriculture consultants that help lower their growing costs. Once harvested, the cotton travels to nearby yarn and fabric mills, then on to its cut-and-sew factory where the garment comes to life. Next stop: the Kotn warehouse in Toronto, then on to its stores in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal or mailed to customers. Try the women’s essential crew or high-neck tank for $25.
Nossa Familia Coffee
Formed to bring the coffee from his family’s farm in Brazil to Portland, Oregon, Nossa Familia Coffee founder Augusto Carneiro continues the family feel of his business by focusing on forming mutually beneficial relationships with producers, supporting the local community, and minimizing the B Corp’s environmental footprint. Gift ideas for the coffee lover in your life include the Family Line Sampler Box Set for $24, the Festa Holiday Blend for $15, or other sustainable options to caffeinate your day.
Rumi Spice
Started by a team of U.S. military veterans, Rumi Spice partners with Afghan farmers as a force for good to bring top-quality, sustainably farmed saffron to customers around the world. Committed to empowering Afghan women and bolstering the country’s economy, Rumi reinvests back into agricultural and manufacturing infrastructure. All of its spices and seasonings are salt-free and packaged by hand to ensure quality and freshness. Flavorful, colorful gift options include the Saffron and Tea Kit or the Paella Spice Blend.
Simply Straws
Reduce single-use plastics and protect our planet’s long-term health with a gift from Simply Straws. Through sales of its straws, utensils and drinkware, the B Corp donates a minimum of 1% of gross income to selected nonprofits that help educate and advocate for single-use plastics. Select from glass or steel straws (with a lifetime guarantee) in a range of hues, plus sets that include brushes and sleeves to keep your straw clean.
B the Change gathers and shares the voices from within the movement of people using business as a force for good and the community of Certified B Corporations. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the nonprofit B Lab.
Small-Price Gifts from B Corps That Make a Big Difference was originally published in B the Change on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.