Pride Month officially began on June 1, but the celebrations don't end when the month ends. We continue to honor and recognize the LGBTQ+ community by supporting businesses that serve them well beyond June.
Promoted to some of these LGBTQ-owned brands, lifestyle expert Amy E. Goodman recently shared some of her favorite places to shop with TODAY Magazine: From custom letterpress greeting cards to DIY candle-making kits, each of these businesses and their products are as vibrant and intriguing as their stories.
Keep reading to discover some of our favorite LGBTQ+ businesses to support now and into the future.
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LGBTQ-owned brands featured on TODAY
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Ink and Paper Greeting Cards
Nothing is more meaningful than showing a special someone a little love in the form of a card. One of Goodman's favorite brands is Ink Meets Paper, a South Carolina-based husband-and-wife team of custom-designed greeting cards. “They're a store that sells custom letterpress greeting cards, journals, and other stationery, and they have a Pride collection,” she says. “Their motto? 'Text less, write more,' and I couldn't agree more.”
Racefield NYC DIY Candle Making Kit
Still not sure what to plan for your summer travels? Take the journey with you with a DIY candle-making kit from Reisfields NYC. The brand has a “'City' collection that takes you to different destinations around the world, like New York, Seville, and Marrakech,” Goodman says. “Founder Reis Chester came up with the idea for each scent while traveling the world with her husband. The kits include everything you need to make your own luxury candles, including natural soy wax, wicks, and essential oils.”
“Other DIY Signature Fragrance Kits include Santal 6 and Geranium Balsam 13, all available for $40 each,” she added.
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Biology Fragrance Functional Fragrance Set of 6
“Founded by Steve Sun, Biology Functional Fragrances are formulated with natural and organic ingredients to help elevate your desired mood and rejuvenate you,” says Goodman. For example, the six-pack above comes with your choice of Fragrance 1 – Joy, Fragrance 2 – Calm, and Fragrance 4 – Immunity ($35 each). You can also try other scents to find the one you want.
“They're natural, paraben-free, phthalate-free, cruelty-free, and made in small batches,” she adds. And, if you've already decided you want one (or a few), they're also available to buy individually.
Mala Beauty Sea Silk Lip Balm
Give your lips a luxurious moisturizing boost with this celebrity-loved, award-winning lip balm. This vegan formula is infused with algae to leave your lips feeling and looking silky smooth. “Algae is wild. [and] “The balm is sustainable, as it's made with ingredients sourced in France and Ireland,” Goodman points out. “It also contains immune-boosting brown and red algae, which help plump and volumize your lips,” she adds.
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Fresh Bright Sneakers
“Fresh is a distinctive sneaker company founded by Scott Willman, who felt out of place as a teenager because he wanted to wear colour in a neutral environment,” Goodman explains. “Today, his company is all about moving forward with boldness and confidence.”
Freshy Brites sneakers come in six Technicolor hues, capturing the entire rainbow from front to back, but they're vibrant in other ways too: The shoes feature cloud-like soles for a cushioned step, temperature-regulating linings (designed by NASA and space-certified), and the Freshy unicorn logo as a constant reminder to celebrate your individuality.
Even better, use the code exclusively for TODAY viewers Fresh Today Customers can get a special discount if they purchase on the website until July 8. In addition, the Willman Foundation will donate Fresh Brites to LGBTQ+ youth who are looking to attend college.
Unlimited Slides Customizable Slides
Spread positivity with every step in these Limitless Slides by founder Lisa Rizzo. Whether you're wearing them to the beach or running errands, these slides come with a variety of insert options so you can swap them out to suit your mood.
The slides themselves are two colors (black and white) and feature four positive sayings: “The inserts are TIBAHS or 'Habits' spelled backwards and include phrases like Self-Love, Slay, I Am Inspired, I Am Worthy, and I Am Driven.” [and] “We're proud to be LGBTQ+,” Goodman noted, and you can even customize them with your own special saying, which is embedded on the inside of each shoe along with a positive affirmation.
Reasons for choosing
Lifestyle expert Amy E. Goodman shared with the Shop TODAY team her favorite LGBTQ+ brands to shop year-round and some of their most popular products.