Watch the full conversation between Tisha Thompson and Fashionista’s Beauty & Style Director Steph Saltzman on The Fashionista Network.

With more than 15 years of corporate experience as a beauty executive and expertise as a makeup artist, Tisha Thompson set out to address the authenticity gap she noticed in the beauty industry when she founded LYS Beauty.

“As a plus-size Black girl, I always tell the story I went until I was in my 20s before I saw anyone who looked like me in a beauty campaign,” Thompson told Steph Saltzman on The Fashionista Network. (Watch it here!) “It was hard to experience because I was in an industry that I loved so much that I felt didn’t love me back.”

Enter LYS Beauty, which stands for “Love Your Self”, a brand Thompson established in 2021 with the goal of inspiring consumers — regardless of skin tone, gender or skill level — to be authentically themselves. With just four years under its belt, LYS Beauty has skyrocketed: It became the first Black-owned “clean” beauty brand stocked at Sephora, garnered more than 144,000 Instagram followers and secured eight-figure Series A funding this spring. LYS Beauty also quickly found a dedicated community (which Thompson calls its “Confidence Crew”) thanks to its viral bronzer, foundation and blush sticks all priced under $25.

Thompson shared that, in LYS Beauty’s early days, she remained a largely unseen founder by rarely including herself in the brand’s marketing, but she discovered that her story helped its community better identify and resonate with its mission. As LYS Beauty experienced its first viral product, Thompson hustled to keep up with orders and collaborate with the brand’s suppliers to improve its fulfillment strategy.

In the full interview, Thompson expanded on cold emailing Sephora for a retail partnership, why beauty consumers are embracing founder-led brands and her leadership style. She also shared plans for LYS Beauty’s future, including upcoming launches, community-building events and Essence Festival.

Watch the full interview here.

This conversation was hosted on The Fashionista Network powered by interactive media platform Fireside, where viewers get the chance to participate and speak directly with industry figures. Learn more about The Fashionista Network here.

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