Small Business Saturday - Celebrating the Best of Indie Beauty Brands

At this time of year, it’s not easy to know where to put your money. Most of us don’t have unlimited funds to give for Christmas and many small businesses struggle to compete with the huge ad budgets of big brands.

Black Friday encourages a level of consumerism we don’t support, not least because many companies feel forced to cut margins to drive sales, which is harmful for long term trade and drives consumer costs UP over the rest of the year.

That’s why, instead, we like to champion initiatives like Small Business Saturday! 

 What is Small Business Saturday

Held on the 1st Saturday of each December, Small Business Saturday is a grassroots campaign aimed at supporting small businesses across the UK.

In 2020, the campaign, which is in its 9th year, managed to drive an estimated £1.1 billion of trade for makers, cafés, and small firms across the country.

As we all work to catch up from covid restrictions, this money has allowed many start-ups and artisan businesses, which are often female founded, to thrive.

Meet Our Small Business Friends

Along with our own brand Acala range of zero-waste beauty products, we champion many small and indie beauty brands who wouldn’t necessarily get space on mainstream sites but offer amazing value and quality.  

We’re sharing a few of our heroes along with some other brilliant eco-friendly small businesses we think you should know about!

Odylique:

Founded by Mother and Daughter duo, Margaret, and Abi Weeds, Odylique offers a range of Soil Association and Fairtrade approved makeup and skincare that works, without damaging the planet.

Drink, Shop, Do:

Drink, Shop, Do WAS a beautiful, communal space in London, just outside Kings Cross. They offered beautiful, ethical food and was one of our favourite hangouts.

Sadly, the pandemic meant it had to close, but it’s founder, Coralie Sleap, has written this fantastic book, ‘Get Your Play On’, reminding us all how to have fun in a very serious world. It’s a lovely read and well worth supporting.

Tabitha Eve Home & Style

If accessories are your thing, you’ll love Tabitha Eve. Hair ties are one of the least disposable products on the planet and they’re the perfect size to cause real destruction to wildlife that gets caught on them.

With an estimated 20,000 pounds of hair plastics (the equivalent weight of a city) dumped EVERY DAY, Tabitha Eve’s hair ties and homeware are not only a lovely gift for you, but also our planet.

Plastic Oceanic

Founded by Dan Edwards, Plastic Oceanic creates jewellery and homeware that uses up ocean waste.  They suspend their products in a bio-friendly resin (NOT more plastic waste) and are super transparent about their practices and aims, which we admire and love.

Wild Sage & Co

We’re so proud of Hereford based Wild Sage and Co for the skin and beauty care they offer.  In particular, their cleanser oil offers nourishing cleansing in plastic free packaging and is such a treat for winter skin.

Eateaket

Finally, we love a cuppa to get us through the day – but many teabags are packed with plastic.  We discovered Edinburgh based Eateaket as a perfect way to treat ourselves to a brew without waste. Their loose leaf winter blends are a TREAT!

We’d love to know who you’re supporting this Saturday, use the hashtags #SmallBizSatUK and #SmallBusinessSaturday, and then tag us @acalaonline too!