The 'Nice' List: Reader Recommendations for Shopping Local in 2022 | Holiday Gift Guide | Seven Days | Vermont's Independent Voice

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The 'Nice' List: Reader Recommendations for Shopping Local in 2022

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Published November 22, 2022 at 11:00 a.m.


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Making a list and checking it twice? Don’t be naughty — be nice! Your merry marching orders this holiday season are to resist the big-box stores and shop local. Small, indie makers and retailers play an outsize role in Vermont’s culture. They keep our downtowns in business and our community ties strong. As part of our annual Gift Local Giveaway, we asked readers to get vocal about gifting local and share their favorite Green Mountain State storefronts. Their top answers made it into the Nice List — our community-curated shopping directory.

Seeking a special bottle for the badass bartender in your life? Some sparkly bling for the object of your affection? A new page-turner for your bookworm big sis? You can find all that and more at the rad retailers rounded up by Seven Days readers.

More than 1,100 Vermonters cast 8,602 votes for the stores they love to support. A whopping 63.4 percent pledged to purchase three or more gifts locally this season, while 25.9 percent vowed to buy all of their gifts close to ho-ho-home. That’s the spirit!



The winner of our giveaway is Haley Pero of Barre, who scored $500 in shop-local bucks to two retailers of her choice courtesy of New England Federal Credit Union. Ready to tackle some home improvement projects, she selected Barge Canal Market, an antique and vintage home goods store in Burlington, and rk MILES, a building materials supplier with eight Vermont outlets.

Haley Pero - COURTESY
  • Courtesy
  • Haley Pero
“I shop local not only because it keeps dollars and jobs in our communities, but because it’s usually a better choice for the planet, too,” Pero said. “I’d much rather spend money at local stores than give it to corporate giants like Amazon — and Vermont’s small businesses have amazing products! I love that, from food to gifts and everything in between, I can shop in my own community.”

We couldn’t have said it better.


Food & Drink Gifts

... for splendid sipping

Beverage Warehouse
Winooski, beveragewarehousevt.com

Caledonia Spirits
Montpelier, caledoniaspirits.com

Cheese & Wine Traders
South Burlington, cheeseandwinetraders.com

Dedalus
Burlington, Stowe, dedaluswine.com

Salt & Bubbles Wine Bar and Market
Essex, saltandbubbleswine.com

... for sweetie pies

Klinger's Bread Company
South Burlington, klingersbread.com

Lake Champlain Chocolates
Burlington, Waterbury Center, lakechamplainchocolates.com

Madeleine's Bakery
Milton, madeleinesbakery.com

Mirabelles Bakery
South Burlington, mirabellesbakery.com

Poorhouse Pies
Underhill, poorhousepies.com

... for adventurous eaters

Cheese & Wine Traders
South Burlington, cheeseandwinetraders.com

City Market/Onion River Co-op
Burlington, citymarket.coop

Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com

Dakin Farm
Ferrisburgh, South Burlington, dakinfarm.com

Dedalus
Burlington, Stowe, dedaluswine.com

... for the wannabe chef

As the Crow Flies
St. Albans City, Facebook

Capital Kitchen
Montpelier, capitalkitchenvt.com

Homeport
Burlington, homeportonline.com

Kiss the Cook
Burlington, kissthecook.net

Stowe Living
Stowe, stoweliving.net

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Outdoors & Recreation 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

... for outdoor fans

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

... for wheely good people

Old Spokes Home
Burlington, oldspokeshome.com

Skirack
Burlington, skirack.com

Earl's Cyclery & Fitness
South Burlington, earlsbikes.com

Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com

North Star Sports
Burlington, northstarsportsvt.com

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Clothing, Shoes & Accessories Gifts

... for fashionable folks

Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com

ECCO Clothes
Burlington, eccoclothesboutique.com

Harbour Thread
Burlington, harbourthread.com

Jess Boutique
Burlington, jessboutique.com

SidePony Boutique
Hinesburg, sideponyboutique.com

... for thrifters

Battery Street Jeans
Burlington, Facebook

Dirt Chic
Burlington, dirtchicvt.com

The Getup Vintage
Montpelier, Facebook

Old Gold
Burlington, Facebook

The Vault Collective
Burlington, thevaultcollective.com

... for someone who is a real gem

Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com

Jennifer Kahn Jewelry
Burlington, jenniferkahnjewelry.com

Perrywinkle's
Burlington; Plattsburgh, N.Y., perrywinkles.com

Tradewinds
Burlington, tradewindsvt.com

Zinnia
Burlington, zinniastores.com

... for growing and stylish kids

Boho Baby
Williston, bohobabyvt.com

Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com

Once Upon a Child
Williston, onceuponachild.com

minikin
Montpelier, minikin.com

Zutano Outlet Store
Montpelier, zutano.com

... for putting your best foot forward

Danform Shoes
Burlington, Colchester, Shelburne, St. Albans, danformshoesvt.com

Dear Lucy
Burlington, dearlucy.com

Harbour Thread
Burlington, harbourthread.com

Lenny's Shoe & Apparel
Barre; Plattsburgh, N.Y.; St. Albans; Williston, lennyshoe.com

Outdoor Gear Exchange
Burlington, gearx.com

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Arts & Entertainment Gifts

... for vinyl lovers

Autumn Records
Winooski, autumnrecordsvt.com

Buch Spieler Records
Montpelier, buchspielerrecords.com

Burlington Records
Burlington, burlingtonrecords.com

Pure Pop
Burlington, purepoprecords.com

Speaking Volumes
Burlington, speakingvolumesvt.com

... for keeping little ones occupied

Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com

Jamie Two Coats' Toy Shop
Shelburne, Facebook

Kidstructive Fun
South Burlington, kidstructivefuntoys.com

Turner Toys
Williston, turnertoys.com

Woodbury Mountain Toys
Montpelier, woodburymountaintoys.com

... for getting crafty

The Drawing Board
Montpelier, drawingboardvt.com

Must Love Yarn
Shelburne, mustloveyarn.com

Notion Fabric & Craft
Montpelier, notionvt.com

Vermont Art Supply
Burlington, vermontartsupply.com

... for the musically inclined

Ellis Music
Royalton, ellismusic.com

GuitarSam
Montpelier, guitarsam.com

Randolin Music
Shelburne, randolin.com

Vermont Violins
South Burlington, vermontviolins.com

... for bookworms

Bear Pond Books
Montpelier, bearpondbooks.com

Bear Pond Books
Stowe, stowebooks.com

Crow Bookshop
Burlington, crowbooks.com

The Flying Pig Bookstore
Shelburne, flyingpigbooks.com

Phoenix Books
Burlington, Essex, Rutland, phoenixbooks.biz

... for geeking out

Computers for Change
Burlington, computersforchange.com

LeZot Camera
Burlington, lezotcameras.com

Small Dog Electronics
Burlington, smalldog.com

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Home & Garden Gifts

... for the home

Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com

Home & Garden Vermont
Burlington, homeandgardenvermont.com

Homeport
Burlington, homeportonline.com

SLATE
Burlington, Middlebury, slatehome.co

Stowe Living
Stowe, stoweliving.net

... for gardeners

Claussen's Florist, Greenhouse & Perennial Farm
Colchester, claussens.com

Evergreen Gardens of Vermont
Waterbury Center, evergreengardensvermont.com

Gardener's Supply Company
Burlington; Lebanon, N.H.; Williston, gardeners.com

Guy's Farm and Yard
Montpelier, Morrisville, St. Albans, Williston, guysfarmandyard.com

Montpelier Agway
Montpelier, montpelieragway.com

... for antique lovers

Anjou & the Little Pear
Burlington, anjouvt.com

Barge Canal Market
Burlington, bargecanalmarketvt.com

Five Corners Antiques
Essex Junction, 5cornersantiques.com

Habitat ReStore
Milton, Swanton, Williston, vermonthabitat.org/restore

Vintage Inspired Lifestyle Marketplace
Burlington, vintageinspired.net

... for art collectors

ArtHound Gallery
Essex, arthoundgalleryvt.com

Common Deer
Burlington, commondeer.com

Frog Hollow Vermont Craft Gallery
Burlington, froghollow.org

Milton Artists' Guild Art Center & Gallery
Milton, miltonartistsguild.org

Thirty-odd
Burlington, thirtyodd.com

... FUR the whole family

The Dog and Cat
Essex, Stowe, thedogandcatvt.com

Guy's Farm and Yard
Montpelier, Morrisville, St. Albans, Williston, guysfarmandyard.com

The Pet Advantage
South Burlington, thepetadvantage.com

Pet Food Warehouse
Shelburne, South Burlington, pfwvt.com

The Quirky Pet
Montpelier, quirkypet.com

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Beauty & Body Gifts

... for lookin' good

Farm Craft VT
Shelburne, farmcraftvt.com

Flourish Beauty Lab
White River Junction, flourishbeautylab.com

Lunaroma Aromatic Apothecary
Burlington, lunaroma.com

Mirror Mirror
Burlington, Stowe, mirrormirrorvt.com

Splash Naturals
Montpelier, splashnaturals.com

... for self-care

ALKAME CO
Burlington, alkameco.com

Flourish Beauty Lab
White River Junction, flourishbeautylab.com

Lunaroma Aromatic Apothecary
Burlington, lunaroma.com

Mirror Mirror
Burlington, Stowe, mirrormirrorvt.com

Pure Energy Apothecary
Williston, pureenergyvt.com

... that are, like, super chill

AroMed Essentials
Montpelier, aromedessentials.com

Ceres Collaborative
Burlington, ceresvt.com

Green State Dispensary
Burlington, greenstatedispensary.com

Magic Mann
Essex, magicmann.com

Pepper Lee
Burlington, pepperleecbd.com

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Need some specific gift ideas? See what our editors recommend for everyone on your list:

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