Online shopping has been an increasingly popular past time for people over the last year while we have been stuck at home. Before Christmas I was looking far and wide for local businesses to support instead of falling into the routine of ordering from brand names; however, I had a hard time finding affordable gifts.
After some further research and including some personal favourites, I have found a solid list of recommendations. In honour of International Women’s Day on March 8th, here are 6 affordable, unique, and incredible shops/businesses owned by women to check out!
Suetables Jewellery Store (Toronto)
This hand stamped jewellery collection was founded by Sue Henderson in 2004. There are two locations in Toronto (ON) (Younge St. & Roncesvalles Ave), one in Montreal (QC) and one in Vancouver (BC). The personalized jewelry collections include stackable rings, delicate earrings, customizable charms, one-of-a-kind necklaces and bracelets within an affordable pricing scheme. Suetables also curate’s zodiac and galaxy inspired collections with options of sterling silver, 10k gold or rose gold vermeil coating.
If the beautiful pieces featured on their website is not enough to spark your interest, Suetables works with not-for-profit organizations, including The Special Olympics, Wildlife Now, Royal African Safaris, SickKids Foundation, and a local mental health project called “The Maddie Project”.
Little Jo-Berry (Ottawa)
This female owned café is built on prioritizing a safe and inclusive space for folks to shop their vegan sweets, salads and coffee. Located in Wellington Village, Little Jo Berry’s is open Friday through Sunday 12-5pm selling salads, savoury pies, home baked sweets, take home dishes and more.
Blumenstudio (Ottawa)
Blumenstudio was started by Katrin Kosk whose floral arranging career began in Germany, 1996. Now operating from Wellington Street West in Ottawa, the floral options range from beautiful dry bouquets, orchids, eucalyptus bunches, tulips, winter/spring bouquets, and more. Blumenstudio also carry cacti and large tropical houseplants. They are currently offering delivery (Monday-Saturday) or curbside pick up (Wednesday-Saturday/10am-3pm).
The Made in Canada Store
This online store, offering exclusively Canadian-made art, is owned and operated by two artists/musicians and surf-enthusiasts, Alli Boddy and Andrew Dawson. They wanted to curate a space for artists across the country to reflect the diversity this country has to offer. The store has a variety of products ranging from home/cottage/kitchen goods, bath/beauty/wellness, greeting cards, fashion & accessories, jewelry, books/journals, art & prints, ornaments & holiday cards. Be sure to check out their website and support small businesses in Canada!
Rachels Shoppe
Inspired by energy and the vibrancy of big cities, the artwork by Rachel Christopoulos is bright, colourful, and passionate. Her artwork includes portraits of famous figures – from Whitney Houston to Harry Styles- as well as abstract pieces, food portraits (“Taco Tuesday” or “Lemons & Gin”), floral/nature pieces, animals and more. She sells her original pieces but also offers print versions for less of the cost. Check out her website and contact her for any questions!
Pressed-Coffeehouse (Ottawa)
All day breakfast, local beers, fair trade coffee, gourmet sandwiches and live music are just some of what this female owned business has to offer. Located on Gladstone Avenue in Ottawa, Pressed was opened in 2011 by Karie Ford. It was unfortunate to find out during my research that Ford had to sell the coffeehouse in September 2020 due to the financial struggles many small businesses were faced with due to the pandemic. It is unknown who the current owner is but Karie was confident the coffeeshop would only continue to grow in the hands of a new music and coffee loving owner.