Raise your hand if you’re the worst at holiday shopping? I currently have both hands raise way up in the air. I never know what to get anyone though I always make it a point to start writing down mental notes on gifting ideas come January for the following holiday season.
And then it never happens and I’m always scrambling come later December.
Well one thing that definitely helps take care of that stress is the idea of shopping at small businesses. The big brand chain stores are doing just fine, let’s support the little guys instead.
When you’re shopping at small businesses you have more options to get interesting and unique gifts for your friends and loved ones. You are more likely to find something a bit different and even out of the box. Even a present that might seem generic at first, comes to life when purchased through an artisan small business shop.
Take this Bee Raw brand for example. These guys are focused on creating products with raw honey – which is not processed, heated or filtered. All their beekeepers are local farmers and the company strives to be socially and environmentally sustainable by employing local manual labor and using post consumer and glass packaging. These guys are also putting in a huge effort in order to save the bees! So while a regular jar of supermarket honey might not make a great gift, a sampler pack of these artisan honeys or even beeswax candles now make for an interesting present.
I fell in love with beeswax candles after my friend gifted me one last Christmas that she had made herself. Since I am nowhere near as crafty I purchased one instead this year. Beeswax candles are simply the best and the kind of candles everyone needs to be using!
Let’s talk essential oils. Essential oils have become super popular lately in the trendy movement to start making all body and facial care products at home DIY style from high quality premium ingredients. Naturally I am late to this game as well, but I am ready to get started with this set of five Frankie and Myrrh essential oils. I purchased these various oils: Frankincense, Vanilla, Clove, Cinnamon and Eucalyptus. A few of these I will be gifting to my cousin (a fellow blogger) who is coming out with her own skincare line, and I am hoping for an intro tutorial into the world of DIY body care in exchange!
I am super excited to learn more about essential oils and everything that can be made using them. In 2017 I want to make a pledge to be healthier in mind, body and spirit so will be focusing on wellness as a whole.
This year pretty much all of my holiday shopping was done online (since I spent the last 3 weeks in Puerto Rico, it was a bit difficult to go store to store acquiring gifts), and many purchased were paid for through PayPal. I have been using PayPal for years, both to accept payments for freelance work, as well as to purchase products or services online. Anything that I pay for annually is so much more convenient to pay for using PayPal as that is an account that never changes (unlike credit cards which can be lost or expire). When paying with PayPal for any subscription based service you never have to worry about updating payment information (as you do with new credit cards).
Also this holiday season, PayPal is offering free return shipping called Return Shipping On Us on items up to $30 for up to 11 purchases (not a bad deal if you ask me).
One of the best parts of checking out with PayPal if you ask me, is no need to reach over and search for your credit card number. Now it might not seem like much effort, but when your wallet is across the house it’s so much simpler to just login to your PayPal account and secure the purchase through that.
This holiday season you can shop at small local businesses using PayPal checkout at all of these:
- Fashion
- Socially Responsible
- Food and Kitchen
- Health & Beauty
- Electronics & Technology
- Jewelry & Accessories
- Games & Hobbies
So not to worry if honey and essential oils aren’t your thing, you still have plenty of small business options that you can use PayPal to checkout with. If you’re already done with your holiday shopping, it’s never a bad idea to shop at local small businesses for Valentine’s Day, Birthdays, etc.
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
electricscootershq.org says
You can find other small businesses through the Shop Small tool . Remember that supporting small businesses helps to support the backbone of the economy and lets entrepreneurs keep pursuing their dreams and sharing them with others.
Vicky says
Indeed!