When sophomore illustration major Tyler Poyant was in high school, he took a geographical image of Cape Cod, Mass., rotated it into an “L” shape, added a little love and his business of custom T-shirts and stickers emerged.

Tyler’s success story begins as a child, growing up on a pond in East Wareham, Mass. At an early age, he fell in love with the Cape Cod life. One of his first pieces of art was a lighthouse, which he created for a custodian at his elementary school.

Tyler began to capture the outdoor scenery of Cape Cod. He would watch Canadian geese and ducks on his pond and turn it into art. At only 12 years old, he became interested in sharing his work with the public.

His father, Rene, recalls this first instance.

“He asked me to bring him down to a local gift shop,” Rene said. “He did all the talking. They let him set up a table outside the store and they wouldn’t just sell them, but they let him sell it himself. I think he enjoyed telling people about his artwork.”

Tyler said he enjoys art because it allows him to tell a story by creating a picture. He said he likes illustration because of the contact the pencil makes with the paper, and how he has always been good at it.

When people began to notice and comment on his work at My Sister’s Gallery in Sandwich, Mass., Rene began to realize his son had something special.

“I thought, ‘He’s got something here that’s a talent,’” Rene said.

The relationship Tyler built with My Sister’s Gallery helped put him on the shelves of America’s bookstores.

Cape Cod Life magazine wanted to interview emerging artists. It interviewed Tyler and a profile about him and his art was printed in the publication.

“The Cape Cod Life magazine really took me to the next level,” Tyler said. “I was featured as Cape Cod’s emerging artist with all of Cape Cod’s famous artists.”

As Tyler grew, his work and ideas became more and more sophisticated. In high school, he began drawing designs with hearts. The designs made themselves onto T-shirts and his company, I Heart It, was born.

Rene was a proud father when his son came up with the idea of a Cape Cod logo for a business.

“I gave him a hug and told him to get it trademarked because it was such a great idea,” he said.

Sophomore management major Melissa Clawges and Tyler lived together on the same floor in Flint Hall their freshman year. During the year they became close friends and have remained that way.

“It’s cool that he really focuses on Cape Cod where he is from because you can tell he really loves it,” she said.

Tyler is the sole owner of the company. He controls its daily operations, from web design, production, inventory, customer service and marketing.

He says it is challenging but rewarding because it’s his own company.

“I always had an entrepreneurial spirit since I was 12,” Tyler said. “It’s all me. I love it. I’m in control of it all. But it’s annoying at times because you don’t have anyone to throw the work on.”

Although Tyler controls the company, his parents are still available to offer any support they can provide.

Rene says he and his wife help Tyler open up, and give him the tools he needs to build his business.

“We try to open up opportunities for him,” Rene said. “Be positive. Allow him to grow in the art industry that he loves so much.”

Tyler’s friends caught onto the idea that he owns and operates his own business. Last spring, as a freshman, Tyler entered the Syracuse University Chevrolet Sonic Road Warriors competition. He created a design for a Chevy vehicle, competing against junior and senior communication design students.

Tyler was victorious. He won $2,500 and his design, which featured different buildings on SU’s campus, was put on the car. It was unveiled at the March 3 men’s basketball game against the University of Louisville.

“That was huge,” he said. “It’s a real cool feeling just walking across campus and there goes the car.”

Clawges was on hand to celebrate Tyler’s accomplishment when he won the car contest, but she had the privilege of watching the design grow from its early stages.

“When we knew that he won, it was awesome because his design was by far the best one,” Clawges said. “It was really cool to see his car driving around campus because we really saw it come from design to full-swing actuality.”

When Tyler walked through malls wearing his custom T-shirt, people would come up to him, comment and ask where he got it. That was when he knew people were interested in the design and that it had real potential. He considers this his biggest success story.

“It’s such a rewarding feeling that other people are interested in one, what you designed and two, the company that you are trying to pursue,” Tyler said.

Clawges was fascinated by how talented Tyler was when she first met him, and was even more eager to know more about it.

“I was surprised but when I saw his website, I was really impressed with what he has turned his company into,” Clawges said.

Although he is only a sophomore in college, Tyler is looking ahead to his future.

He says his future goals change everyday, but he started with hopes of working for Pixar or DreamWorks. He also enjoys designing clothing.

Rene would like to see him continue what he started at such a young age. He wants to see the T-shirt company continue to grow, but he also wants Tyler to be able to provide for his family.

“I would love to see him working for a company doing illustration,” Rene said. “I think it has so much potential. He’s so creative. I’d love to see him have his own business some day and to be able to love what he does.”

Published on February 19, 2013 at 12:55 am

Contact Austin: arpollac@syr.edu