The past few months have been very difficult for Asian-Americans as hate crimes against this community are on the rise. This rise on anti-Asian crimes includes the horrific Atlantic spa shootings that took place in March of this year. In fact, hate crimes against the Asian-Ameircan community have been taking place for more than just a few months; there have been almost 3,800 anti-Asian incidents in the past year, according to Stop AAPI Hate. Asian-Americans have been facing discrimination on a daily basis, with verbal harassment being nearly 69% of the discrimination they face and shunning at about 20%. Asian-American small businesses are also falling victim to this discrimination. Below is a list of Asian-American businesses that you can support.
- Chunks
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Chunks is a hair clip accessory company started by Tiffany Ju. Chunks was a one woman-run business in 2019 when it launched, and has now grown to a team of five women this year. After struggling to find stylish and high quality hair clips, Ju decided to make her own, and Chunks began. You can shop a variety of colorful hair clips and claws with fun and funky patterns and designs from Chunks. The business also has a commitment to responsible manufacturing and is proudly made in China. You can also follow Chunks on Instagram.
- One Stripe Chai Co.
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Founder of Onse Strip Shai CO., Farah Jesani , explains her relationship with chai as “I’m Indian so drinking chai is basically in my blood.” Growing up with traditional and authentic chai, Jesani often avoided ordering chai from coffee shops because the flavor was too sweet or too bland. This is what inspired Jesani to launch her own chai company, so she could bring the drink back to its South Asian roots. You can shop chai house blends, concentrate, stainers, spoons, and ceramic sets on her website. You can also follow One Stripe Chai Co. on Instagram.
- Nguyen Coffee Supply
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Nguyen Coffee Supply was started by Sahra Nguyen, a first generation Vietnamese American and daughter of refugees. She started this business with a mission “change the future of specialty coffee through diversity, inclusion and sustainability.” Nguyen Coffee Supply is also the first specialty Viatmenese coffee company in the United States. Even though Vietnam is the second largest coffee producer in the world, the Vitetmanese coffee bean has been stigmatized as being inferior by larger coffee companies. It is Ngugen’s mission to bring attention to the Vietnamese coffee bean, because many people do not realize that much of the coffee flavors they love actually come from this coffee bean. You can shop Nguyen Coffee on their website where they have various blends to choose from to get your perfect coffee fix. You can also follow Nguyen Coffee Supply on Instagram.
- Pink Moon
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Lina Chen is the founder and CEO of Pink Moon, a sustainable beauty and wellness company. As an entrepreneur, Chen created Pink Moon in 2017 with qualities of sustainability, philanthropy, and holistic wellness very close to her heart. She strives to put these qualities out into the beauty world through her business. Her hope is to elevate women and give them a space to feel loved and worthy through Pink Moon. You can shop anything from skincare, makeup, gua sha tools, Japanese hand towels, herbal tea and toothbrush kits on the website. You can also follow Pink Moon on Instagram.
- Mount Lai
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Founder Stephanie Zheng found inspiration from her grandmother when creating Mount Lai, a beauty brand rooted in traditional Chinese medicine. Lai learned from her grandmother’s skincare routine, which included jade rolling and gua sha, something her grandmother has been doing for the past 50 years. Mount Lai takes a modern approach to the traditional Chinese beauty and skincare practices. You can shop gua sha tools, jade rollers, eye rollers and more on their website. You can also follow Mount Lai on Instagram.
- Apothekary
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Shizu Okusa created Apothekary from inspiration from Ayurveda yoga and her Japanese roots and the experiences she had growing up in a traditional Japanese home. Apothekary sells a line of herbal blends and strives to give their customers self care, from blends that help destress to falling asleep. You can shop signature individual blends or sets, and even “build your own pharmacy” with a custom set of four blends. You can also follow Apothekary on Instagram.
- Wing on Wo & Co.
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Wing on Wo & Co. is the oldest store in New York City’s Chinatown. It started as a general store in the 1890s and in 1925 began to sell porcelain goods. Now, the great-great-granddaughter of the original owners, Mei Lum, manages Wing on Wo & Co. Lum also began the W.O.W Project, which aims to protect and sustain Chinatown’s heritage through the arts, culture and activism. You can shop porcelain products such as plates, tea sets, jars, and more on their website. They also sell reusable bags, charm sets, jewelry, and beaded mask lanyards. You can follow Wing on Wo & Co. on Instagram.
- Let’s Take Care
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Mei Kwok started the loungewear company Let’s Take Care earlier this year with a goal to bring more awareness to mental health. Hence, the name Let’s Take Care comes from the company’s message of practicing self care and being compassionate towards others. Let’s Take Care is also donating 10% of all purchases to Mental Health America. You can shop their crewnecks on the website. You can also follow Let’s Take Care on Instagram.
- Woo Ceramics
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Woo Ceramics is an Etsy shop created by Heidi Woo. Everything on Woo’s shop is handmade ceramics and her products include earrings, necklaces, coffee mugs, and vases. Go check out her shop and Instagram.
- Omsom
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Vanessa and Kim Pham are the sisters and co-founders of the Asian cuisine company Omsom. The sisters are daughters of Vietnamese refugees and grew up eating traditional Vietnamese food cooked by their mom. This inspired them to start the company of their dreams, Omsom, which brings traditional Asian cuisine and flavors to their customers. You can shop the Omsom Asian cuisine packs and sets on their website. You can also follow Omsom on Instagram.
I hope you enjoy these shops as much as I do, and remember that these businesses deserve our support not only in times of hate and discrimination, but always.