After a painful divorce in 2019, Lindiwe Somo was left a single mom, stressed about life and uncertain of what to do next. With facial breakouts and dark spots, in 2021, she took matters into her own hands and has a successful skincare business to be proud of after all of her troubles.
Somo was left with no other choice but to begin her own inexpensive organic skincare brand after failing to find products that catered for her needs.
How the journey begun
According to Somo, her divorce took quite a toll on her body. “It came as a shock. I was not ready and my face started to react with the aftermath of what had happened,” she explains.
She started developing all different kinds of skin problems that she had never experienced before, such as acne and pimples that left dark spots on her face. “I never had that in my entire youth and teen years,” she says.
She adds that dealing with the stress of being a divorcee and a young mother just aggravated the problem.
Market search for organic product
Later on, she decided enough was enough and she needed to find a product that would work for her skin. “ I tried to search for markets where I could find products that would not bleach my skin. We know that most of the skincare products have bleaching content in them and I was looking for something organic.”
She tried using various products that were available on the market but admitted that none of these products helped her with her acne or dark spots. Frustrated, Somo had to make a choice.
The choice to start over
“One day, I just decided to try my own thing to see if it might work,”. Eventually she started doing her research and she came to the conclusion that avocado helps.
After experimenting for a while in 2021, Somo added shea butter to the process and got some farmers in Ghana involved that are farming with this type of fat commonly used in beauty products.
She started using her processed skin product and “voila”, her dark spots were gone and her skin stopped reacting.
Somo currently sells African black soap, shea butter, avocado butter, avocado oil, avocado soap and avocado lotion. What makes these products even more appealing is their local content and prices since these are organic and inexpensive products.
“Avocado is the main ingredient that we use because we try to be as organic as we can. It goes through a process and we add essential oils,” she says.
Start-up funding
Somo started with R15 000. “For a start, I am happy that I can retain my clients – old clients come back to me and that shows me that the product works,” she explains.
It is possible to get your hands on this local brand which is shipped nationwide. Although the client pays for the courier costs, Somo tries to keep the products affordable.
There’s definitely more in store for the local market. This organic guru is working on some more products so watch this space!
Magubane shares some wise words
- Have a compassionate heart when it comes to working with people’s skin.
- Be open-minded.
- Do your research and find where your market lies.
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