SOA: Can you please tell us about koalture? 

Koalture: Basically, Koalture is an activated charcoal brand, the first of its kind here in Nigeria. Koalture simply means Charcoal Culture. Koalture is a two woman brand. Most people know us a Boma and Lewa, we are two women who decided to follow our passion and share with the Nigerian society what we know about this black dust called activated charcoal. We teach you how to maintain your skin and your health too  using activated charcoal and things you'd find in your kitchen.

SOA: what year was it established? 

Koalture: It was established unofficially in April 2017 and established officially on the 2nd of May 2017.

SOA: what is koalture vision & mission?

Koalture: Our vision is to make sure  Activated Charcoal will become not just unique but a culture for everyone in Nigeria and beyond.

Our mission is to provide diversified products made with activated charcoal in Nigeria, for Nigeria and the world at large. 

SOA: what inspired you ladies to start koalture?

Koalture: Hmmmm, we noticed a lot of people had no idea the amazing things Activated Charcoal had to offer, most people did not even know there was a difference between regular Charcoal and Activated Charcoal, this prompted us to start Koalture.

SOA: what do clients love about your brand?

Koalture: Our customer relationship. We both get people who call us just because they love our voices(weird but true). We make talking to us easy as we ask heartfelt questions and have relatable personal experiences almost all the time.

We don't compromise when it comes to the quality and standard of our products too. We keep it 100.

On the fun side, a lot of customers actually say: You both know what you're doing. So I think they know we're smart.Hahaha

Finally, I think it's because we keep them glued to their seats, always anxious to see what's next.

SOA: what makes koalture unique?

Koalture: Activated charcoal, it's unique, it's versatile and that's it. I think too that when most people hear that we're a two woman team, it's mind blowing because they wonder how we do all we do.

SOA: what is the one product you recommend the most?

Koalture: Our Hardwood Activated Charcoal Powder. It's a must have, in fact it's something that should be in every bag.

SOA: what's one of the most frequently asked questions you ladies receive?

Koalture: That's simple. What's the difference between the charcoal we use for grilling and activated charcoal?

SOA: what's next for the brand?

Koalture: Hmmmm, what next?? I guess you'd just have to wait and see. But we'd have you know we've quite a few tricks up our sleeves.

SOA: Are there challenges running our own brand in Nigeria?

Koalture: Yes!!! Can we even begin to mention? The organic market is hugeeeeeee and very scary most times. The fact that we have to make sure our products appeal to people can be very challenging, especially when people start doing the exact same thing as you at a cheaper rate. Truthfully, we can't even begin to mention but there are days and there are days.

SOA: What's the best advice you can give anyone trying to start a brand/business in Nigeria?

Koalture: 1.Be determined to work hard because there's no such thing as too much work. 

2.Find your circle, to me that's key because people would support you and people wouldn't support you.

3.Diplomacy is key.

4.Keep your ideas coming.

5.Never be too desperate, it shows and people want to take advantage of it.

5.Never be too desperate, it shows and people want to take advantage of it.

WANT SOME KOALTURE?

shop koalture.com

instagram @koalture

Today on Discovering African owned brand/business series, We discovered a Ghanaian owned natural skincare brand called Skin Gourmet.

What is skin gourmet about?

People have turned to big companies like “The Body Shop” or “Lush” Cosmetics which are great companies but they only solve about half the problem.

These pioneers of the organic beauty industry have had a lot of great success and have impacted the lives of many with great skincare but we can do more.

These bigger companies don’t touch the lives of African individuals at our level. You can talk about the farmers and where you are getting your supplies from.

But what about your packaging? Is sustainable? Where are you sourcing from and how do you impact their lives beyond the farmer? What about your sales force? Are you employing

Africans or the population that is the most stricken with poverty? What about your production and the rest of their staff are you creating business opportunities for them so that they will create opportunities for others?

Introducing – Responsible skincare from the Wilds of Ghana – Skin Gourmet

Premium skincare sourced and produced with no chemicals, preservatives or any of the funny stuff you can’t pronounce.

from the wild and that means no farmers BUT it means communities gathering seeds and ingredients which contributes to the livelihood of the WHOLE village.

Responsible because when our customers buy our products they can feel good about themselves because they know that they are helping build a nation. Every time our customer buys a product it affects Ghana directly: From the communities that gather the products to the sales people you meet when you buy the product. Skin Gourmet pays higher wages than the average Ghanaian company its size.

Because we insist on sourcing our packaging from Ghana we have helped to redefine branding in Ghana. We are pushing the barriers of our Ghanaian capabilities and asking for more. This creates innovation and jobs because we are creating a demand and pushing the limits of what was possible with packaging and production before in Ghana.

Empower Africa! We hear a lot about helping Africa and aid. We don’t want aid – we want to build our ourselves; the right way. We want to create a sustainable source of revenue for ourselves. Skin Gourmet is a fully and properly registered company. What does that mean? It means every time you buy from us you empower Ghana:

1.       You help contribute to nation building buy way of taxes

2.        You help create jobs for people with any skill set because at skin Gourmet we hire people with different education backgrounds and we pay well.

3.       When you buy from us you improve the life of a Ghanaian.

4.       A company that gives back from the beginning of the process to that final jar that reaches the consumer. All participants in the manufacturing of the contents of the jar benefit from fair prices, paid taxes, proper documentation and general upliftment.

What year was your brand established?

Skin Gourmet was established on the 9th of October, 2014

What does clients love about your brand?

Our customers believe in sustainability and will spend that extra dollar to buy from us because they know that we:

1.       Source our ingredients sustainably

2.       Pay the right price for our ingredients

3.       That we protect and preserve the African culture

4.       We recycle and promote recycling in Ghana

5.       We create jobs in Ghana based on the existing skill sets and help them to improve those techniques without moving away from tradition.

6.       We create opportunity beyond the pay check.

Your bestseller product of all time?

All of our products sell like crazy!

So we will tell you about our flag ship product – Baobab and Shea Body butter.

Our as our clients call it – SKIN CRACK! Cause your skin will become totally addicted to the goodness.

Want some of these skin goodness?

Instagram @skingourmetgh

Want some in Lagos?

Instagram @themosestore