Written by 2020 Midwest Shop Local Gift Guide
Thank you for using EntryPoint’s 2020 Midwest Shop Local Gift Guide! We at EntryPoint created this guide to help you support small businesses in the Midwest by providing you with information about these companies and the products they would like to promote as gift ideas – all in one place. On this page, you will find information about gifts under $30 that are created and sold by small businesses in the Midwest. If you’re looking for gifts in this price range, start here!
Watch the special holiday edition of our weekly livestream series The Cackle to learn more about these companies’ stories, products and services, and what gifts they can offer you ahead of the 2020 holiday season!
For gifts in other price ranges, like gifts under $10, check out the other categories in the guide!
SHOP GIFTS FROM $11-30
Agricycle • Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Jali Fruit Subscription Box – $21
Agricycle is an agricultural and food service technology company that was founded by Josh Shefner and is located in Milwaukee, WI. The company connects smallholder farmers in emerging economies to global markets through a vertically-integrated supply chain and portfolio of ethically-sourced and upcycled brands. Their model respects the rights of the poor through a member-driven value chain. They design appropriate and extremely scalable technologies and systems, and their field teams train members in the best food safety and agricultural practices to ensure high quality products and transferable skills. Agricycle brings their network of smallholders and rural communities into an inclusive value chain. Members sell products to Agricycle and can access health insurance, affordable solar electricity, and better agricultural inputs through a group-purchasing program. They also build brands in global markets and sell members’ products through e-commerce, wholesale, and ingredient supply channels.
Angel’s Exquisite Fruits • Detroit, Michigan
Custom Fruit Displays – Visit Facebook Page for Details – $30
Angel’s Exquisite Fruits is a produce business that is led by Founder and Owner Angel Simmons, and has locations in Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, and Detroit, MI. The business prepares and packages healthy, immuno-boosting produce in fun ways, such as bouquets and infusions. Angel’s Exquisite Fruits offers goods for all events and occasions, including everyday enjoyment.
Ann Arbor Art Center • Ann Arbor, Michigan
The Ann Arbor Art Center is a nonprofit organization led by President and CEO Marie Klopf, and is located in Ann Arbor, MI. The center has been sparking creativity in people of all ages, backgrounds, and artistic abilities for over a century. Their mission is to be a forum for the visual arts through education, exploration, collaboration, and exhibition, and to engage minds, expand perspectives, and inspire growth in students of all ages, teachers, artists, and the community. The Ann Arbor Art Center is empowered to carry out this mission through the support of community members who believe in their work and in creativity’s role in sustaining and elevating the common experience of humanity. In fulfilling their mission, the Art Center serves as a regional hub for the visual arts and prioritizes the long-standing partnerships they cultivate as a keystone for Ann Arbor’s healthy ecosystem of cultural and civic life.
Breathe Vape Lounge • Wyandotte, Michigan
Cirkus Strawberry Kiwi e-liquid – $24.99
Breathe Vape Lounge is a high-end luxury vape boutique led by Karam Nasser and located in Wyandotte, MI. This company offers the best selection of personal vaporizers, e-liquids, and accessories. Their hardware selection spans the spectrum of what is offered in the industry, ranging from affordable starter kits to high-end luxury devices. Breathe is home to a one-of-a-kind experience in both atmosphere and amenities.
ClevelandPeople.com • Cleveland Heights, Ohio
Murder in the Cultural Gardens Book – $15
ClevelandPeople.com is a social enterprise led by President Dan Hanson and located in Cleveland Heights, OH. Northeast Ohio is home to people from over 120 distinct ethnic groups, this organization seeks to help celebrate and improve awareness of this diversity. ClevelandPeople.com works with the leaders and grassroots of all the region’s communities to promote and record photos and videos their events, provide resources, and share information. They have a combined calendar of events and send a weekly eBlast to thousands of participants who want to know more about these ethnic communities.
Colorful Teez Imagine That • Detroit, Michigan
Colorful TEEZ is a commercial printing company that is led by CEO and President Zepora Starts and located in Detroit, MI. The company offers a variety of customized clothing printing options and services, including t-shirts, logos, hoodies, polos, school uniforms, and more.
Cookie Colab • Ann Arbor, Michigan
DIY Holiday Cookie Decorating Kit – $25
Cookie Colab is a bakery that is led by Owner and Cookier Amy Lugo and is located in Ann Arbor, MI. Lugo makes custom decorated butter cookies with buttercream frosting for a variety of events, including holidays, special occasions, corporate retreats, gifts, and everyday enjoyment. In addition to a signature set that is available year-round, Cookie Colab also sells DIY decorating kits, hosts decorating parties and workshops, and offers packages that can be used for fundraising. Lugo founded Cookie Colab in 2019 after years of being inspired by her Aunt Mary’s one-of-a-kind animal cookie recipe.
Dark Water Coffee Roasters • Hart, Michigan
Dark Water Coffee Roasters is a family run, small batch coffee roasting company led by Lauren Rybarz and located in Hart, MI. This company specializes in roasting Organic and Fair-trade coffees from different coffee growing regions around the world.
Eastern Market Brewing Co. • Detroit, Michigan
Elephant Juice NEIPA (4-Pack) – $15
Eastern Market Brewing Co. is a brewery led by Managing Partner Dayne Bartscht and located in Detroit, MI. They are a community-focused craft brewery and taproom in the heart of Detroit’s Eastern Market, providing its locals and visitors a refreshing place to gather and drink beer.
For the Love of Sugar • Detroit, Michigan
French Macarons – Local Pickup and Delivery Only – $15
For the Love of Sugar is a cakery and café owned by Manal Hussein and located in Detroit, MI. The business offers cakes by the slice, cookies, brownies, French macarons, and other goodies, as well as different daily coffees and lattes. For the Love of Sugar also make custom cakes including wedding cakes, birthday cakes, and cakes for other occasions.
Genusee • Flint, Michigan
GETTEES • Sterling Heights, Michigan
GETTEES is a clothing company founded by Mathew Hunt and located in Sterling Heights, MI. In 2014, this clothing brand and manufacturer built our own factory to challenge the status quo of the garment industry and manufacture high-quality, American-made apparel. Because GETTEES owns and operates its facility, the company is able to cut third party costs, allowing them to invest more into both the people that make our product and the product itself. GETTEES started by hiring former automotive sewers and re-training them to manufacture garments. The company has also developed partnerships with the few remaining luxury material suppliers and knitting mills in the US, sourcing many of the same materials as luxury retail brands to design, cut, and sew high-quality essential garments starting at $19.
God Got Me • Farmington Hills, Michigan
God Got Me OG T-Shirt – $14.99
God Got Me is an apparel company owned by Travis Wilder and located in Farmington Hills, MI. They offer clothing products branded with the “God Got Me” slogan. God Got Me aims to promote a lifestyle guided by the idea that, no matter what life throws somebody’s way, they can rest in the fact that God always has their back.
Hopscotch Children’s Store • Grand Rapids, Michigan
Jellycat Perry Polar Bear – $30
Hopscotch Children’s Store is a retail company that is owned by Mark and Emily Tobin and is located in Grand Rapids, MI. The store offers unique, modern and classic books, toys, and other gifts for babies and kids. In particular, Hopscotch Children’s Store specializes in products that are locally-made, eco-friendly, educational, unique and, most importantly, fun!
ILERA Apothecary • Detroit, Michigan
Moisturizing Discovery Set – $14.99
ILERA Apothecary is a personal care company led by CEO Chinonye Akunne and located in Detroit, MI. The company was launched in 2015 with the values of creating plant-based skincare products with high-quality and ethically-sourced ingredients. ILERA Apothecary believes in the power of love and support found in the community. They are committed to making an impact on their customers, employees, and local areas through our store, which is more than an online marketplace and physical retail location – they provide a diverse, inclusive space for in-person wellness events, curated pop-up shops, and community building.
InBooze • Grand Rapids, Michigan
Spiced White Sangria Cocktail Kit – $15
InBooze is a cocktail kit company founded by Ashleigh Evans and located in Grand Rapids, MI. The company offers a line of cocktail kits that a customer can use to infuse their favorite alcohol. Each kit contains a tea-style bag of dehydrated fruits, spices and herbs that can be used to infuse at least 2 cups of alcohol. After 3 days of infusion, the customer will have enough contents for 8-10 cocktails. Each batch has a shelf life of 6 months.
Lettering Works • Chicago, Illinois
Just My Type of Lettering Book – $20
Lettering Works is a design studio that is led by Owner and Designer Chelsie Tamms and is located in Chicago, IL. The studio offers vibrant, high quality art products that spread positivity and build community. As a modern-brand studio, Lettering Works also specializes in customized artwork, visual branding, and designs for artists, creatives, and small businesses.
Luxe and Comfort • Pepper Pike, Ohio
Comfort Sac – $28
Luxe and Comfort is a consumer products company owned by Gina Palmer and Jamie Ovens, and is located in Pepper Pike, OH. The company creates and sells Comfort Sacs, which are a natural heating/cooling bag designed to provide hours of enjoyment and calming relief. The sacs are created from 100 percent cotton and are hand-filled with select rice. Comfort Sacs are also handmade with a dense fabric which retains heat/cold longer and are available in a variety of colors and patterns.
Makeupology Store • Detroit, Michigan
Makeupology is a cosmetics store owned by Lisa M. Glickoff and located in Detroit, MI. The store’s mission is to provide every consumer with quality makeup at affordable prices. Makeupology offers a variety of colors to ensure that they can work on everyone and create the ability for customers to transform themselves.
Matthew’s Bonfire BBQ • Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan
Matthew’s Bonfire BBQ is a food company founded by Matthew Hessburg and located in Grosse Point Park, MI. The company produces and sells different varieties of BBQ sauce, all created by Hessburg who studied at both Western Carolina University and the award-winning Haywood Smokehouse. Hessburg, who has Down syndrome, also uses this brand as a platform to promote Disability Awareness and to expand opportunities for all. A portion of the proceeds from Matthew’s Bonfire BBQ sales goes to the UP Program at WCU and Ruby’s Rainbow, which is an organization that supports individuals with Down syndrome.
Natural Red • Detroit, Michigan
Mix-and-Match Hand+Foot Cream Bundle – $25
Natural Red is personal care company that is led by Owner and Founder Karen Guilmette, and is located in Detroit, MI. The company develops, manufactures, packages, sells, and ships small-batch, handmade personal and family care products that are clean, safe and effective. The formulas for these products were developed by Guilmette herself and contain only natural ingredients.
Naturally Raw Hair Studio • Ann Arbor, Michigan
Natural Non-Toxic Tree Hugger Friendly Dry Shampoo – $16
Naturally Raw Hair Studio is a salon operated by Amber Kessler and located in Ann Arbor, MI. Kessler has been a licensed cosmetologist since 2006, having graduated from the Douglas J. AVEDA Institute, and has continued to extend her skills through continuing education classes. At Naturally Raw Hair Studio, she provides a variety of services, including hairdressing, bridal styling, razor cutting, men’s cutting, and airbrush makeup. The studio is also committed to using toxin-free products made with natural and organic ingredients, are produced through cruelty-free means, and packaged in recycled bottles using renewable energy sources like wind power. Kessler makes some of these products in house and also offers her clients full disclosure of all ingredients.
Nutz 4 Coffee • Cleveland, Ohio
Nutz 4 Coffee Variety and Specialty Boxes – $12.99
Nutz 4 Coffee is a food company that is led by Founder and Owner Matthew L. Gorse and is located in Cleveland, OH. This company provides real, fresh, roasted nuts for use in coffee. Nutz 4 Coffee grinds their nuts, roasts them, places them in a filtered bag, and then packages them. Customers can simply place the filtered bag into their favorite coffee for an all-natural nut flavor for their coffee that is made with real ingredients.
NW Products • Sheffield Village, Ohio
NW Products is a fishing supply company owned by John L. Gaskell and located in Sheffield Village, OH. The company is known for creating the Fish-Pic, a cast aluminum device produced at a foundry in Cleveland. This product provides fishermen with an easier way to handle fish after they have been caught. After a fish has landed, a fisherman can insert the Fish-Pic under the fish’s gill plate and out of its mouth. The fish will then be contained, making it easier to remove the hook and lessening the chance of the hook sticking in your hands. After removing the fishhook, the fish can be placed in a cooler by simply turning the Fish-Pic upside down and letting the fish slide into the container. This product can be used on all species of fish and is especially helpful on those with sharp teeth.
Olive Seed • Detroit, Michigan
Olive Seed is a personal care company led by nutritionist Latricia Wright and located in Detroit, MI. This holistic wellness company offers integrative services like nutritional counseling, wellness workshops, and wholesome products. These products include loose leaf tea, herbal-infused honey, olive oils and vinegars, handmade soap bars, and spice blends.
Parks Old Style Bar-B-Q • Detroit, Michigan
Barbecued Pork – Local Pickup and Delivery Only – $25
Parks Old Style Bar-B-Q is a restaurant that is led by Owner and President Roderick Parks and is located in Detroit, MI. The restaurant is an “old school barbecue joint” that specializes in pit-grilled pork, beef ribs, and chicken. Parks Old Style Bar-B-Q is family-owned and has been in continuous operation since 1964.
PBA Royal Performing Arts and Training School • Detroit, Michigan
Performing Arts and Sports – $30
PBA Royal Performing Arts and Training School is an educational institution led by Director Pageant Atterberry and located in Detroit, MI. The school services the Cody-Rouge District of Detroit’s west side, providing students with after-school classes in dance, music, acting, modeling, cheerleading, and sports. They work with youth aged 4-18 and also provide them with academic tracking services. Students attending classes Monday-Friday are provided with supper and snacks.
Produce Puns • Ann Arbor, Michigan
Produce Puns Positively Journals – $24
Produce Puns is customized products company led by Creator Mary Lemmer and located in Ann Arbor, MI. The company specializes in creating hand-drawn food pun illustrations, and applying those illustrations to a variety of products, including journals, t-shirts, mugs, and more gifts.
Quevos • Chicago, Illinois
Quevos Egg White Chips – $14.99
Quevos is a food company led by CEO Nick Hamburger and located in Chicago, IL. The company produces healthy chips made out of egg whites. These chips are high in protein, low in carbohydrates, and are available in a variety of flavors.
Rosemarine Textiles • Detroit, Michigan
Charcoal Cotton Gauze Bandana – $24
Rosemarine Textiles is a sustainable textile studio owned by Meghan Navoy and located in Detroit, MI. The studio makes home goods and accessories using the rich, complex colors of plant-based dyes. Each piece is made by hand in the studio using processes that take many days to achieve the perfect color. Rosemarine Textiles is committed to environmental sustainability, and utilizes what would otherwise be waste material, including working with local restaurants to acquire dye-producing food scraps and florists for day-old blooms. The studio continues to experiment with dyes and innovate processes to contribute to an expanding collection of textiles.
Sapphire Moon Chocolates • Appleton, Wisconsin
Sea Salt Caramel Truffles – Visit Facebook Page for Details – $11
Sapphire Moon Chocolates is a gourmet artisan chocolate manufacturing company and retail store that is owed by Tarina Swanson and located in Appleton, WI. The company specializes in halal (Muslim) chocolate, including other confectionery to meet religious and dietary guidelines for numerous ethnic and religious groups. Sapphire Moon Chocolates also focuses on social justice and promote unity and peace through the sale of our chocolate and confectionery items. Their retail shop features our chocolates, truffles, French desserts and macarons, confectionery, ice cream, antiques, vintage and gifts. We assist and promote veteran, woman, and minority-owned businesses.
Shy vs Bold • Detroit, Michigan
Detroit Rhinestone Hair Clip – $12.99
Shy vs Bold is a women’s boutique owned by Tennille Payne-Glas and with retail locations in both Detroit and Southfield, MI. Shy vs Bold offers distinctive clothing, accessories, home and gift items to their customers. It is their aim to provide customers with unique, quality products from all over the globe and at an affordable price.
SPC Innovations – BrickShield • Okemos, Michigan
BrickShield is an adhesive product that was created and is sold by business founders Austin Loper, Sean Fochtman, Caleb Andrews, and Paul Jaques, who are based in Okemos, MI. BrickShield is a nontoxic adhesive designed for plastic brick toys like Lego that keeps creations together. BrickShield is more than 50% stronger than other glues, and can be washed off with water when one would like to take their toys apart again.
Sweet Bean • Cleveland, Ohio
Sweet Bean is a chocolate company owned by chocolatier Kristin Barnes and located in Cleveland, OH. The company was founded in 2014 and focuses on handmade filled chocolates and single-origin bean-to-bar chocolate, occasionally featuring marshmallow or other confections.
Sweet Designs Chocolatier • Lakewood, Ohio
Box of Dreams – 15-Piece Assorted Chocolates – $22
Sweet Designs Chocolatier is a chocolaterie that is led by Owner, Founder, and Master Chocolatier Ines Rehner, and is located in Lakewood, OH. The chocolaterie offers over 80 different chocolates and treats, ranging from truffles and hand-dipped fruit to nut clusters and caramels. The chocolate is crafted with Rehner’s unique recipe blend that she discovered after years of experience, experimentation, and refinement.
The Getup Vintage • Ann Arbor, Michigan
The Getup Vintage is a retail business owned by Kaylan Mitchell and located in Ann Arbor, MI. The shop was founded in 2005 and specializes in vintage clothing, shoes, jewelry, and accessories from the 1950s through the 1990s. The Getup Vintage believes that vintage styles are for everyone.
The Nut Button • Detroit, Michigan
The Nut Button + The OK Boomer Button – $14.99
The Nut Button is an eCommerce brand that was founded by James Reina and Davis Harari, and is based in Michigan with online sales and shipment available nationwide. The Nut Button was originally a sole product developed as a response to a viral meme – an electronic button that, when pushed, will say “nut.” The success of this product has enabled the Reina and Harari to extend the branding to apparel, as well as to develop a new “Ok Boomer” button.
The People’s Club • Chicago, Illinois
The People’s Club Membership – $30
The People’s Club is an educational service founded by Brooke Burton and located in Chicago, IL. The Club functions as a digital-first community for 20/30s in Chicago that hosts virtual events on a variety of subjects that span across art, culture, cooking, health, wellness, and community. More specific examples of event topics include cocktail making, art classes, and comedy workshops. A People’s Club membership is a great gift for young adults who might be living alone right now and looking for fun things to do or new people to meet, or for couples who want to do fun, and interactive events together at home.
Thom Zahler Art Studios • Timberlake, Ohio
Warning Label Collection – $25
Thom Zahler Art Studios is an art company led by Thom Zahler and located in Timberlake, OH. The studio creates cartoons for a variety of purposes, including cartoons for comics, illustrations, and advertising. Additionally, they sell all of Thom Zahler’s original comics work, including My Little Pony, Love and Capes, and more.
Wareologie • Northville, Michigan
Magnetic Button Adapter Set – $29.99
Wareologie is an accessibility accessory company led by CEO Gina Adams and located in Northville, MI. The company develops and retails accessories to empower people with physical challenges and to help restore their independence. These products help people dress independently and express their unique styles. Whether faced with arthritis or recovering from surgery, it is imperative for people to have the ability to engage in self-care and improve their own well-being. Wareologie is diversifying its product assortment in the Fall of 2020 by adding stylish products to their line that help customers to restore essential activities of daily living
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