Gifting with a purpose: Filipino brands doing more than just selling

These small businesses give back to the communities they serve

AT A GLANCE

• The holiday season emphasizes the importance of thoughtful gifting that makes recipients feel special and supports meaningful causes.
• Various organizations like Anthill, LoveHopeFaith Group, Kâtha Pilipinas, Cara Welfare, and Jacinto and Lirio offer unique gifts that contribute to sustainability, cancer support, local artistry, animal welfare, and environmental conservation.

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Every holiday season, we remember that the most important thing about gifts is making our recipients feel seen and special. There’s nothing quite like watching joy bloom on someone’s face as you hand them something they’ve always wanted or that makes their life easier. There’s also nothing quite like using your gift to support others along the way. What if your gift could help the sick, or stop rivers from being clogged? What if your gift could give back to a community in need?

Apparel and fabric from Anthill

Standing for “Alternative Nest and Trading/Training Hub for Indigenous or Ingenious Little Livelihood seekers”, true to their name, they help our indigenous groups have a space and name in the market. This is the place if you’re looking to gift stylish woven apparel, accessories, home decor, or even whole fabric by the meter, along with custom orders and alterations. Moreover, Anthill has sustainable zero-waste programs: bringing life back into scrap fabric via their reweave project, accepting unwanted fabric in their circulatory hub, and offering lifetime repairs and consults. So in a world of fast fashion, rest assured any gift you buy from them will reduce fabric waste and last long-term.

Get them here:

https://anthillmarkets.com/
https://anthillfabrics.com/

Lifesaver Watches by LoveHopeFaith Group

For over a decade, LoveHopeFaith Group has been helping people fight the Big C— cancer— with charities and donations. Their Lifesaver watches are not only affordable, classic, and stylish, but 50% of their proceeds go to their sponsored cancer patients.

Get them here:

https://lovehopefaithgroup.com

Creative works from Kâtha Pilipinas

As cheesy as it sounds, art brings us together. And we wouldn’t have art without the people behind it who trained their craft to show their hearts. Kâtha is one such place that supports local artists. If you’re looking for everything about art, from illustration to artisanal works and fashion, you can find it at Kâtha, and it goes beyond putting their work on the market: Kâtha also does training, workshops, advocacy campaigns, and brings their artists’ voices to policy reworks.

Visit their instagram page here.

Cara Welfare is an animal welfare organization that cares for stray cats and dogs. While we don’t recommend gifting pets, we definitely recommend sponsoring care for a furry friend or two in the giftee’s name. And hey, in the future, your giftee can foster on their own terms, or adopt them into a fur-ever home.

Visit their website here.

Leatherworks from Jacinto and Lirio

The water hyacinth is a non-endangered aquatic plant notable for its rapid reproduction… and the invasive effects of its proliferation on the ecosystem and living communities. To help keep its population in check, Jacinto and Lirio source their plant-based leather from the water hyacinth and turn it into a variety of leatherworks, like accessories, bags, and stationery. They also provide custom orders.

A shameless plug. There’s no shame in supporting the press, so why not gift a subscription to independent investigative journalism? It also comes with audio articles, exclusive articles, and, depending on your plan, discounts on other Rappler media and exclusive events. You can also gift one-time donations in your giftee’s name.

https://www.rappler.com/plus/

https://support.rappler.com

Whichever gift you choose from this list, you’ll know it’s a gift that gives back in the Filipino spirit. – Rappler.com

This piece was written by Rappler intern Czarina Yasmin Sia. Czarina is an earnest creator whose works focuses on the little things and helping others. She enjoys engaging with unconventional ways to tells stories and is eager to write about life’s overlooked aspects. A graduating Communication Arts student from De La Salle University Manila, she aims to inspire people to find wonder.