Meet Indian Tyler, Graduate of the LISC LA BBET Program
1.10.2022
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LISC StoriesEconomic Development
PACT Bodycare launched December of 2017 out of a dire need. The founder of the business, Indian Tyler, was dealing with intimate partner violence and she had a young child at the time. She connected with a nonprofit organization called FreeFrom, a nationwide organization dedicated to seeking economic justice and opportunity for survivors of abuse and exploitation.
FreeFrom encouraged Indian to discover what products she could produce for sale to financially save herself from an abusive marriage. At the time, she had been making body care products for her son and she was running a consulting firm supporting salon professional brands. Her consulting firm was a financial success but once she had her son, she could no longer travel and her consulting work required 90% travel. With the encouragement and support from FreeFrom, PACT Bodycare was born.
Small businesses took a significant hit from the COVID-19 crisis, with Black-owned businesses hit hardest compared to any other demographic—with more than half of Black business owners seeing their revenue cut by half, and Black business ownership dropping by 41%. Additionally, the personal care sector saw a 45% decrease in revenue in the last year, with experts predicting this industry would have one of the longest paths to recovery amidst COVID-19.
Right to Left: Candace Mitchell Harris, Founder & CEO of CVM Worldwide; Dr Monica Blied, owner of Faces of Health Wellness Center; Indian Tyler, owner of PACT Bodycare; Tunua Thrash-Ntuk, LISC LA Executive Director; and Adey Tesfaye, LISC LA Local Advisory Committee Member
In response to these alarming trends and to support Black small businesses in the personal care industry, LISC LA, with the support of Pacific Premier Bank and the James Irvine Foundation, launched the Black Business Excellence Technical Assistance (BBET) Initiative: an accelerator program that provided wrap- around business services to Black-owned businesses in the personal care industry – health, wellness, and beauty – to help them take these businesses to the next level.
The program included training on strategic business planning, marketing, accounting, raising capital, optimizing supply chain and disaster resilience. “The program in itself was very comprehensive, so it could have been very intimidating with all the information. But the way the information was presented with the emphasis that you have everything you need like these are the things that are going to strengthen and fortify your business, these are the areas you definitely need to pay attention to. However, you have everything you need and every single step of the process, I just force myself to remember that. That in and of itself has been life changing, not just for my business, but also for me personally,” says Indian of her experience in the BBET program.
PACT Bodycare was born out of necessity and financed with personal funds. It was when Indian participated in the LISC LA BBET program that she was able to fill in the gaps on her knowledge, step into the CEO role with strategic planning for the business and learn to use technology to grow her business.
PACT Bodycare grew to a team of 7 over the last 4 years and Indian has been paying it forward hiring a team of single moms and survivors of intimate partner violence.
“I just remember when I was like literally making products in my kitchen with a baby strapped to my back and to see what the business is today…it might not look like much to some but for us it's triumph.”
The pandemic forced PACT Bodycare to pivot quickly to meet the changing needs of their customer base. Self care needs have changed over the course of the pandemic so the company has been focusing in on what their customers want currently in their self-love and healing journeys. They’ve been working on a new line of herbal teas that will be available soon.
Check out PACT Bodycare’s online shop.
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