Proudly Unstoppable small business spotlight – Ellie Bianca

Black-owned Ellie Bianca about more than skin care
EllieBiancaHero.jpg EllieBiancaTablet.jpg EllieBiancaMobile.jpg

Evelyne Nyairo needed a partner she could count on when the pandemic hit.

And she found one.

“There was UPS when I needed them the most,” Evelyne, the founder of Ellie Bianca skin products, said.

An environmental scientist and chemist, she transitioned her small business to survive in the radically-changed world of 2020.

“I reached out to the UPS account manager who literally became part of Ellie Bianca,” Evelyne said. “Their solutions were quick.”

Ellie Bianca began producing hand sanitizer and then hand soap in response to the pandemic, something they had never done before.

“I wanted to do something that was meaningful and current,” she said.

It’s a balance Evelyne has strived to strike since starting her company.

Gender equality, natural beauty and healthy living

Growing up in Kenya, Evelyne was immersed in a culture of gender inequality where expectations and privilege can greatly differ among young men and women.

She was determined to change that.

Evelyne set out to help create a world where every woman has the opportunity to embrace and own her strength and beauty, inside and out.

With her experiences in Africa, Europe and North America as a foundation, she’s developed relationships with producers of naturally sustainable products like raw shea.

She recognized an opportunity to produce an environmentally-friendly and naturally-nourishing ingredient that also supported the women who were manually harvesting and processing this resource.

Serious about being a role model

From sourcing and producing to purchasing and distributing, Ellie Bianca is more than just skin care. Their goal is to empower women through confidence, pride and love.

As a Black- and female-owned and operated business, Evelyne believes her mission goes far beyond producing ethically-sourced, naturally healthy skin care products.

“Young black girls are not going to be the women they don’t see,” Evelyne said. “They need to see role models.”

Her passion is timely. Kat Marran, UPS vice president of marketing, pointed out in a recent interview just how important engaging women in business can be to the world economy.

“According to a McKinsey Global Institute report, if women and men were to participate in the economy equally around the world, the global GDP would increase by about $28 trillion or 26% by 2025,” Kat said.

While Evelyne and Ellie Bianca don’t deal in trillions, they continue to provide immeasurable inspiration. Their story is a great example of how partnerships, vision and values can create a sustainable small business that makes a larger than life impact.

Learn more about UPS’s Proudly Unstoppable efforts to move the world forward by delivery what matters.

“Young black girls are not going to be the women they don’t see. They need to see role models.”