Indigenous-owned businesses are integral to their communities, frequently getting involved in community initiatives and creating products with ingredients sourced from the land on which they’re made. B.C. is home to over 200 First Nations, each one with an abundance of knowledge and traditions to learn from. Whether you’re already a regular shopper or looking for new local businesses to support, here are 10 Indigenous-led brands to support in B.C.
1. Heartberry Soda | New Westminster
Soda season might be coming to a close as fall sets on us, but the variety of meticulously crafted beverages from Heartberry Soda never feel out of season. Low in sugar and made with locally sourced ingredients, you can find Heartberry Soda across various retailers in Metro Vancouver, Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast. It’s also the first woman-owned Indigenous soda brand!
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2. Tawnshi Charcuterie | Vancouver
Next time you’re looking to wow at the office potluck, consider turning to Tawnshi for its modern Indigenous charcuterie boards. Sweet or savoury, gluten free or vegan—Tawnshi’s variety of boards focus on Indigenous flavours and seasonal ingredients, and it delivers to Vancouver, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Richmond and Burnaby.
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3. Salish Blanket Co. | Vancouver
If the rain of this past week tells us anything, it’s to invest in some comfy-cozies before the winter months are upon us. Each blanket at this Granville Island store is woven from 100 per cent natural cotton and designed by Musqueam weavers Debra Sparrow and Aleen Sparrow.
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4. Strong Nations | Nanaimo
For the more book-minded folk, Strong Nations is an online store and publishing house based in Nanaimo. It specializes in publishing Indigenous children’s literature, but also sells books of all genres, classroom tools, toys and other gifts.
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5. Salmon n’ Bannock | Vancouver
Salmon n’ Bannock is holding down the Indigenous dining scene in Vancouver, specializing in wild salmon and free-range, organic game meats. Owned by Inez Cook, this community staple strives to be “a gathering place where the focus is on the people and the food,” per its website.
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6. Decolonial Clothing | Vancouver
This Indigenous clothing brand has garnered quite the following for its streetwear designs and poignant, intersectional activism on Instagram (where it has 121K followers). Now is a great time to support the business as well, with its end of summer sale seeing items go up to 25 per cent off.
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7. Sisters Sage | Vancouver
Founded by Lynn-Marie Angus in 2018, this Indigenous-owned brand creates wellness products using methods from the Gitxaala, Nisga’a, and Métis nations. All the handmade soaps, smokeless smudge spray, salves and bath bombs are made from traditional ingredients like sage, cedar and sweetgrass.
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8. Kekuli Cafe | Merritt, Westbank, Kamloops, Fort St. John
Kekuli Cafe is perfect for when you need a quick bite of bannock and warm sip of coffee. Whether you live nearby one of the four franchise locations across B.C. or are simply passing by, it’s almost always worth stopping for something from Kekuli.
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9. Canoe Cultures | Vancouver
This Indigenous-led non-profit organization is dedicated to the art of—you probably guessed it—the canoe. Between the markets, school programs, exhibitions, canoe tours and more, Canoe Cultures offers a wide variety of ways to engage in Indigenous art and ways of knowing.
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10. Talaysay Tours | Vancouver
Talaysay Tours offers Indigenous land-based walking tours, workshops and other outdoor experiences in Vancouver, Squamish, Whistler and the Sunshine Coast. It’s also women owned and operated, with mother-daughter duo Candace and Talaysay Campo at the helm.
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