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WHY I BROUGHT NOUBA COSMETICS TO NIGERIA- O.J AWA- IBRAHEEM

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Nouba, a premium Italian mineral make-up brand, is one of the latest entrants into the beauty industry. Nouba was invented by a make-up artist, Rosy Armanini, in 1978, inspired by the Central African tribe, the Nubas, who paint their faces and bodies with extraordinary colours and designs to celebrate events. The brand was before now restricted to the European and Middle Eastern markets, until last year when Mrs. Omotola Awa-Ibraheem got the franchise of the Nouba in Nigeria. Within a short period, the product has launched into limelight. It’s now the favourite of most make-up artists and beauty inclined women. It is a well researched brand and all mineral based, made with natural ingredients such as bees wax, vegetable oil, castor oil and more, which are not toxic to the skin. The perfect blend of the products leaves nobody in doubt of an attractive and pleasing appearance.
BOLA AKINBOADE met with this industrious woman and she opened up and why she decided to bring the cosmetics into the country.

How did the journey of Nouba start for you?
About a year ago, I decided to be part of the beauty industry and my husband suggested doing make-up and perfume. Having been a distributor for different brands in Nigeria, I wanted something more challenging. So I decided to go for a franchise with a brand that was not in Nigeria that I could work on. I came across Nouba, and good for me, they were interested in expanding into the African market. So our meeting was a success and I was given the franchise to launch Nouba into the Nigerian market.

Hoe easy was it getting the franchise?
It wasn’t easy; I guess, I was at the right place at the right time; it was very good timing on my own part. I was there when they were speculating into moving into West Africa and I came in at that time. So I got the franchise. I met them by chance at a beauty show when I traveled out of the country. And I saw the product and I was very much interested in it. I also met other ones but those ones were not interested in the African market yet. But Nouba were. So I just went straight for Nouba.

Just two years on, can you share the acceptability experience?
For last year, what we tried to do was to get the name across and we did a lot of publicity, newspaper publicity and couple of shows, to get the name of across and familiarize people with the name, Nouba. Soon after, we decided, in 2010, we wanted to take the product directly to the people. That’s what we did. We tried to get the make-up artists to come in and become part of the Nouba family. And we got good responses from well known retailers of make-up too, who took up our brand directly to the people. These were the things we did. These are the things we are doing to get the product across for the everyday use of an average Nigerian woman.

So what is Nouba all about?
Nouba is a professional make-up range that is not to say that it cannot be used by people. Anybody can use Nouba. Reason why I said it’s a professional range is that, it gives you the same professional finish like any make-up artist would, even if you apply it by yourself. They have from their foundation to their compact powder, to their shadows, lipsticks, concealers, lip balm. Good enough too, all their make-up are mineral based. So they are very good for your skin, and you don’t break out in them. They also have product which are oil free for those that have oily skin and products that are for all skin type. So whatever you want, they have it.

You must have flare for make-up for you to have a make-up line. Have you ever been trained as a make-up artist or how did the whole beauty thing start?
I’m not a professional make-up artist, though I do have an in-house make-up artist by name Yemisi Dada. I’m a business woman first and foremost. So for me, Nouba is not just about make-up, it’s also about business. It’s a business that is now combined with interest. I won’t call myself a make-up artist because I’m not trained professional. But I can say, I do my own make up and have not had any complaints yet.

A lot of people will also find it interesting because you are a strong and devoted Muslim; you cover your hair, you are not the party type and all that, yet you pitch your tent into this kind of business.
Islam has nothing against make-up. The Arab women used a lot of make-up, though they used a lot of natural make-up, which is also one of the good things about Nuoba. A woman’s beauty is not a bad thing in Islam, so Islam does not discourage beauty. And you must know that as a Muslim woman, you have to look good for your husband. In any case, make-up is on the face. So the part, which we are meant to cover, we don’t need to put make-up on such part. Make-up is good, it is recommended for all women, Muslim, Christian

You used to major distributor for some of the major brands. So what are those business lessons that you have learnt over the years and would inject into your own make-up line?
I used to be a distributor for a lot of big companies in Nigeria. For instance, I was the sub-distributor for WAMPCO, NESTLE and I was a distributor for European soaps and also for REBOOK. It was like a foundation really to prepare me for when I get my own franchise and on the re-distribution. It was a very good learning process for me, before now having my own franchise and starting my distribution network.

What are those unique qualities that make Nouba different from the other make up line in the market?
Apart from the fact that it’s a mineral based product, which is a good point, it’s the uniqueness of the colours. Nouba has a wide range of colours, which is difficult to see in other products. And the pigmentation in the colours are so intense that if you are putting on purple, people know its purple, if you are putting on pink, people know its pink. And the different variation in one colour, I don’t know any other company that does that. So that is one of their selling points, the uniqueness of their colour, whatever colour you want, they have it.
You can also customize your colours, for the make -up artist; you can customize their colour to the colours that they use the most. They can request for a variation in certain colours in their pallet. So these are the uniqueness. Apart from the fact that it has a long staying power, you don’t need to keep on re- applying. It’s very strong and it stays long, the pigmentation is good, so it keep for a very long time.

Mineral based make- up line is the new craze in the make up business. From your own experience, why is that so?
The mineral based are good because you are sure that what you are using on the skin actually helps. You know, you are going to wear lipstick all day, and you want to be sure that even if get into your mouth, it’s not going to do anything to you or if you are wearing powder, it’s not going to damage your skin. You know for us women, it’s always good for us to get a product that does not age us. Which is why everybody is going into minerals, all natural, things that enhances us rather than reduces us. And for us, we wear make-up all day, so the least we can do is to ensure that the make-up is something that is good for our skin. That is why the mineral based is more recommended and a lot of companies are going in that line in making their products mineral based or extract from natural things rather than chemicals.

Obviously, owning a franchise of an international make-up line is capital intensive; how were you able to bankroll the huge investment of the business?
Thank God for my husband, he has always been there for me and thank God I can always count on him. For me, it has to do with having a husband that believes so much in you; he is the chairman of the company. It has to do with having a husband who is very supportive and who also is well experienced in business. So I was able to get the franchise and start the business. I owe a lot of it to him and to almighty God.

So is the business moving at the pace you wanted it to move profit-wise?
For us, it’s not about money now; it’s about getting the product across. When the product is out there, the money will come. It’s like a new baby, you have to learn to crawl, before you walk, now that we have gotten past the crawling stage, we are moving towards the walking stage. By God’s grace, it will start to bring back its proceeds.

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