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Published November 23, 2021 at 4:30 p.m. | Updated November 23, 2021 at 10:17 p.m.
Making a list, checking it twice? If the results of our Gift Local Giveaway are any indication, Vermonters are overwhelmingly not naughty — they’re nice! By that, we mean that they plan to shop local this holiday season. From state-imposed shutdowns to staffing shortages to supply chain snafus, the pandemic has challenged Vermont’s small businesses. In support of retailers’ important role in keeping our downtowns vibrant and the local economy strong, we polled Vermonters on their favorite independently owned stores. Their top answers made it into the Nice List — our community-curated shopping directory.
The survey results made our hearts swell three sizes. More than 1,100 Vermonters got vocal about gifting local, casting 14,383 votes for the stores they love to support. Fifty-eight percent of these voters pledged to buy at least three gifts locally — and 26 percent promised to buy all their gifts close to home.
If you also want to put a bow on it, Green Mountain-style, check the shopping recs on these pages. Looking for a new snowboard for the downhill demon in your life? How about a high-tech gadget for the lovable geek? Want to throw your fur baby a bone? For all these gifts and more, you’ll find superlative selections here.
Vermont Federal Credit Union awarded $500 in shop-local bucks to Grace Iasilli of Burlington, the winner of our giveaway. She’s chosen to redeem the cash at two of her favorite retailers: Common Deer and Kiss the Cook.
South Burlington, earlsbikes.com
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If you also want to put a bow on it, Green Mountain-style, check the shopping recs on these pages. Looking for a new snowboard for the downhill demon in your life? How about a high-tech gadget for the lovable geek? Want to throw your fur baby a bone? For all these gifts and more, you’ll find superlative selections here.
Vermont Federal Credit Union awarded $500 in shop-local bucks to Grace Iasilli of Burlington, the winner of our giveaway. She’s chosen to redeem the cash at two of her favorite retailers: Common Deer and Kiss the Cook.
“Both of these stores not only offer a great selection of quality products and support local makers/businesses, but I’ve also always had amazing service anytime I’ve stopped in either place,” Iasilli said.
“I love Vermont and love supporting all of our local small businesses,” she added. “The past (almost) two years have been insane, and I can’t even imagine being a small business owner throughout all of this. Whether it’s spreading the ‘gift local’ message by word of mouth or actually spending money, I want to support in any and every way I can!”
Arts & Entertainment Gifts
Gifts for vinyl lovers
Autumn Records
Winooski, autumnrecordsvt.com
Buch Spieler Records
Montpelier, buchspielerrecords.com
Burlington Records
Burlington, burlingtonrecords.com
Pure Pop Records
Burlington, purepoprecords.com
ReSOURCE
Barre, Burlington, Hyde Park, Williston; resourcevt.org
Gifts for keeping little ones occupied
ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain
Burlington, echovermont.org
Homeport
Burlington, homeportonline.com
Jamie Two Coats' Toy Shop
Shelburne, facebook.com/jamietwocoats
Phoenix Books
Burlington, Essex Junction, Rutland, phoenixbooks.biz
Woodbury Mountain Toys
Montpelier, woodburymountaintoys.com
Gifts for getting crafty
April Cornell
Burlington, aprilcornell.com
The Drawing Board
Montpelier, drawingboardvt.com
Must Love Yarn
Shelburne, mustloveyarn.com
ReSOURCE
Barre, Burlington, Hyde Park, Williston; resourcevt.org
Vermont Art Supply
Burlington, vermontartsupply.com
Gifts for bookworms
Bear Pond Books
Montpelier, bearpondbooks.com
Bridgeside Books
Waterbury, bridgesidebooks.com
Crow Bookshop
Burlington, crowbooks.com
The Flying Pig Bookstore
Shelburne, flyingpigbooks.com
Phoenix Books
Burlington, Essex Junction, Rutland; phoenixbooks.biz
Gifts for the musically inclined
Ellis Music
Bethel, ellismusic.com
GuitarSam
Montpelier, guitarsam.com
Junktiques Collective
Burlington, junktiques.net
Randolin Music Instruments
Burlington, randolin.com
Vermont Violins
South Burlington; West Lebanon, N.H.; vermontviolins.com
Gifts for geeking out
Computers for Change
Burlington, computersforchange.com
Green Mountain Camera
South Burlington, gmcamera.com
LeZot Camera
Burlington, lezotcameras.com
ReSOURCE
Barre, Burlington, Hyde Park, Williston; resourcevt.org
Small Dog Electronics
Burlington, shop.smalldog.com
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Clothing, Shoes & Accessories
Gifts for fashionistas
Bailey Road
Montpelier, baileyroadvt.com
ECCO
Burlington, eccoclothesboutique.com
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Salaam Clothing
Montpelier, salaamclothing.com
Stella Mae
Burlington, stella-mae.com
Gifts for thrifters
Dirt Chic
Burlington, facebook.com/dirtchicvt
Old Gold
Burlington, facebook.com/oldgoldvt
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Plato's Closet
Williston, platoscloset.com
Style Encore
Williston, style-encore.com
Gifts for the dude who needs new duds
Burton
Burlington, burton.com
Lenny's Shoe & Apparel
Barre; Plattsburgh, N.Y.; St. Albans; Williston; lennyshoe.com
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Patagonia Burlington
Burlington, patagoniaburlington.com
The Vermont Flannel Company
Burlington, East Barre, Ferrisburgh, Johnson, Woodstock; vermontflannel.com
Gifts for someone who is a real gem
Frog Hollow Vermont Craft Gallery
Burlington, froghollow.org
Jennifer Kahn Jewelry
Burlington, jenniferkahnjewelry.com
Katie's Jewels
Montpelier, katiesjewels.com
Tradewinds
Burlington, tradewindsvt.com
Zinnia
Burlington, zinniastores.com
Gifts for growing and stylish kids
Boho Baby
Williston, bohobabyvt.com
Lenny's Shoe & Apparel
Barre; Plattsburgh, N.Y.; St. Albans; Williston; lennyshoe.com
Little Citizen
Burlington, littlecitizen.co
Once Upon a Child
Williston, onceuponachildwilliston.com
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Zutano Outlet Store
Montpelier, facebook.com/zutanooutletstore
Gifts for putting your best foot forward
Danform Shoes
Burlington, Colchester, Shelburne, St. Albans; danformshoesvt.com
Dear Lucy
Burlington, dearlucy.com
Lenny's Shoe & Apparel
Barre; Plattsburgh, N.Y.; St. Albans; Williston; lennyshoe.com
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Stella Mae
Burlington, stella-mae.com
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Outdoors & Recreation Gifts
Gifts for skiers and riders
Alpine Shop
South Burlington, alpineshopvt.com
Burton
Burlington, burton.com
Onion River Outdoors
Montpelier, onionriver.com
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Skirack
Burlington, skirack.com
Gifts for outdoor enthusiasts
Alpine Shop
South Burlington, alpineshopvt.com
Lenny's Shoe & Apparel
Barre; Plattsburgh, N.Y.; St. Albans; Williston; lennyshoe.com
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Patagonia Burlington
Burlington, patagoniaburlington.com
Skirack
Burlington, skirack.com
Gifts for wheely good people
Earl's Cyclery and FitnessSouth Burlington, earlsbikes.com
North Star Sports
Burlington, northstarsportsvt.com
Old Spokes Home
Burlington, oldspokeshome.com
Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com
Skirack
Burlington, skirack.com
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Beauty & Body Gifts
Gifts for self-care
City Market, Onion River Co-op
Burlington, citymarket.coop
Lunaroma Aromatic Apothecary
Burlington, lunaroma.com
Mirror Mirror
Burlington, Stowe; mirrormirrorvt.com
Pure Energy Apothecary
Williston, pureenergybody.com
Ursa Major
Waterbury, ursamajorvt.com
Gifts for people who are, like, super chill
Bern Gallery
Burlington, berngallery.com
Garcia's Tobacco Shop
Burlington, garciastobaccoshop.com
Green State Gardener
Burlington, greenstategardener.com
Monarch & the Milkweed
Burlington, monarchandthemilkweed.com
Pepper Lee CBD
Burlington, pepperleecbd.com
Upstate Elevator Supply Co.
Burlington, upstateelevator.com
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Home & Garden Gifts
Gifts for the home
Barge Canal Market
Burlington, bargecanalmarketvt.com
Capital Kitchen
Montpelier, capitalkitchenvt.com
Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com
Gardener's Supply Company
Burlington; Lebanon, N.H.; Williston; gardeners.com
Homeport
Burlington, homeportonline.com
Kiss the Cook
Burlington, kissthecook.net
Gifts for gardeners
Claussen's Florist, Greenhouse & Perennial Farm
Colchester, claussens.com
Gardener's Supply Company
Burlington; Lebanon, N.H.; Williston; gardeners.com
Guy's Farm and Yard
Montpelier, Morrisville, St. Albans, Williston; guysfarmandyard.com
Red Wagon Plants
Hinesburg, redwagonplants.com
Sam Mazza's Farm Market
Colchester, sammazzafarms.com
Gifts for antique lovers
Anjou & the Little Pear
Burlington, anjouvt.com
Barge Canal Market
Burlington, bargecanalmarketvt.com
Five Corners Antiques
Essex Junction, 5cornersantiques.com
ReSOURCE
Barre, Burlington, Hyde Park, Williston; resourcevt.org
Vintage Inspired Lifestyle Marketplace
Burlington, vintageinspired.net
Gifts for animal lovers
Guy's Farm and Yard
Montpelier, Morrisville, St. Albans, Williston; guysfarmandyard.com
Houndstooth
Burlington, houndstoothvt.com
The Pet Advantage
South Burlington, thepetadvantage.com
Pet Food Warehouse
Shelburne, South Burlington; pfwvt.com
The Quirky Pet
Montpelier, thequirkypet.com
Gifts for art collectors
Artisans Hand Craft Gallery
Montpelier, artisanshand.com
Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com
Frog Hollow Vermont Craft Gallery
Burlington, froghollow.org
Thirty-odd
Burlington, thirtyodd.com
Vermont Gift Barn
South Burlington, vermontgiftbarn.com
Related 2021 Vermont Holiday Gift Guide
2021 Vermont Holiday Gift Guide
Our annual Gift Guide brims with ideas both heartfelt and whimsical, from do-gooder gifts that support worthy causes to selections intended simply to make someone smile. In a time of supply chain shortages, these gifts have been vetted and should be in stock. And all have a touch of the Green Mountain State, whether they're handcrafted by local makers or purchased from Vermont retailers. Shopping local is a gift that keeps on giving, strengthening our economy and community. Shop online or do curbside pickup if you need to, but deposit your dollars directly into our downtowns, not into Jeff Bezos' pockets.
Holiday Gift Guide
Related The Register: A Vermont Guide to Shopping Locally Online
The Register: A Vermont Guide to Shopping Locally Online
Vermont merchants have faced mandatory store closures and other challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, but many are still open for business and need your support. That's why Seven Days created the Register, a guide to shopping locally online. Looking to buy something? Take a break from the big guys and check out the Register first.
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