Attendee gifts are a great opportunity to extend the impact of your event. If well chosen, your gifts could make their way into your guests’ daily lives, reminding them of your event for years to come. In honour of Black History Month, here are just some of the BIPOC artisans and designers that are making goods in Montréal that will keep on giving.
MAS Montréal
MAS Montréal is a clothing brand dedicated to inclusivity for all body types. Their streamlined basics are easy-wear muted colours and flattering shapes. Of particular interest for event merch are the tees, made of silky soft bamboo. And MAS wares are feel-food in more ways than one: they’re locally made mostly using deadstock, to give purpose to fabric that would otherwise go to waste.
Atelier Koko & Karité
This widely distributed botanicals-based cosmetics brand skips all the harmful sulphates, parabens and silicones to provide nature’s best kind of skincare. Koko & Karité hair products are designed with tight-knit curly hair in mind, but suit all types, and the cute factor of the packaging is sure to make a splash.
Apprenti Ôr’ganik
Slow-made by hand with natural and organic ingredients, Apprenti Ôr’ganik’s self- and home-care products use wholesome active ingredients full of therapeutic benefits, sans fillers. Fans love their hand soaps, body creams and room sprays for the tasteful scents like blood orange and geranium, cedar or Canadian pine.
Atelier New Régime
Atelier New Regime is a beloved local streetwear brand that offers multiple attractive options for attendees and can also provide options for personalization. They make tees, sweatsuits and accessories like tuques (always a useful item in wintertime Montréal!) that are both good looking and top quality.
BAIN
The unisex nylon and leather bags designed by BAIN are carefully crafted and available in limited quantities, making them particularly memorable gifts as much for male as female delegates. These tasteful, minimalist bags were designed for maximum adaptability, often with different strap options.
Gazelles
This beautiful womenswear brand is less of a fit for attendee gifts as it is for event wear. The designs aim at outfitting professional women in textiles that are sensuous, textured and flowing yet empowering. Gazelles pieces are elegant, timeless and feminine.
Luxcey
Subtly scented enough for any gender, Luxcey skin-care products offer a complete sensory experience, hitting aromatherapy as well as bodily wellness. The smoothing regenerative hydro-serum is just the restorative hit your guests’ skin will crave after travel.
Lunar Loungewear
The luxe satin sleepwear sets by Lunar Loungewear would be taking the delegate gift to a next level (imagine finding a pair of pyjamas in your hotel room upon arrival!) but for an intermediary option, the sleep masks are fantastic. There are also options to personalize their products with name embroideries.
Quartier Is Home
Having done collabs with the likes of Roots, Quartier is Home is a brand of collectible varsity jackets (if you really want to go all out), as well as more affordable accessories like baseball caps, totes bags and pins. The goods are produced by a collective of creators who named their brand after the French word for neighbourhood: quartier.
Ledah
Loungewear for the whole family is Ledah’s specialty. After having her family, creator Lola Atta decided comfort and ease of movement for all-important for both tots and parents. The perfect place to get delegates matching sweat sets of tops and bottom made with heart in Montréal.
St. Lyon Apparel
St. Lyon is a made-in-Montréal activewear brand that offers a very giftable range of colours and extends beyond workout gear into loungewear, accessories and even exercise bands. For every order, they make a contribution to fund the Jarí Para Forest Project in the Amazon Rainforest to neutralize the environmental impact of shipping.
Teyla
Get your attendees moving by gifting them made-in-Montréal high-performance activewear by Teyla, a brand founded by two West African Montrealers. The colourful patterned details on their women’s bike shorts, long-sleeve tops, leggings or tanks each tell a story — and are sure to give any day a bright start.
Willy Cuti
A true fine craftmaster, Willy Cuti is a maker of exceptional bespoke footwear for men. For a gift to remember you could offer your VIPs their own pair from the available selection, of even more luxurious, a tailor-made and hand-coloured pair to be sent on upon completion. On a more accessible level there are also expert waxing and restoration services on offer.
Goodee
Goodee is a globally sourced and thoughtfully curated marketplace that aims to do good through commerce. Beautiful design is the common denominator between the accessories, home décor and apparel on the site. All are also ethically made and transparently sourced according to strict sustainability measures.
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