As small business owners have been hit hard by the pandemic-related economic brunt, consider their products and services as holiday gift options. Globe Aware encourages the support of small businesses.
Holiday Gift Guide 2020: Travel Products Made By Women
By Michele Herrmann
Contributor
Travel
As small business owners have been hit hard by the pandemic-related economic brunt, consider their products and services as holiday gift options. In buying what they make to give to others, it’s a way of giving back by financially supporting them in return. Here are our gift suggestions for travel-related or inspired products by women business owners and entrepreneurs.
“The Dining Traveler Guide to Puerto Rico,” $39.95
Food and travel writer Jessica van Dop DeJesus — also known by her brand’s name, “The Dining Traveler” — enlisted documentary photographer Italo Morales to go on a month-long journey across Puerto Rico. The result of their collaboration is this pictorial guide to this island, which transports readers through photography, accounts from locals, and a more in-depth look at Puerto Rico’s lesser-known regions.
Customized Road Trip Guides by CrushGlobal
Through her travel company, Kristin Braswell has developed a series of U.S. road trip guides focusing on not only places to go to but also emphasizing inclusivity across the travel and hospitality spectrum. Each guide lists businesses that are black, women and/or LGBTQ-owned, recommendations for culinary, outdoor and other personal interests, and notes regarding any safety precautions and COVID-19 mandates. Custom itineraries begin at $299 and can vary based on how many days and experiences. Ready-to-use guides range from $29 to $59 and cover Northern and Southern California, the Northeast, and the South.
Food Tour In A Box Series, Global Tours Connect, starting at $35
Co-run by Midgi Moore and Lauren McCabe Herpich, to support fellow women food tour operators, Global Tours Connect offers themed and boxed epicurean experiences with food products from various U.S. destinations. Get wild Alaska salmon or goodies sold at Cincinnati’s historic Findlay Market or key lime delectables from Key West.
Shampoo and conditioner bar travel sets, Unwrapped Life, $32
A plastic-free beauty brand by sisters Allison and Arden Teasdale, Unwrapped Life’s line of shampoo and conditioner bars suit various hair types and needs. The bars are described as being vegan and cruelty-free and can last at least up to 50 washes. They all come with a pair of rust-resistant matte gold travel tins.
Mrs. Hanes' Moravian Cookies
Various cookie tins and containers, Mrs. Hanes' Moravian Cookies MRS. HANES' MORAVIAN COOKIES
Mrs. Hanes' Moravian Cookies, various containers, starting at $23
Oprah Winfrey named this North Carolina delicacy as one of her “favorite things” in 2010. Located in Clemmons, a suburb of Winston-Salem, this bakery led by Evva Hanes continues this culinary tradition by the Moravians who came to settle in the state in the mid-16th century. These thin and crispy cookies come in six flavors: sugar, lemon, black walnut, chocolate, butterscotch and traditional Moravian ginger.
Quick Dry Microfiber Travel Towel With Pocket, DryFoxCo, $39.95
Samantha Peck came up with a solution for making towels able to store your valuables — as in your phone — and be less susceptible to getting and staying soaked. Her lightweight and quick-drying design does incorporate a water-resistant pocket for securing valuables and can fold up to fit in a daypack.
Various Gift Sets, Naples Soap Company, starting at $30
Nurse-turned-entrepreneur Deanna Wallin started experimenting with making soaps to find a solution for treating her child’s skin condition and turned her result into a full-line of all-natural bath and body care. Along with evergreen products, Naples Soap Company has gift sets with soaps, shower bombs, and other self-care body and facial staples in a variety of fragrances.
Catalina Deluxe Collection Totes, Lo & Sons, starting at $205
Founded Helen Lo, and her two sons, Jan and Derek, this bag company’s Catalina Deluxe line of totes are lightweight but also manage to be quite functional, versatile and stylish. They are made from either a recycled poly exterior, an organic cotton canvas and a washed canvas and have features such as a luggage sleeve that can attach to most luggage handles.
Pardy Wrap, Sh*t That I Knit, $185
This knitwear brand gets its handcrafted accessories from a community of artisan Peruvian women in Lima, which founder and CEO Christina Fagan Pardy outsourced its production to in 2016. Among these accessories, this soft wrap is made from 100 percent baby alpaca wool and comes in a range of colors.
Atomiser Trio Christmas Cracker, men’s and women’s sets, Lili Bermuda, $60
At this 90-year-old perfumery at the historic Stewart Hall in Bermuda, Master Perfumer Isabelle Ramsay-Brackstone uses the island’s botanicals in making their variety of scents. Along with these holiday sets, the perfumery’s website has a fragrance quiz for helping pick out the perfect scent for yourself or another recipient.
Peppermint Vodka, Sonoma Coast Spirits, $28
Run by Jill Olson and her children, this craft distillery in Petaluma, Calif. has released a new holiday vodka that could go nicely with hot chocolate or perhaps in a White Russian made at home. Along with this vodka, all of this distillery’s spirits are gluten free and vegan.
Vietnamese Coffee Pourover Sets, Copper Cow Coffee, starting at $15
For those who got into preparing Vietnamese coffee at home this year, this company run by Vietnamese-American Debbie Wei Mullin provides individual serving packets for each step in making single-use pourovers for a freshly-brewed organic cup. There is a basic five-packet set, plus latte flavors including Churro Latte, Lavender and Peppermint.
Mountain Jewelry Collection, Jen Lesea Designs, starting at $65
Made in Boulder, Colo., from recycled materials, this handcrafted jewelry collection by Jen Lesea-Ames is inspired by the Rocky Mountains and designed to make you feel connected to them. Along with rings, necklaces and pendants, her business also has mountain themed men's accessories such as money clips and cufflinks. A portion of online sales is donated to the National Park Foundation.
The Wanderr, OME Gear, $379
Having to lug a lot around while you’re on the go? This eco-friendly, five-in-one utility product from this women-owned outdoor gear company can haul up to 150 pounds to the beach or campsite or wherever you’re heading outdoors. Its patented wheels can handle hard and soft surfaces, plus its armrests are removable.
Curated Box Series, She Lives Aloha, various pricing
This co-women run company brings the feeling of the Hawaiian Islands right to your doorstep with this specialty kit service. Inside these single or quarterly sent kits, find products from businesses in or connected to Hawaii that showcase what makes this 50th state great. A single Lives Aloha Kit costs $59.95, with seasonal subscriptions being $49.95 every three months.
Leather Passport Covers, P. Sherrod & Co., $35
This black-owned leather lifestyle brand puts on a selection of passport covers in a variety of brilliant colors. Headquartered in Atlanta, Ga., the company’s CVO, Donna King, came across a small family-owned leather manufacturer while on vacation in South America and thus combined her sense of travel and her entrepreneurial spirit in creating this business.
Mumi Packing Cubes, Mumi, $49.90
This Miami-based brand is founded by Gabriella Melker and Maribel Moreno, two Latina moms who were frustrated by not being able to find the right products to satisfy their packing and tidying-up needs. This set contains five cubes in different sizes and are available in a wide array of colors.
Curated Travel Images, Raising for Change, various prices
Launched by travel photographer Kirsten Alana, this collective of well-traveled photographers is selling digital and fine art versions of their images for good causes. Pricing and offerings start as mobile wallpapers for $1, with fine art prints beginning at $125 and ranging in size.
