Perhaps you still have yet to purchase your Christmas presents this year, or you’re not sure what to buy for someone and want to support ethical, social enterprise businesses too – then check out these gift ideas from our social enterprise network!
Miss Macaroon
Looking to buy a present for someone with a sweet-tooth?
Set up in 2011, Miss Macaroon is a well-known social enterprise company set up in Birmingham. They reinvest 100% of their profits back to helping unemployed young people to gain skills that will help them change their lives for the better. Not only this, but their products are made with state of the art machinery, devised from a system used in artistic industries.
Training courses are available to long term unemployed individuals ages 18-35, and run through 10 weeks in total.
Each course is tailored especially to the needs and barriers of employment.
Trainees on the course have the opportunities to spend five weeks in the training kitchen and learn skills to enter a professional workplace. After this, they have the opportunity to graduate up to the production kitchen and learn alongside Chefs. Throughout the course, they are partners with a programme leader, work buddy, psychotherapist, and a counsellor for the 10 weeks. After the programme ends, they are partnered with a mentor for 6 months.
That Toy Thing
The Toy Thing is a perfect Christmas present for children if you are looking to buy sustainable presents this year. Based in Manchester, The Toy Thing helps families to play more sustainable, save money, and reduce plastic waste and clutter. On average, British parents spent 3.3 billion on toys in 2018, and most of these toys aren’t being used and left in cupboards collecting dust. Not only this, but 90% of toys are completely unrecyclable! As a result, more carbon emissions are being released into the atmosphere, and more families are throwing away their money every year to buy more presents.
That Toy Thing not only reduces the amount of unnecessary plastic waste, but it also helps families to save money and provide amazing toys for their children to play with.
ReMade Wigan
ReMade Wigan is a furniture upcycling project just for women. If you are interested in gifting some high quality upcycled items this year, look no further! Not only this, but if you are interested in joining some of the activities yourself, then ReMade Wigan run a variety of workshops available for women who might be going through tough times. They offer direct support and enable women to see their support workers in a confidential space if they wish!
If you are looking to buy recycled furniture for a friend or family member who has perhaps just moved into a new house, then take a look at the ReMade Wigan website, where they list their items for sale: https://remadewigan.co.uk/shop/ols/products
Sara’s Cards
Interested in buying handmade greeting cards and accessories whilst supporting Social Enterprises? Check out Sara’s cards where you can purchase anything from gift tags, key rings, door hangers, scrapbook albums, and much more! These gifts are perfect for creating a personalised message for your loved ones, and is suitable for all ages!
CDMUK
Creative Design and Manufacture are dedicated to engendering peace and harmony within a multicultural society. They pride themselves on maintaining traditional crafts and serving the local community.
CDMUK offer a wide range of workshops to get involved with. Most classes are led by artists who are experts in their field. Some of the workshops include: Clothes Making, Tie and Dye, Indigo, and Mixed Media.
