The Little Gay Shop, Austin
Looking around The Little Gay Shop, you can see how a person could be forgiven for getting caught up. The store opened in 2020 in a renovated shipping container on Airport Boulevard and moved to trendy East 12th Street last summer. The location may have changed, but the vibe remains the same: Pee-wee’s Playhouse with a Texas twist.
It’s a store where you can find signed first editions of memoirs (including, I feel compelled to add, my own), rare magazines wrapped in plastic, and more-than-suggestive wooden ashtrays. All the merch is lovingly curated; some of it is deliciously naughty.
Everything in the shop is exclusively from LGBTQ+ artists and makers, says Justin Galicz, who co-owns the store with his partner, Kirt Reynolds. “Austin is such a queer oasis,” Galicz says. “I think it’s really important for marginalized communities to have a space that is specifically dedicated to you, where you can feel seen and reflected and represented and safe.” thelittlegayshop.com
Michael’s Cookie Jar, Houston
Michael Savino of Michael’s Cookie Jar wields his power in sugar. He started his bakery in 2006 in West University and has since opened a second location downtown. “These aren’t mall cookies or fast-food cookies,” Savino says with pride. “We’re a pastry shop that makes cookies. We crack eggs every day. We use real butter and locally made vanilla. All the good stuff.”
Savino says queer-owned businesses play an important role in making Texas more welcoming. “One of the reasons I started a cookie business, besides the fact that I hate decorating cakes, is I personally felt political divisions widening and everything becoming polarized,” Savino says. “That feels even more true today than it did all those years ago. Cookies are one of the few things we can all agree on.” michaelscookiejar.com
Ace of Skates, Denton

Ace Mossman started competing in the North Texas Roller Derby at 18, under the name Purple People Eater, and working at the roller derby pro shop at the local rink. When the business came up for sale three years later, Mossman bought the pro shop’s inventory and rebranded as Ace of Skates.
Four years later, the store has made a name for itself in this eclectic university town not just as the place to go for all things roller derby but as a haven of acceptance and pride. “When I was younger,” Mossman says, “if I had ever walked into a business that was openly displaying rainbows, and the person behind the counter was visibly queer and happy, it would have been huge for me.” aceofskatestx.com