Maven Maven Tisha Thompson built an empire on pure beauty

Love yourself is the motto of LYS founder Tisha Thompson. So much so that it’s the namesake of her brand.

Founded in 2021, LYS Beauty not only makes clean beauty accessible to everyone and accessible to melaninated skin tones, but additionally it is the primary of its kind Black-owned clean makeup brand in Sephoras nationwide. However, Tisha’s journey to making a successful brand is a private one.

Born and raised in a military family for many of her life, Tisha learned at a young age be her own biggest advocate. After having to maneuver around quite a bit and adapt to her recent life, she found a secure space by fidgeting with makeup.

“I haven’t seen anyone who looks like me,” Thompson said BLACK ENTERPRISES.

“Definitely no plus size girls. I think I was about 20 years old before I saw a makeup ad with someone who looked like me and looked like me.”

Initially a company skilled, Tisha at all times dreamed of starting her own brand.

“I was handling finances for a makeup company… while I was a freelance makeup artist,” Thompson said. “I had this passion and excitement for beauty. This is what I wanted to do, but finances covered the bills.”

Thompson noticed that there was little or no attention paid to the marketing and nuances of makeup for ladies of color, and he or she began sharing her thoughts together with her colleagues. Thompson’s insights led to a more inclusive market coordinator role inside the company. It was her way of getting her foot within the door.

“I took the demotion,” Thompson said TO BE.

“I’d say inside seven years I used to be director after which vice chairman. It was a fantastic training camp for me, because of which I learned the whole lot in regards to the industry,” said the makeup specialist.

At the peak of her corporate profession, Thompson packed up her office and commenced laying the inspiration for LYS based on her own experiences with makeup.

“I would break out a lot,” Thompson said.

“It wasn’t until I started formulating products, started my career, and spent over a decade in product development that I really understood and learned the benefits of certain ingredients (and) the drawbacks of certain ingredients.”

Thompson continued: “Overall, people of color are twice as likely to be exposed to harmful ingredients in their products… The lack of diversity within these brands has resulted in them creating products that have excluded us, and perhaps not always intentionally.”

From a MAC worker to an accountant after which a protracted profession within the beauty industry, Thompson’s curiosity and commitment quickly led her and LYS, an organization she worked hard to make a reality. LYS was placed in Sephora early within the brand’s launch.

“I never thought in a million years I would have a brand at Sephora,” Thompson said.

“When I decided to create and launch this brand, I had a concept, contacted Sephora and emailed them a PowerPoint presentation that wasn’t final yet. But that was the vision. I thought to myself, “Hey, I’m a beauty director, I’ve been there, I’ve done that, I’ve built brands, I’m a makeup artist.” I have an idea. I think as a black woman I can fill the empty space in your stores, helping to bring change and diversity for clean beauty because we are left out of the conversation. You don’t have anything like that. First of all, your clean brands have (only) a few options.”

Thompson continued. “It’s amazing how many amazing Black founders are at Sephora right now because they’ve committed to offering shelf space because we, too, deserve to have our products and our brands available at Sephora. So they have done a phenomenal job of uplifting and being a catalyst for diversity and inclusion in beauty.”

Now $12 million later mark launched the most recent edition of the LYS cosmetics collectionHigh Standards Glow blush stick in seven different colours. All colours are inspired by amazing personality traits that continuously remind us of self-love and positive affirmations.