November 23, 2021

8THIRTYFOUR’s Shop Small Gift Guide

Share the goods.

We’d like to encourage you to shop small this year and support the local businesses making our communities great. We compiled our recs and added links to purchase, cause we know how lazy people are. We wouldn’t want you to have to work for it.

That Gay Guy Candle Co.

If you love snark and roasting racists and bigots, we highly encourage you to support That Gay Guy Candle Co. They are committed to promoting visibility and inclusivity for the LGBTQ+ community, and celebrating diversity and condemning bigotry and intolerance. Oh, and they are Michigan based.

Keep in mind they are a small company, so get your orders placed before December 4th to ensure it arrives in time for the holidays.

Pursuit Gift Shop

We are BIG fans of writing and sending notes. Imagine getting a note from your bestie amidst your energy and house bills. Spread cheer this holiday season through sarcastic cards, wall art, kid’s onesies or stationery sets. Based out of Ada, Pursuit is run by Abbey and she is often out delivering your cards or handpicking the greeting card bundles you ordered. We love, love, love her. It also helps that she is very familiar with our love of swear words.

We highly encourage you to stop into the shop, cause it’s amazing. But you can also order online (which we have done a lot). Here are our go-to’s.

Oh, they also host a ton of workshops on wreath making, gift wrapping, embroidery and more. Check them out here.

[Michigan Awesome]

If you live in or are from Michigan and you don’t own at least one piece of apparel with “the mitt” on it, are you really even from Michigan? What we love most about this company is that when they started in 2009 it was to show their love for this great state we all call home. While many were running out of the state because of our poor economic conditions, they decided to start a company that is still providing all the apparel, drinkware, and gift baskets you could ever need. Do some of your holiday shopping with them today by visiting them here.

Local Restaurants

Giving the gift of an experience is always a great way to support local businesses! For a night of fun and games, we suggest a gift card to the Rezervoir Lounge in Creston’s business district. They have pool, darts, table tennis and other games! Their great food is fantastic and the ambiance over delicious drinks creates the perfect night out!

Another restaurant we love in the neighborhood is Graydon’s Crossing! Whether you are looking to catch a football game on a Saturday morning (yes, we mean the football where there are red cards and only kicking the ball), or just grab a great meal, Graydon’s is the place. Their good vibes, old-school pub feel and great staff will have you coming back for more. Plus in the summer they have THE best patio. One of Grand Rapids’ hidden gems in our opinion.

The biggest takeaway from this blog? Support the businesses that make our communities so damn special. Grab a coffee from your neighborhood cafe, and swing by a local shop and pick out something unique or buy online cause Amazon isn’t the only place you can make purchases on the Worldwide Web.

Recent Musings

People standing around talking to each other upstairs.

Building What We Needed for Women-Owned Businesses

The Current State of PR

Something on Your Mind?

A little rain didn’t slow @bodespeaks down.

Kim was in Washington, D.C., this past week for #AUSA2026 - three days where Army leaders, industry partners, and the defense community come together for innovation, insight, and connection.

We can’t wait to hear some of her takeaways. Stay tuned for more soon.

@ausaorg #DefenseIndustry #Leadership #AUSA

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A little rain didn’t slow @bodespeaks down.

Kim was in Washington, D.C., this past week for #AUSA2026 - three days where Army leaders, industry partners, and the defense community come together for innovation, insight, and connection.

We can’t wait to hear some of her takeaways. Stay tuned for more soon.

@ausaorg #DefenseIndustry #Leadership #AUSA

Who made all these rules anyway?

Don’t wear color. Don’t share your ideas. Don’t put yourself out there. Don’t talk about your family.

We’re told to follow them, but @bodespeaks says question every single one. Then uncover your big hairy audacious goal, throw out the rulebook, and build a personal brand that actually works for you.

Thank you to Aggie and Cristy for having Kim on the @badass_women_in_business Podcast and, well... for being total badasses.

Listen to the full episode in bio.

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We had some fun in the office this week and asked some of the 8THIRTYFOUR team what “square up” means.

Surprisingly, the Gen Z of the group got it, but one of our Gen X’s did not (not saying any names…)

How do you “square up”?

#trending #fyp #squareup #agencylife

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We had some fun in the office this week and asked some of the 8THIRTYFOUR team what “square up” means.

Surprisingly, the Gen Z of the group got it, but one of our Gen X’s did not (not saying any names…)

How do you “square up”?

#trending #fyp #squareup #agencylife

The 834 Learning Hub is where we throw fun shindigs, where cool people come to work, where Big Deal Energy gathers, and where we push you to get uncomfortable.

It’s not your typical event or coworking space - and we like it that way. The lighting, colors, wallpaper, layout, and yes, the dogs, are all very intentional.

If you need a spot to host your offsite team training, leadership quarterly, photo shoot (dogs can be included), or you just need a space to network or cowork - reach out.

We got the goods:
- A sweet sound system
- State-of-the-art digital whiteboard
- A really big T.V. Like it’s big.
- Your own private entrance
- Free parking
- A dog (or two) if you ask nicely

Drop us a line at hello@8thirtyfour.com or click the link in bio to rent the Hub today.

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The 834 Learning Hub is where we throw fun shindigs, where cool people come to work, where Big Deal Energy gathers, and where we push you to get uncomfortable.

It’s not your typical event or coworking space - and we like it that way. The lighting, colors, wallpaper, layout, and yes, the dogs, are all very intentional.

If you need a spot to host your offsite team training, leadership quarterly, photo shoot (dogs can be included), or you just need a space to network or cowork - reach out.

We got the goods:
- A sweet sound system
- State-of-the-art digital whiteboard
- A really big T.V. Like it’s big.
- Your own private entrance
- Free parking
- A dog (or two) if you ask nicely

Drop us a line at hello@8thirtyfour.com or click the link in bio to rent the Hub today.

We love Dr. Karen May’s mission.

What if we taught our daughters AND our sons about women’s health, hormones, and pregnancy? Not as a whispered “talk” or a one-time awkward conversation. Just normal dinner-table stuff.

The girls deserve to know what’s coming (perimenopause shouldn’t be a surprise party nobody wanted). And the boys? They’ll be partners, dads, coworkers, and bosses to women going through all of it.

Thank you, Dr. May, for sharing your best practices to keep the women’s health conversation going at our Uncomfortable Conversations | The Pause event.

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We love Dr. Karen May’s mission.

What if we taught our daughters AND our sons about women’s health, hormones, and pregnancy? Not as a whispered “talk” or a one-time awkward conversation. Just normal dinner-table stuff.

The girls deserve to know what’s coming (perimenopause shouldn’t be a surprise party nobody wanted). And the boys? They’ll be partners, dads, coworkers, and bosses to women going through all of it.

Thank you, Dr. May, for sharing your best practices to keep the women’s health conversation going at our Uncomfortable Conversations | The Pause event.

Showing up to an interview with an iced coffee? Not the move… unless it’s for @bodespeaks

#icedcoffee #agency #PR #trending #grandrapids

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