Every time Pride Month rolls around, it seems as if every other brand decides to drop some sort of rainbow-themed collection in an attempt to seem relevant. If you’re looking to use your purchasing power to support the queer community all 365 days, consider giving your business to one of these 13 LGBTQ-owned fashion labels, which are making and selling everything from jewelry and underwear to suits and T-shirts.
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13 Queer-Owned Fashion Brands to Support All Year Round
1. Jannike Sommar
Stockholm-born Jannike Sommar (she/they) is a queer fashion designer whose aim has been "to create her own queer universe in fashion, outside of the heteronormative approach." They do so with bold pieces that don't take themselves too seriously, whether that's a bubblegum pink, lip-emblazoned turtleneck or a graphic sweatsuit featuring the abstract silhouettes of two figures kissing.
2. Christopher John Rogers
One of the buzziest names in fashion over the past few years, Christopher John Rogers has been delivering old-school glamour to red carpets and closets, with color, drama, joy and all the emotions that getting dressed should bring. It's no wonder celebs like Viola Davis, Anne Hathaway and Gabrielle Union are constantly rocking staples from his collections.
3. Brandon Blackwood
Back in 2020, then-29-year-old Blackwood launched his wildly popular “End Systematic Racism” tote bag that not only gave a portion of proceeds to Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights (a pro bono legal assistance program) but also sold out within hours. Since, celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Doja Cat and Jessica Alba have all been spotted with his bright, often structured bags. While the tote that started it all has been discontinued, there are plenty of statement-making options still available.
4. Dapper Boi
This gender-neutral and size-inclusive apparel line was founded in 2015 by married couple Vicky and Charisse Pasche after Vicky was tired of shopping in the men’s section for clothes that just didn’t fit her body’s shape. With a mission of "[Ensuring] everyone has access to affordable, stylish clothes that fit both their body, and more importantly, their personality," Dapper Boi's site is jam-packed with quality, gender-neutral basics perfect for everyday wear.
5. Phlemuns
Founded by James Flemons in 2013, Phlemuns is a Black- and queer-owned fashion label based in Los Angeles. Standout pieces like a matching raw-edge denim jacket and jeans help the unisex brand achieve its mission of being an exciting brand known for its slow-fashion approach, meticulously crafting each collection with intentional design and accessibility in mind.
6. Stuzo Clothing
This line was started in 2010 by Stoney Michelli and Uzo Ejikeme with the mission to create a space in the fashion world where all are welcome. Every design is unisex or gender free, as the brand's site says, “because clothes don’t have any organs last time we checked.” Stuzo’s cool, casual pieces have been worn by so-cool-it-hurts celebs like Ruby Rose, Tiffany Haddish and Lena Waithe.
7. Automic Gold
This queer, trans-owned jewelry line was started in 2017 Al Sandimirova (they/them). The brand's pieces are intended for all genders, not because the styles are quote-unquote unisex, but because, according to its website, "Automic Gold jewelry was specifically designed to mix and warp the feminine, masculine, in between and outside to make fine jewelry that is beyond gender.” Each solid gold earring, necklace, bracelet and ring is simple and delicate—ideal for wearing every single day.
8. Wildfang
The queer-run, female-founded business is aiming to alter the way we think about menswear versus womenswear. Known for its signature Wild Feminist collection, Wildfang is also committed to charity and sustainability: Since launching in 2012, the brand has donated more than $650k causes like the ACLU, Planned Parenthood and RAICES and in 2022 it's committed to completing a rigorous cross functional review to determine its greenhouse gas emissions, taking action to offset them and implementing a reduction action plan to reduce them over the next 12 to 24 months.
9. Kirrin Finch
This conscientious clothing company, founded by Brooklyn-based couple Laura Moffat and Kelly Sanders Moffat, creates menswear-inspired apparel designed to fit a range of female and non-binary bodies. As women who gravitated toward button-up shirts and bow ties, Laura and Kelly created Kirrin Finch after being frustrated that the clothes they wanted to wear—from the men’s section—didn’t fit their frames. In addition to suiting, the line also includes more casual goods like T-shirts, short-sleeve button-downs and hats.
10. Tomboyx
Launched as a Kickstarter campaign almost a decade ago by wives Fran Dunaway and Naomi Gonzalez, TomboyX is a line of undergarments and swimwear, including ultra-comfortable underwear in six different styles and tons of colors and patterns (from avocados and unicorns to popsicles). Dunaway told Money, “It’s about finding clothing that represents how you feel and how you want to present. That societal construct you see when you walk into a store, [where] its ‘boy and girl’ and ‘men and women’… there are a lot of people who ride in that in-between.”
11. Humankind Swim
The founder of this genderless swimwear line, Haily Marzullo, told Nylon, “The LGBTQ community is overlooked in swimwear. You’re either categorized as wearing a men’s trunk or a women’s bikini, and there’s not an in-between.” So Marzullo set out to create a line of the kinds of suits she actually wanted to wear: sports bra-like tops with traditionally male swim trunks. They’re simple and sporty and—true to Humankind’s mission—don’t exclude anyone.
12. Chromat
Founded by Becca McCharen-Tran in 2010, Chromat is an inclusive and sustainable line of swimwear and athleisure. While lots of brands are slowly figuring out how to design for bodies of all shapes and sizes, Chromat has made that its mission since day one. McCharen-Tran told them., “The inclusivity you see on the Chromat runways isn’t about filling a quota and it’s not part of a marketing push. The people in our shows are our real friends and collaborators. I want to celebrate these inspirational women, femmes, and nonbinary babes using the platform we have.”
13. Telfar
A simple but chic shopping tote took Telfar Clemens's namesake brand from being a cult-favorite of Brooklyn artisans to becoming a national phenomenon. Not to mention, the eponymous designer created the most affordable “It” bag we’ve seen in ages; prices for his “Bushwick Birkin” range from $150 to $257. That is, if you can snatch one up right when a new drop is released (they typically sell out in seconds).