Is A-beauty the Next Big Thing?

Oct 23, 2022

Reine Africaine

A-beauty is short for African beauty. In the last few years, there has been a surge in the number of skincare brands coming out of the African continent. Historically, the skincare market was dominated by foreign, particularly European conglomerates and global brands.

Loreal, the world’s largest cosmetic and beauty company, had worldwide sales of over 29.8 billion euros in 2019. Their market share in western Europe was estimated at 20%.

Indigenous African ingredients such as shea butter have always been sought after and mega international beauty companies export these ingredients from the African continent to manufacture their products.

However, African women are manufacturing their own products using these same ingredients from their home countries and are beginning to take space in the beauty market. What makes A-beauty so special is that these products cater to women of colour.

These African female entrepreneurs living in Africa have access to a range of ingredients that include natural oils such as jojoba oil, baobab oil and other ingredients that have been used for centuries to maintain healthy skin and hair by older generations.

These brands have the feel and aesthetics that are on par with international standards. They want people across the continent to look at these products and have a positive perception of made in Africa products. These products have proven that made in Africa brands can be affordable and still have really good quality.

However, the clean beauty market still remains smaller than the bleaching market. According to a study by the World Health Organisation (WHO), 40% of African women regularly use skin lightening or bleaching creams. At the forefront of this trend is Nigeria, with 77% of women using skin bleaching products (cream and non-cream based), followed by 59% in Togo, 27% in Senegal and 25% in Mali.

The growth of the clean beauty industry and the entrance of new small clean beauty products could be the solution to reshaping the beauty culture on the continent. These beauty brands place emphasis on healthy skin not lighter skin.

Here are 10 made in Africa skincare brands that cater to melanin skin:

1. Arami – Nigeria