5 MINUTES WITH FATIMA UGOCHUKWU
It’s an exciting time in the Nigerian beauty industry, as impressive makeup brands are cropping up left and right, captivating the hearts and wallets of makeup lovers. While there is a considerable rise of new players in the market, some are making sure to stand stand out. Trims and Prissy, a luxurious botanical and nontoxic skincare and makeup brand, is one of them. Owned by Fatima Ugochukwu, the brand can easily compete with international brands as it caters to every skin type, even acne prone skin. STYLE chats with Trims and Prissy founder, Fatima, to learn why she founded the brand, what her daily skincare routine is and much more. How did you get started in the beauty industry?
My journey really started as a consumer from my teens, experimenting with my mum’s makeup and skincare stash. I began to decipher what sets apart a luxury makeup or skincare product from a massproduced, drugstore brand. Then, I went to beauty school in 2012 after my post graduate studies and learned a lot more about makeup application and how it is interlinked with good skincare. I then began my search for a state of the art factory to work with on producing my own line of products in 2014, leading up to me starting Trim & Prissy in 2015. The rest is history as they say. What was your biggest fear when you decided to quit your stable job to start your own brand?
My biggest fear was of course, failure! However, I had already began to see traction and sales long before I decided to leave my job. I turned the fear into motivation and made sure to do at least one thing a day to ensure the success of my brand. What was the motivation behind the Trim and Prissy brand, a brand that reflects the values of luxurious yet friendly and gentle feel on the skin?
Inspiration for my brand came from high-end, trailblazing international brands such as Estee Lauder and Trish McEvoy to name a few. I wanted to create a brand that would be timeless, effective and that would spark a conversation. At the time I moved back to Nigeria post-studies, there was no official makeup outlets for the brands I was used to internationally. I ended up buying counterfeits without knowing it. This shopping experience spurred me to launch easily accessible beauty products that would compete internationally on quality. Can you tell us about the ingredients in Trim and Prissy Products and benefits?
Our newly launched luxurious skincare range is all botanical, yet potent and non-toxic. We include dermatologically tested, effective plants such as red clover, apricot oil, cucumber, white willow bark, seaweed, Jojoba oil, and Japanese green tea to name a few. These all play a definitive role in combatting pimples, sunburn, and removing dead skin cells to brighten and rejuvenate your skin.
Our makeup range is skin-friendly, oil and paraben free as well as non-comedogenic. The foundation and lipstick formulations contain vitamin E, collagen, hyaluronic acid, while our bestselling mineral powder foundation contains a natural sunscreen. These ingredients ensure that your skin is left looking even better after you take your makeup off. Is the brand all-inclusive or have you created a brand for a specific skin or colour types?
The entire Trim and Prissy range is all-inclusive with our mineral powder shades catering to all skin tones, ranging from very deep dark skin all the way to Caucasian skin.Our skincare range is suitable for all skin types, oily to combination, and is also very beneficial for acne prone skin. What sets you apart from the other beauty brands?
It’s a relatively niche positioning in Nigeria to provide skin-friendly, yet high performance makeup products while having a strong stance on remaining cruelty-free. We also engage with our customers actively on social media as well as through our blog posts, where we answer a lot of their beauty related questions. How important is sustainability of your products and what kind of sustainable business strategies are you implementing?
Sustainability is definitely a part of our brand ethos from manufacture (a lot of the products are hand poured rather than machine filled), to remaining online rather than opening multiple physical outlets, which reduces energy consumption and carbon emissions.
We also pay attention to the UN sustainable development goals, which focuses on promoting economic growth and decent work opportunities for all. By collaborating with startups and lesser-known brands, we encourage entrepreneurial growth and job creation for women across the country. What is in store for the future?
Our customers will dictate, since we love providing the quality products that they long for.
Do you have a beauty routine, product you can’t you go a day without? Yes, and all using my own products! I wash my face morning and evening with our gentle chamomile face wash, exfoliate once a week with the gently face polish, and mask twice a week. I actually use the Jojoba daytime moisturizer as a hand cream too so it’s never far from me! One makeup product I can’t go a day without using is the mineral powder foundation (and the compact kabuki brush used to apply it) because it is everything in one; it conceals, provides sun protection and gives a cake-free application making it perfect for
everyday use. How can our readers get their hands on any of your products and how pocket friendly are they? Our products are available exclusively on www.trimandprissy.com and we deliver Nationwide in record time. Product prices range from as low as N2,500 to N14,000 Naira, so there is something for everyone. Also, customer service is at the forefront of our brand so feel free to make enquiries by email (info@trimandprissy.com), phone (+2349097723648) or through social media (instagram/facebook: @ trimandprissy and @ trimandprissyskin)