Mame Diene
Karistal, Senegal
A local laboratory promoting the finest African cosmetics and essential oils.

For generations, African women have been soothing and nourishing their skin with shea butter - a moisturising paste derived from the revered shea nut. Senegal has an abundance of shea trees, but lacks the infrastructure to capitalise on this so-called 'African gold'.

Mame Diene hopes to make a difference with her company, Karistal, which she founded in 2007 with her mother. Karistal produces and distributes cosmetic products made from shea butter and other local ingredients, such as mango butter and baobab oil, to Senegalese and international markets.

"In Africa, people believe in the magical properties of the balms and lotions we put on our skin," says Mame. "What Karistal tries to do is to take that magic and, using rigorous scientific methods, put it into our products."

Mame hopes to revive ancient African beauty practices, modernising them while preserving their organic character. In 2007, she launched the company's first product line, Karistal - a range of "luxury" age-defying shea butter skin care products.

The company sources its shea nuts from a women's co-op in Kédougou, a region in south eastern Senegal. Mame is planning to build her own subsidiary in Kédougou to ensure the quality of her ingredients right from the source and create additional jobs for women.

Bosede Edwards
OT Consulting, Nigeria
Consulting services for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in Nigeria.

Small businesses are a dynamic area of growth in Nigeria today. Despite such promising initiatives, the success of these start-ups is often undermined by a lack of education and business skills.

Bosede Edwards wants to raise the bar for the business sphere with a consulting service that will equip employees for the challenges of corporate life. Her company, OT Consulting Services, will offer both employee and employer development programmes.

"MSMEs have the potential to give Nigeria a competitive edge over neighbouring markets, but only if we can improve employee performance," says Bosede. "Filling a gap is what a business is all about. As I'm passionate about teaching and training, I decided this was the problem I wanted to tackle."

Bosede hopes to provide opportunities to Nigerian youth. OT Consulting Service is also poised to set an example of female achievement for women across the country. Bosede says, "Unemployment is a social plague in Nigeria, as is discrimination against women. We're pushing for industry improvement, social change and gender equality."

Lee-Anne Kassel
Kasselot (Pty) Ltd., South Africa
Consulting services for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in Nigeria.

It isn't easy to be stylish when you're the mother of a new baby. Lee-Anne Kassel discovered this first hand when her daughter, Cheyanne, was born and she decided to breastfeed. Unable to find a comfortable yet fashionable maternity bra that would prevent breast milk from leaking onto her clothes, she decided to create one instead.

Lee-Anne founded Kasselot (Pty) Ltd., a company devoted to maternity lingerie. Its signature product, the Evanesse breastfeeding bra, is an elegant, leak-proof bra that draws moisture away from the breast using patented evaporative technology.

"The last thing working mothers want to worry about is leaking milk or unsightly breast pads," says Lee-Anne. "With the Evanesse bra, breastfeeding mothers can live their lives as usual while remaining attractive and feminine. That should make for happier mothers and healthier babies!"

Lee-Anne is preparing to launch Evanesse breastfeeding bras on the international market this July. Retailing at about 52 USD, the bras will be available in shops across South Africa and the UK and on e-commerce sites like Birth and Baby in the US.