Supporting Businesses with a Connection to Down Syndrome; “Down Syndrome Owned Businesses”
Our Down syndrome community is close-knit.
Oh, we squabble on social media and have tiffs here and there, but we also have each other’s backs something fierce. When we have questions about IEP’s or band together to seek out solutions or justice, there is no stopping us.
We also like to support each other.
Here’s a guide with links and information that will help us in supporting Down syndrome businesses (that is, businesses with a positive connection to Down syndrome).
The sections have been categorized.
In This Post You Will Find:
1. Businesses that are run by individuals with Down syndrome
This means that the product is made by the individual with Down syndrome and the store is run largely through their own efforts.
Andy Meredith Photography: I really love his work (and follow him on Instagram). Shop at his site, linked here
Chani’s Creations: bracelets and jewelry
Downright Charming: lovely quilts made by Sarah
Sophiola: beautiful paintings, prints, cards
Moira’s Ventures: Activist Moira Rossi set up a business in which she sells programs training other adults with Down syndrome in self-advocacy. I’m blown away.
Ashley by Design: popular clothing for people with Down syndrome, created by designer Ashley DeRamus, who has Down syndrome
Troy Made It: Pottery! Follow him on Instagram (click here) for updates. He has a shop on Etsy that sells out fast (so stay tuned!)
Allie Art: Holy Mother of WOW! Allie’s art is gorgeous! Vibrant, color-rich and reasonably-priced. She has jewelry, too.
Bradley’s Blocks: all kinds of super-cool pet art, leash gear and more. If you love dogs, this is your stop.
On the heals of great art featuring dogs is Doggie Delights, by Allison. They make healthy dog food and treats!
Designs by Lupita – Dynamic, popping stuff: really lovely. Lupita has prints and more for sale on her site.
Oliver Hellowell Photography – Gorgeous photos. Lots of nature-shots.
Bath Bombs by Morgan Tibbens: Outstanding variety of “bath bombs” (these things you put into the bath to make your experience there something fragrantly divine). Check out the “Down Syndrome Bath Bomb“!!
Gorgeous, gorgeous pottery. Those leaves?! The designs? Brilliant! I think his slogan should be, “Stoneware with Impeccable Charm.”
Tazia Fawley: She makes cut-outs and paintings that are simply vibrant and bursting with energy. She is also the famous artist who gave Prince George one of her paintings, which was displayed in his nursery.
Geoffrey Mikol has an outstanding online shop, Riverbend Galleries, with images that he takes. Photos, calendars and more.
Artlifting: Dreamy, often abstract art from the brilliant Andrew Weatherly. He has a wide collection of everything from rainbow swirls to sunrises.
Megalogy: Megan Bomgaars is one of my favorites from the hit series, “Born This Way,” because she reminds me a lot of my daughter, Moxie. She is also a total rockstar of creative awesomeness, selling everything from her hand-dyed silk scarves to yoga pants. Be sure to check out her capsule collection with Sanrio – Hello Kitty + “Don’t Limit Me” = pure radness!
Poppin’ Joes: Gourmet kettle corn by Joe! Yum.
John’s Crazy Socks is a little company that is going big. All the socks, all the time, and with a sock subscription service too!
…and!
- Dusty’s Puppets: Dusty makes, sells (and if you are local, performs with) puppets. Very, very cool.
- Cameron’s Coffee & Chocolates: chocolate, coffee, tea, even granola and nuts!
- DK Arts: greeting cards and prints
- Florida Keys Art by Cinnamon – photographs and watercolors
- Gracie’s Doggie Delights: stuff your best friend will love
- Seanese – Sean, from “Born This Way” has his own line of bad-ass shirts (I want them all!)
- Group Hug Apparel – very popular t-shirt company run by Andrew, who has Down syndrome
- Brittany’s Baskets of Hope – Brittany (an individual with Down syndrome) pulls together gift baskets for new and expecting parents of children with Down syndrome. What a powerful thing to do! Although this is not a business that you receive something in exchange for an item, it’s definitely worth contributing your dollars towards: you can do so here.
2. Down Syndrome Related Small Businesses
This is, small businesses run by families, friends or allies of an individual with Down syndrome (- this usually means family!)
- Ry’s Ties: socks and ties, pretty cool!
- Maya’s Adventures: lovely series of books about a little girl with Down syndrome.
- Mt. Lebanon Soap Company: handmade soaps and bath bombs!
- 4Peace Art: Two little girls – sisters of a young boy with Down syndrome – sell cards on Etsy and a portion of profit is donated to NDSC.
- Kroc Co Paper Shop: All things paper! Super fun
- Mighty Moose Alters: Very exciting shop: the mom modifies backpacks, purses, and diaper bags to accommodate feeding tubes, and is slowly getting into adaptive clothing as well – YESSSSS!
- Cristina’s Tortina Shop: cupcakes, cakes & speciality treats made by a mom of an individual with Down syndrome, and who hires people with Down syndrome.
- Reason to Bake: gluten free morsels of cookie deliciousness
- Crafts with Catie: Handmade blankets! And all kinds of crafty stuff.
- Loving Memories Floral and Repurposed Designs: Lovely shadow boxes, wind chimes, repurposed art.
- Beccability Bakery: Handmade marshmallows, shipped anywhere. Yum.
- Mom & Me Designer Wreaths: Beautiful wreaths for every occasion and season.
-
Gracie’s Doggie Delights: healthy dog treats. No additives ever.
- Jack’s Bar and Grill & Steamer’s Coffeehouse: jam, jelly, pie filling and gift baskets. This stuff looks delicious.
- Sassy Fras Design: vinyl, embroidery and handcrafted design (including things like unicorn embroidered shirts!!!).
- Handmade Weighted Blankets: all kinds of handmade weighted blankets, with all kinds of fabrics.
- Designer Do Over: E-bay store selling used/new clothing and shoes
- Cloth Diaper Outlet: all your cloth diapering needs (including gently used diaper covers!) and more
- Creekside Cookies: fruit and cookies!
- Waggies by Maggie & Friends – dog treats made by people with Intellectual Disabilities
- Imperfect Creations: quilts and embroidery
- Paparazzi accessories: bracelets and fun stuff, all around $5
- My Little Sunshine Face: children’s books series about Down syndrome with Christian themes
Coffee:
- Dreamer’s Coffee: Coffee distribution company run mostly by parents of individuals with Down syndrome, selling coffee & coffee-accompanying products.
- Dawn’s Dreamer’s Coffee
- 4 Coffee and Grace
- Bitty and Beaus
- Furnace Hill Coffee
- Crumley Dreamer’s Coffee
T-Shirts:
- Reeve’s Tees
- The Chromosome Shirt and Human Needs Are Not “Special”
- Kale Chips Apparel: t-shirts and more
- Down 2 Dream
3. Businesses That Hire Down Syndrome
Ever want to know what businesses have a good track record with disability?
That is, that recruit, hire and retain employees with disabilities, that support accommodation and more?
Here are a few resources:
a) Glassdoor’s report on the best states and companies for hiring people with disabilities. This is not disability-specific, but we know that Down syndrome will be included in this report.
The report is linked here.
b) Check out the Return on Disability Group
They have deeply analyzed almost every aspect of employment and disability within major firms, and make it easy for you to decide where you want your money to go.
Added to that, they cover both the United States and Canada.
- Trader Joes
- Publix
- Walgreens
- CVS
- Petco
- Safeway
- Kroger
- Wegman’s
- Amazon (maybe Down syndrome; definitely for intellectual disability)
One Final Note
Please share this post and support businesses with a positive connection to Down syndrome in particular and disability in general.
Remember that our dollars speak the language of business by highlighting the need and desire for inclusion and acceptance, and they speak clearly and loudly.
Feel free to leave links in the comments section to businesses that have not been included.
Thank you!
Related Posts:
- 8 Things to Do For Down Syndrome Acceptance Month
- IEP 101
- The Best Down Syndrome Awareness Videos
- How to Tell if Your Child with Down Syndrome Needs Therapy
- Resources for New Parents of a Child with Down Syndrome
- Comprehensive List of the Best Down Syndrome Book Resources
- All of Meriah Nichols’ Down Syndrome-Related Blog Posts + Resources
Great list!
Have a look at Johns Crazy Socks! Their original Mighty story was viewed over 20M Times.
http://www.johnscrazysocks.com
This amazing business is owned by a man with Down syndrome, they give back to a different charity every month and employ people with Down Syndrome. They fit all 3 categories!! X
Awesome list! How do you get on this list? I’m an artist and author. I do napkin drawings about all the achievements and milestones my daughter does and have written and illustrated a book about her adventures to the library. It’s very much about empowering each individual for their uniqueness. It is also a great social story for people who may be anxious about new experiences. I’m writing a dentist book next. Check my work out at mayasadventurebooks.com
this is great! I’ll add you when I update the entire list – thank you!
Jasmine’s Bunting Company http://www.jasminesbuntingco.com/
Love this list! If you add to your list, we sell acceptance apparel inspired by our daughter who has Down syndrome and 10% goes to our local GiGi’s Playhouse: http://www.down2dream.com
Thank you for including Seanese!! Sean loves it that you called his t’s badass. LOL Happy Thanksgiving.
You should add Bradley’s Blocks – he makes custom paintings of your pets and other items. He’s on Facebook and here’s his website https://www.etsy.com/shop/BradleysBlocks
Fabulous list! I would add the wonderful Furnace Hills Coffee, http://www.furnacehillscoffee.com. They do online sales and really great coffee. “Furnace Hills Coffee™ has a commitment to hire people that are developmentally disabled. Our first employee, Erin Baldwin, has Down Syndrome. “
I have bought several of the Group Hug shirts over the years — they’re just great! And I own two of Oliver Hellowell’s photos, framed and hanging in my office. They’re beautiful, and his coffee book is a work of art in addition to the photos inside it. Great, great list! Happy holidays, everyone!
This is wonderful!! Feel free to add My Little Sunshine Face to your list. It is a book series that I wrote dedicated to children with Down syndrome and their parents. My son, Ashton, is the main character and he was born with DOwn syndrome. The series instilled in children that they are “wonderfully made” based on Psalm 139:13-14 and as each book celebrates everything our children are including their extra chromosome.. each book has activities for them to do and was created to help aid in cognitive, psychological, and motor skills development. They also have speech and motor skills therapy ideas to utilize with your child as you enjoy the book together. I hope someday as my son gets older he will help with this business and then I can pass it on to him. Right now he is the face and inspiration that little kids get to meet at my book signings or speaking events and they get excited they met they friend in the book! http://www.mylittlesunshineface.com
How about Ashley DeRamus down syndrome advocate
Who founded Ashley by design and the Ashley DeRamus foundation
Awarded Ndsc advocate of the year
NDSS Champion of Change
IDS Advocate of the year.
BABBAL Disney blog one of 6 entapanure of the year.
And supports #DSWORKS
Mt Lebanon Soap Company makes cold process soap and all the proceeds to into a special needs trust for their daughter with Down Syndrome.
http://Www.mtlebanonsoapcompany.com
We are proud to have our own Crumley Family Dreamers Coffee & Tea business, selling premium, Fair Trade coffee which employs individuals of ALL abilities working in an inclusive environment for fair wages! My son and business partner, John Michael, is 10 and has Down syndrome. He loves selling Dreamers with me.
Our website is http://www.Dreamers-CrumleyFamily.com
With every purchase with a purpose, you help the dream come true!
d
Thank you for making this list. I make dog treats that are healthy for dogs. I make Chicken and Rice, Grain Free Sweet Potato, Pumpkin, and Peanut Butter treats. My parents are my sidekicks. I was on Rachael Ray and I will be going to New York to bake dog treats with her!
max: https://maxzone.life/max-art/
Thank you for including Ry’s Ties. I’m the Chief Inclusion Officer and I will let you know that James-Ryan is 100% a part of his business. Aside from paying taxes he orders, ships, makes deliveries, goes to the bank, counts money, and goes to market to make selections. He does set up and tear down at pop up events, sells, attends networking opportunities, and is the sole brand rep.
In 2020, he will be designing his own line of ties and socks.
I would like to bring to your attention three other businesses.
1.Austin’s Underdawgs…. It’s a mobile food truck available for events in North Texas. Austin is very much a part of leading this business.
2. Coffee.N.Crumbs, is a mobile coffee shop in a remodeled vintage trailer that has hired individuals with Down Syndrome. Check out their mission and vision on Instagram. They are also in North Texas and available for events.
3. Blake’s Snow Shack is a mobile shaved ice truck in North Texas
thank you!! I really appreciate your comment and the heads up on the other 3 businesses!
alpalspetplace.com. New online pet store that’s partially run by a boy with Down Syndrome.