Beauty
I always think of my ancestors when I’m creating.
As a child, her aunt would frequently send her family shea butter from Nigeria.
At the time of her mothers diagnosis, Tegbe was burnt-out and working as a management consultant.
She was already considering a major life change and the shea butter sparked memories of her childhood.
I felt like I needed to go and learn about my heritage.
I needed to be around my family, Tegbe tells Bustle.
There, Tegbe fell in love with the intricate production process of shea butter and coconut oil.
I was this young soul who was interested in what they were doing.
And from there, it grew.
Today,54 Throneshas taken Tegbe all over the continent.
I didn’t want to just order from the middle person.
Below, a behind-the-scenes look at her breathtaking journey.
The cooperatives that we work with live and are headquartered here.
Its always good to revisit and go back to where it all started.
So it’s always like this community effort, a community event.
Our shea butter is picked from a tree.
The fruit is picked, the outside is eaten, and the nuts are then processed into oil.
It’s still this age-old way of manufacturing and hand-crafting.
Sometimes when they do that, they go out into the bush and there are snakes.
That was one of their other concerns.
That was a highlight; they were so excited for the safety boots.
I showed them our old videos and pictures on my phone, so that was a cool moment.
They really expressed that they want people to know that they’re open for business.
This is their livelihood.
To us, it’s a beauty product.
But to them, it’s how they feed their family and their communities.
So we sat with them, and we listened to their concerns.
We also did an overview of [their] beauty rituals and why they’re significant to them.
It’s actually Ghanian-owned, but it’s calledKozo.
It’s super interesting because Kozo flew in and moved in Japanese chefs.
The chefs moved to Accra and they actually live there.
Everything is authentic, and I really love that because, again, it goes back to attribution.
After that…let me just tell you that Accra nightlife is lit.
Aburi is definitely a place you want to go and have a picnic with your boo.
We wanted [the shoot] to have an authentic Ghanian atmosphere.
100 percent Ghanian models, staff, creative director, photographer, videographer, editor.
Everything was Ghanian; it was a locally produced campaign.
They don’t think of all the magnificent beaches, food, art, and culture.
Patronize the other side.
If you want to help Africa, do business there.
And so that’s why it’s important to me to always think of those things.
You cant just get a tequila.
Its all local Ghanian craft cocktails.
It was so tasty and it was great to speak with her.
