THE WORKING GAL
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I want to make a case for where your money goes in March that isn't preachy, because I find the preachy version of this conversation exhausting.
You already know that women-owned businesses are underfunded relative to their male-founded counterparts. You know the statistics, you've read the op-eds, and you don't need another article treating you like you've never considered the ethics of consumer spending. What you might actually want is a list of women-owned brands that are genuinely good and worth buying regardless of the month or the cause they happen to represent.
That's what this is. The Women's History Month context is real and relevant, but the brands on this list earned their place here because I'd recommend them in July too.
For Your Desk and the Place You Actually Work
Appointed
Founded by Janel Laban and Monica Bhargava. If you've been meaning to upgrade your workspace and keep buying other things instead, Appointed is where to start. The desk pads and notebooks are the kind of quality that makes sitting down to work feel like a choice rather than an obligation.
Ban.do
Founded by Jen Gotch. The planners have a sense of humour without being annoying about it, the layouts are actually functional, and there is no mandatory gratitude section to skip every morning. The "Get It Together" planner does exactly what the name suggests.
Poppin
Co-founded with women in senior leadership. The brand that solved the problem of office supplies looking like they were ordered by someone who has never cared about anything. The desk accessories are well-priced, well-designed, and the kind of thing you'll actually want to keep on your desk rather than hide in a drawer.
For Your Bathroom Shelf
Tower 28
Founded by Amy Liu, who built the brand specifically for sensitive skin after years of struggling to find products that didn't cause reactions. The SOS Daily Rescue Facial Spray has the kind of following that only happens when something actually works, and the ShineOn Lip Jelly is the one product I'd tell a friend about unprompted. Both are on Amazon.
Saie Beauty
Founded by Laney Crowell. The Slip Tint SPF 35 is the product that converts women who have decided they don't wear foundation, because it doesn't feel like foundation. It's the kind of thing where you put it on and then forget you're wearing anything, which is exactly what it's supposed to do.
For Your Nightstand This Month
These three books are worth buying regardless of the time of year, but they land with particular weight in March when the conversation about what women have built and what it costs them is already in the air.
"Quit" by Annie Duke
Annie Duke is a former professional poker player and a decision scientist, and this book makes the evidence-based case for knowing when walking away from something is the smartest move available to you. It's sharp, data-informed, and has zero sentimentality about sunk costs. If you've been holding onto a goal, a job, a project, or a relationship longer than the evidence supports, this is the book that gives you the framework to think about it clearly.
"Know My Name" by Chanel Miller
Most summaries of this book get it wrong by framing it primarily as a survivor's account. It's that, but it's also a very clear-eyed examination of how institutions protect themselves at the expense of the people inside them. It's one of the better-written books of the last decade and it has a point of view that extends well beyond its own story.
"Crying in H Mart" by Michelle Zauner
Slightly different register from the other two. This is a memoir about grief, identity, and what it means to belong to more than one culture at once. It has nothing to do with career or professional life, and that's precisely why it belongs on this list. Reading something that has nothing to do with your work, written by a woman who built something remarkable out of raw personal experience, is its own kind of replenishment.
The Brands Worth Bookmarking Even If You Don't Buy This Month
Cuyana, founded by Karla Gallardo and Shilpa Shah, delivers on the "fewer, better things" promise in a way that most brands using that language don't. The cashmere, the leather bags, the jersey basics — all of it holds up. Worth knowing about before you buy something cheaper that you'll replace in a year.
Brightland, founded by Aishwarya Iyer, makes olive oil and vinegar that are genuinely worth buying as pantry investments rather than afterthoughts. The Alive olive oil is the one to start with.
Italic offers manufacturer-direct pricing on quality goods across cashmere, leather, and home categories. The model is unusual, and the value is real. Worth a look before your next equivalent purchase elsewhere.
One Thing Worth Doing Beyond This List
Before your next purchase in any category, spend 60 seconds checking whether a women-owned alternative exists. Not every category has one. Enough to do that the habit adds up over a year into something more meaningful than a single March shopping session.
The brands on this list are here because they're good. The fact that they're women-owned makes the money go somewhere worth going. Both things can be true at the same time, and neither one requires the other to be a valid reason to buy.
