A beauty solution that generates millions of dollars in revenue annually is the brainchild of Portia Mngomezulu. She claims that using beauty products herself as a South African woman served as the basis for her brand.
She questioned why Africans were unable to establish well-known international companies such as L’Oréal, Elizabeth Arden, and Estee Lauder. She began to consider how she might investigate the field and rise to prominence after receiving this query.
As a result, she told Forbes Africa that she wanted to develop a cosmetics product that also benefits the skin and contains components that are meaningful to Africans.
She noted that, despite trying a number of treatments, she was unable to get rid of the stretch marks she had after giving birth to her first son. She also started Portia M Products after deciding to take her grandmother’s advise and use marula oil.
“I thought, as a woman, let me go and try something that is traditionally African… this African herb. I went ahead and tried the oil, [and] it worked miraculously on my stretch marks. I started ‘inboxing’ my friends about the secret that I found, bottling it and selling it for $5.42.”
Since then, her preoccupation has been to find local solutions for African women. Today, the product has become a continental hit, selling in South Africa and across over 14 African countries.
“I honestly believe that we are homegrown,” Mngomezulu said. “Our skin is different, our climate is different. So, we need tailor-made products for our skin that are tested here with our climate, with our skin conditions. I believe that the products that are imported are not made for our skin.”
According to the South African entrepreneur, her company’s revenue is $13.7 million a year after starting the brand in 2011 with only $14. She used her house as a factory to manufacture her skincare products before getting funding to kickstart her factory.
A qualified systems engineer, she obtained her training at the Tshwane University of Technology. “I loved technology and completed my diploma in 2002. At the time, I was convinced that I wanted to excel as a programmer. I also completed a certificate in Project Management through Unisa and did an internship at Siemens — where I worked for nine years,” she shared.