RONKE IGE, Emi & Ben
In 2007 I became pregnant and it was a few months into my pregnancy I informed my grandmother who lived in Nigeria, I was to bless her with a great grandchild. She was delighted and immediately arranged for some gifts to be sent to me for me to use at home (in London) during my pregnancy and for when my baby was born. Amongst these gifts was a block of something which visually resembled wax and my mother confirmed the Yoruba name for it was ‘ori’; which when translated into English meant ‘shea butter’. My mother reminded me that she used ori in its raw condition as a skin moisturiser when she was growing up in Nigeria as well as on my brother, sister and me; however it became difficult to continue using on us as it wasn’t readily available in the UK. Ori continues to be a staple moisturising product in most homes across West Africa. I started using the product on myself throughout my pregnancy to moisturise my body and growing baby bump. My sister also used it on my newly born nephew. Firsthand experience from using the ‘unrefined’ Shea butter, was enough of a green light for me to develop the skin care range Emi & Ben named after my daughter and nephew, making it accessible to those who lived outside of West Africa.
The best thing about this industry is seeing firsthand how your product has helped a child or adult who are experiencing skin conditions such as eczema. Many customers take the time to send an email to thank me for the body butters created within the range. The joy which oozes from their messages is simply wonderful. To know my product has helped to restore a happiness when it comes to them loving their skin again – you can’t beat that feeling.
Ronke’s top 5 go to beauty products:
Emi & Ben body butter from the Grown Ups range
Dermalogica’s special cleansing gel
Tester pots of our new Emi & Ben lip balm – to be launched later this year!
Emi & Ben Face Moisturiser – out later this year too!
Be-Unique’s ‘Shea Bliss’
