Queer Business Feature: Dirt Squirrel

As part of our #ChooseYourPride theme this year, we are excited to highlight queer-owned and/or BIPOC businesses and amplify them through our channels. To make it a little extra fun for all of you, this will be accompanied with a contest series so you can win awesome #PridePrizes along the way!

For our first feature, we were excited to virtually sit down with Dirt Squirrel, founded in 2013 by two young homosexuals in university. Wade Hopwo and Daniel Lypchuk, the founders and owners of Dirt Squirrel Co. decided to level up their underwear game and help others along the way, endeavouring to design a line of underwear that is comfortable, form fitting and made from premium fabrics such as bamboo fibre; a fabric that is not only soft, but also known for its eco-friendly, anti-bacterial, sweat absorbent and insulating qualities. (blog post continues below)

What does #ChooseYourPride mean to you?

Simply put, #ChooseYourPride means exactly what it implies to us. Everyone has something to be proud of and it is important to celebrate this unabashedly and confidently. It’s events like Pride where people release any barriers that otherwise prevent them from celebrating their selves, passions and pride. Doing so makes a person shine and feel free – it’s an infectious feeling that permeates all around. This is the feeling that we love and the pride we choose – the magic that surrounds us all, everywhere we are, during a Pride weekend when we’re standing (and dancing) amongst our LGBTQAI2S+ community who are being their authentic, happy and proud selves! 

How does your business care for our community in the pandemic?

During the pandemic we continued to release content that gave visibility to our community. We also worked exclusively with members of our community and other queer owned businesses to create jobs and help assist each other with the financial hardships of the pandemic. The extra time the pandemic created also allowed us to design and produce a line of rainbow emblazoned apparel where partial proceeds are donated to Rainbow Refugee.

What has your small business done to provide safe spaces for the LGBTQAI2S+ community?

We have actively supported queer run and focused events, as well as foundations or community groups that provide safe spaces for our community. This is something we enjoy doing and plan to continue doing so in the future! 

What has the LGBTQAI2S+ community done for you?

They have propelled us to where we are today. Our company was founded, owned and operated by queer people, so our community is who we relied on when gaining momentum and visbility for our brand. It is all thanks to the LGBTQAI2S+ community trying our products, telling others about us or sharing our content that we are where we are today. 

Giveaway:

We are giving away three $25 gift cards to Dirt Squirrel’s online store. Check out our Instagram post to enter the contest. Contest closes June 17, 2021. No purchase necessary.

Are you a small queer or BIPOC-owned business and would like to be featured? Reach out to communications@vancouverpride.ca.