We’re in Forbes!
As we step into Year 2 of our journey, the momentum is only growing. With $1.2 million secured over 3 years and $120K already invested into Los Angeles founders, The Wild Seed Collective is proving what’s possible when women entrepreneurs have the capital, capacity, and community they deserve.
This feature isn’t the finish line—it’s a launchpad. Year 2 means more grants, more retreats, more storytelling, and more opportunities for women of color founders to rise together.
The future is here, and we’re just getting started.
Read the full story at TheWildSeed.org
Special Thank You to:
Author: @dr.maia_
Article Photographers: @blanxphotos , @rashidazagon and @kapturedxperience
#Restack | Incredible article by @beautifulbrittd …not just because PSL and I are highlighted, but because the story of someone whose work I appreciate shares the wrestle with an amazing gift, both behind and in front of the camera.
This article welcomes every visionary into the room who may be more comfortable behind the lens, yet still shines a light just as bright as being in front of it.
Your gift will always make room for you. Thank you B. 💐
Round 3 of The Wild Seed Grant is closing March 17.
If you’re a woman or non-binary founder in Los Angeles building a business with purpose, this is your moment.
Apply before the window closes:
We gathered to celebrate Ms. Shirley’s life, a day that reflected everything she loved. From her favorite colors woven throughout the room to the gentle symbolism of butterflies, every detail felt intentional and full of meaning.
It was not just a service; it was a tribute to the light she carried. A reminder that the way someone lives leaves fingerprints on everything they touch.
The butterflies felt especially fitting, symbols of transformation, hope, and the quiet promise that love never truly disappears.
What a beautiful way to honor a beautiful soul.
Rest in love, our dear friend, Ms. Shirley. We love you, and we will continue honoring you and the legacy you so graciously shared with all of us.
@beauty2thestreetz 💜🕊️
Applications for the next Wild Seed grant cycle officially open February 17.
If you are planning to apply, or are thinking about applying, we invite you to join our upcoming Info Session and Application Workshop on February 26. We will walk through the application process, what reviewers look for, and how to gain priority points.
The workshop, led by Morgan of Morganite Writing Company, focuses on how to tell the story of your work in ways that make funders lean in, understand your impact, and recognize why your work belongs in their funding priorities. You’ll leave with skills and tools you can use across applications - not just with ours.
Application opens: February 17
Info Session + Workshop: February 26
Registration details available at Link in Bio
Mark Your Calendars: The application opens on
February 17th and closes on March 17th.
On February 26th, we’ll have an info session and a workshop to help you prepare a strong submission. Registration opens next week, so check the website and make sure you are subscribed to our newsletter for the most timely updates.
Tag a founder who’s been doing the
work and deserves this opportunity 👇🏾
“Community has been and will always be there. And community’s help always comes first. Before FEMA. Before SBA.”
A year after the Eaton Canyon fires, that truth still shapes how recovery is remembered and lived.
Over the last six months, we sat with nearly 40 small businesses across Altadena and Pasadena to listen to what recovery has actually felt like over time. Business owners spoke about continuing to show up for their communities while navigating customer loss, displacement, burnout, and instability that stretched far beyond the moment of the fire.
This report gathers those reflections. Four story-centered briefs trace how wildfire recovery moved through the community, and a recovery dashboard maps the impacts that remained hardest to see as time passed.
The full report is now available at TheWildSeed.org
FULL VIDEO - Here’s what to expect at our Friendsgiving Business Mixer — guided networking, curated conversations, dinner, drinks (wine, champagne, and non-alcoholic options), and a room full of founders and creatives who believe in collaboration over competition.
…and no rain 😏🤞🏾
Sunday, Nov 23 | 6–9 PM
Redondo Beach, CA
Tickets: $100 (includes dinner + drinks) | $50 tax-deductible
Optional mini headshots by Blacklight Imaging
Childcare Provided!
“I went over there and started to help my neighbors move their stuff… it was just fire everywhere.”
Across Pasadena and Altadena, nearly forty Black and women-of-color–owned businesses shared stories like this: stories of people who kept showing up even when there was nothing left to give.
They juggled caregiving, payroll, grief, and cleanup all at once. They became the heartbeat of recovery, not because they had resources, but because they had roots.
In Altadena, those roots run deep. This is a community where people know one another across generations — where the same families have built, worked, and cared for decades. “Black Pasadena is small,” one resident said. “Everybody knows somebody.” That closeness is why, when disaster struck, people moved instinctively to help. Business owners checked on neighbors, churches opened doors, and local networks became lifelines. Their response wasn’t just selfless; it was continuity — a commitment to face hardship together.
This assessment, led by Fractal Strategies, documented by Blacklight Imaging, and conducted in partnership with The Wild Seed Collective and Umoja Food Collective, explores the realities and impact of relief efforts more than half a year later. The picture is heartbreaking: business owners still navigating displacement, lost income, and burnout — trying to recover while holding everyone else up. Relief remains tangled in red tape, built for those with time, paperwork, and capital few here could spare.
This assessment aims to turn those truths into strategies for lasting, equitable change. The full report will be released soon. In the meantime, together with our partners at the Latino Community Foundation, Community Partners, and Care First Community Investment, we say to every business owner who shared your story with us — we see you, we hear you, and we’re demanding a rebuild with you at the center.
To stay informed as the findings and next steps are shared, subscribe to The Wild Seed newsletter and join us in following the path toward collective recovery.
Photo Credit:
Brittany Dacoff, Rashida Zagon, and Kendra Harris
