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14 LGBTQ+ organisations to support

To celebrate the UK's LGBT History Month we've pulled together this guide of LGBTQ+ organisations you can support and buy from.

Economic reasoning is now informing an emerging argument for LGBT inclusion. Unequal treatment of LGBT people can actually cause economic harm, leading to lower economic output for individuals, businesses and even countries. Inclusive policies have been proven to boost a country’s GDP.

We've pulled together a guide of 14 LGBTQ+ owned businesses and organisations based in Edinburgh and the UK.

Keep scrolling to find out more.

Edinburgh based

1. Bee Illustrates

Edinburgh College of Art graduate Bee is a queer illustrator and creative currently based in London. Bee uses their platform to share distinctive, quirky illustrations paired with short essays to education, empower and inform on a range of important topics.

Visit shop

2. Blunt Knife

A social enterprise that supports and promotes creative women and non-binary people. Online and Thistle Street, Edinburgh. Their goals are to nurture and empower women and non-binary people, amplify marginalised voices and to inform and create dialogues around intersectional feminist ideas.

Visit shop

41 Thistle St, Edinburgh EH2 1DY

3. Kafe Kweer

A café and bakery in Bruntsfield, co-owned by Oskar and Zak, two local artists who came up with the idea of creating a sober space where LGBTQ+ people would be able to enjoy a nice cup of coffee while enjoying pieces and exhibitions from other creatives.

See their Instagram

5 St Peter’s Buildings, Edinburgh, EH3 9PG

4. G*ndershit

A queer and feminist collective based in Edinburgh with the goal to elevate the voices of local queer creatives through their zines.

Visit shop

5. Poof candles

Handmade eco vegan soy candles, proudly queer and quirky. 10% of profits go to LGBT charities.

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6. Lighthouse Bookshop

Queer owned and women-led independent community shop. A space for queer, feminist and racial activism. Named Scotland’s Best Independent Bookshop in 2020.

Visit shop

43-45 W Nicolson St, Newington, Edinburgh EH8 9DB

7. Pie in the Sky

Original owners Maggie and Thom rented out stalls to an eclectic mix of other small businesses selling myriad of products including clothing, jewellery, increase and records. Pie in the Sky can be found on Cockburn Street.

Visit shop

47 Cockburn St, Edinburgh EH1 1BS

8. Entertainment

Entrepreneurs in the city have created a diverse scene of independent shows and experiences where you can get to be part of the queer community here in Edinburgh. Artists like Mystika Glamoor and Alice Rabbit are two of the most celebrated names in Scotland, and they have both created established shows that run every week at The Street and CC Blooms, respectively.

Elsewhere in the UK

9. Category is books

An independent LGBTQIA+ bookshop in the Southside of Glasgow. They hope the bookshop is a space to learn about, be inspired by and share in their love of queer books, history, art, activism, writing and storytelling.

Visit shop

34 Allison St, Glasgow G42 8NN

10. Femme fort

A small business based in Brighton to create a sustainable, ethical and kind fashion option.

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11. S3x theory with Demi

A queer sex education based Instagram page dedicated to informing, debating and educating on all things gender, sexuality and sex run by Demi, a RSHE educator.

Visit page

12. Wild Water Art Store

Linoprints of bookshops, nature and queer joy.

Visit Etsy shop

13. Riots to rainbows

Riots To Rainbows make LGBTQ-themed apparel as worn by H from Steps and Lucy Spraggan!

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14. Gay’s the word bookshop

The UK’s oldest LGBT bookshop and a touchstone for the broader LGBT community. The bookshop was set up in January 1979 by a group of gay socialists as a community space where all profits were funnelled back into the business.

Visit shop

66 Marchmont St, London WC1N 1AB

Edinburgh Innovations

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