FOR THE HIGHLY CAFFEINATED
Grace Coffee Co.
417 State Street
Give the gift of a pick-me-up this holiday season. The independently-owned Grace Coffee Co. now has three Wisconsin locations. Offering a wide array of coffee, espresso, lunch and breakfast treats, a giftcard from Grace Coffee Co. is sure to put a smile on any foodie’s face.
GIFT CARD $10-$100
FOR THE PEN PALS Anthology 230 State Street Anthology is a paper and craft shop owned by long-time Madison residents and sisters Sachi and Laura. If you love to write letters, collect local art prints or shop locally, this is the place for you. PATCHWORK POSTCARD $1.50 MERRY ISTHMUS CARD PACK $8
FOR THE BOOKWORM
A Room of One’s Own
314 West Gorham Street
Open for online orders and contactless pickup, A Room of One’s Own is the ultimate destination for any bookworm. The queer-owned storefront works to amplify the voices of writers of all backgrounds, bringing together an inclusive and creative selection of fiction, nonfiction poetry and essays. A Room of One’s Own has put together their own gift guide of their favorite reads for all genres, which you can find at roomofonesown.com.
FOR THE EXPERT THRIFTER
Good Style Shop
817 E. Johnson Street
What to get for your friend who seems to specialize in shopping? Good Style Shop is a vibrant thrift store with an array of unique, vintage pieces. Their colorful selection includes luxury outerwear, graphic tees and cashmere sweaters. If you’re overwhelmed, opt for a gift card and a branded tote.
GIFTCARD $10-$200 WWW.GOODSTYLESHOP.COM
SPACE BABIES SWEATSHIRT $85 ACAB MARY PATCH $50 TL STICKERSLUKE$5
LOCAL
Hazel General Store
1250 Williamson St.
The Hazel General Store is a hodgepodge of local goodies: a gifter’s galore. Bringing together art supplies, accessories, stationary and apparel, this gem on Willy Street is sure to bring a smile to your face.
FOR THE WISCONSIN
WITCHES CAULDRON MUG $18 CASHMERE BEANIE $36 WISCONSIN HEART CANDLE $25
FOR THE
TRENDSETTER
August
414 State Street
August is an independently-owned concept shop with a curated selection of streetwear and sneakers. Carrying renowned brands such as Online Ceramics, Stussy and Mister Green, you’re bound to find lots of unique pieces with character. Shop for hoodies, beanies, tees and more online or in store.
BRAIN DEAD PUPPET T-SHIRT $64
AUGUST PUFF PRINT LOGO
PLEASURES DRAGONBEANIE $34
T-SHIRT $45
W A K E N Y P A I S L E Y P E A R L B U T T O N C A
A
RDIGAN$185 @_AUGUSTSHOP
KEYSHA MONIQUE MABRA-BLACK LIVES MATTER PRINT $20
FOR THE ART COLLECTOR
Communication 2645 Milwaukee Street
Communication is a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering creativity in the Madison community. Both their location on Milwaukee street and online store feature a large curated selection of work from local artists.
PEACH BEAST PATCHES $6 BERNADETTE WITZACKRAINBOW SCREEN PRINT $25
How has the pandemic affected business?
Before the pandemic, our largest revenue stream was live music and events, followed by our shop selling the work of local artists. When it became clear that the pandemic was going to go on indefinitely, we realized we had to shift our focus so that we could survive and continue supporting local creatives. We slowly began ramping up the energy spent on promoting local visual artists. We did instagram takeovers, artist features on social media, and virtual makers markets. This allowed us to grow our social media audience, intentionally reaching folks that want to learn about and buy work from local artists. We then shifted from virtual markets to an online shop, which has been very successful so far.
This has been a difficult year to be a small, independent, volunteer run nonprofit supporting the arts. It pains us not to be able to support musicians as easily and directly. We are still doing a few livestream events as well as a Queer Madison Mixtape, and we hope to be able to do pop-up sober music events collaboratively in larger spaces as Covid eases up next year.
Independent artists are the backbone of a healthy arts community. In Wisconsin, the arts and cultural sector impact has been $10.1 billion, 3.1% of the Wisconsin economy. Independent artists make our cities and neighborhoods more beautiful, drive local tourism up, spark creativity in our communities, and bring innovative ideas to how to solve the problems we struggle with as a society. However, arts funding in Wisconsin is regularly 50th in the nation. We must support local artists with our dollars, rather than spending money during the holidays at big box stores. We must also support artists at a policy level, demanding our legislators increase funding for the arts statewide.
What is the importance of uplifting independent artists and makers this holiday season?
Why should you shop local this holiday season? We spoke to Jennie Bastian, Communication’s Art Director said:
