ABOUT

OUR STORY

HOW WE BEGAN

The Independent Business Association (“IBA”), began gathering as a group of retail visionaries in November 2005. We officially incorporated the organization as, the, Independent Retailers’ Association (“IRA”) March 2006.


Together, we began the growth and progress of the organization and our plans to be a vital force in building Detroit’s economic strength.

OUR ORIGINAL VISION

In our original mission statement we shared that IRA retailers were dedicated to, “people of color who are vastly under served.” Along our journey the energy of our mission attracted a much broader base of business owners than we ever imagined. . .


CHANGE

This unexpected response made us revisit our original intention and our name. We discussed it and even argued a bit. Actually, quite a bit. Finally, we voted and agreed to include those non-retail businesses who shared and wanted in on our vision. We agreed to open our concept and the organization to ALL independently owned and operated business.

BEYOND RETAIL

In 2009, our collective membership officially embraced the idea to invite and include beyond retail. We then began to rebrand ourselves as Detroit’s, Independent Business Association, “IBA.”

OUR "CORE" MISSION REMAINS

While our name and focus on retail has changed, our core mission has not. From IRA to IBA, our goal is to act as a collaborative group better equipped to promote and pursue collective interests of independent businesses and their customers.
United in our purpose, IBA achieves more than we as individual, “independent” business owners are able to alone.


OUR MISSION

“Experienced professionals united and dedicated to setting trends and standards in business.


“We deliver exceptional customer service to break down barriers and build bridges to maximize worldwide business opportunities.


“Our target market is people of color who are vastly under served.”


“We exist to create wealth through profitability, build political influence and community outreach.”


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