Founder of natural haircare range Nilotiqa, Thokozile Mangwiro.

There’s nothing like a woman’s touch.

It’s no wonder the magic some of South Africa’s women in hair, fashion, makeup and skincare are not only making a name for themselves but also providing stellar services that speak to their clients’ needs.

Founder of natural haircare brand Nilotiqa Thokozile Mangwiro began her range as an answer to the struggles she and many Black women faced pf keeping their natural hair moisturised and healthy before the natural hair movement took over.

And celebrity makeup artist Jenna Nkosi took a leap of faith after university to register her makeup business and offer her services at the encouragement of her father. Now, she’s created magic on the faces of stars like Bridgerton actress Golda Rosheuval, Thembi Seete, Khanyi Mbau and more.

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Get to know Thokozile, Jenna and more trailblazing beauty and hair moguls reigning in entrepreneurship.

Patience Kunene and Bonolo Matjila, founders of Golden Hour Skincare

Patience and Bonolo’s journey started after meeting while studying towards their LLB law degrees in Cape Town in 2017 where their friendship blossomed.

Bonolo’s passion to get to the bottom of consumers’ skincare anxieties that she was often plagued with plus Patience’s own vision to follow in her father’s footsteps in entrepreneurship birthed Golden Hour Skincare for their official launch in December 2022.

Patience previously explained to TRUELOVE, “The fact that we were able to go into law and complete the degree really really anchored how we were able to make sure that we got into the research. Made sure that we were able to identify different partners that would be able to help us in terms of manufacturing the products, being able to source funding, etc.”

Bonolo also shared, “From a sustainability perspective, we really care about minimising the amount of single-use plastic waste that our industry creates and also minimising the amount of waste that our formulations create.

“And so, we’ve been really mindful in the materials that we’ve chosen from the formulation to the end packaging and being responsible in that sense.”

Jenna Nkosi, professional celebrity makeup artist

Jenna Nkosi is staying true to her calling of putting smiles on people’s face through the work of her hands. What started as a side hustle became a stellar business with an array of prominent figures as her clientele.

She is the makeup artist behind stars like the legendary Thembi Seete, Bridgerton star Golda Rosheuvel, Khanyi Mbau, Natasha Thabane and more.

Although she first started in events and project management, she later chose to “work with her hands”, not knowing it would ignite a calling to work within the makeup space.

“I started my business as a side hustle. The purpose of it then was to at least support myself financially without studying. I started this before I did my first year in Cape Peninsula University of Technology in Cape Town,” she told us in a previous interview.

“So, I was realising that I need to provide myself [and] that’s how I sort of came to start something that [I] could do with my hands. [Though] I started off doing hair and then it branched to doing people’s eyebrows and doing makeup on myself and [that piqued people’s interest] in me doing their makeup.”

READ MORE | Meet the makeup artist behind some of Thembi Seete’s facebeats – ‘This is my calling’

Thokozile Mangwiro, founder of natural haircare range Nilotiqa

Thokozile describes Nilotiqa as “a brand born out of frustration” from wanting to grow out her natural hair as a child but not finding any haircare products that left her hair feeling and looking the way she wanted it to after transitioning to dreadlocks after finishing school.

“From 2014 to 2016, I searched for natural ingredients that would moisturise my hair. I found that shea butter was effective, and in a quest to find refined shea butter – because unrefined shea butter smelled too terrible to use – I discovered a factory in Isando that would sell it to me. This proved to be a turning point.

“When I went there to collect the product, there was a poster on the wall saying, ‘Would you like to create your own product?’ And I thought, ‘Yes! There is literally nothing for me on the shelves. Whatever product I put on my hair, the next day the hair was straw dry. I want to create this product that’s going to deeply-moisturise my hair. I don’t want something that is just going to sit on top of it’.”

Thokozile launched Nilotiqa on 27 Februaury 2016, the date of her grandmother’s birthday as an ode to the woman who inspired her to embrace her natural locks.

Svetlana Xaba, founder of fashion brand Democratic Republic

The Kazakhstan-born fashion extraordinaire has been hard at work making women feel and look good ever since moving to South Africa in the early 2000s and starting her luxury fashion label Democratic Republic in 2005.

She started the brand with a business partner, initially selling clothing items on small rails in a clothing store. As the brand grew, she realised that model was limiting, preventing her from introducing new collections to meet demand and affecting turnover.

“Fashion is a demanding field, and you need to keep up with not just the trends but the needs of your clients to thrive.”

In 2008, she opened her first physical store in Waterfall Mall, Cape Town. Many tourists, international clients, including award-winning singer Celine Dion and top politicians shopped at her store and enjoyed her services. Locally, some of her clients include Carol Bouwer, Shauwn ‘Ma’Mkhize’ Mkhize and celebrity chef Siba Mtongana.

Get to know more about Svetlana’s inspiring journey in our July-September 2024 issue!