Healthy, glowing skin drives entrepreneur’s passion

Searching for a suitable skincare treatment and being unable to find one set Nonceba Hlengani’s (27) journey into entrepreneurship in motion.

Born in Giyani, Limpopo, and raised in Gauteng, Hlengani’s struggle with her skin during her teenage years impacted her self-esteem.

“I tried several products from retailers and dermatologists hoping to find the right one but wasn’t successful. My acne and dark spots worsened and I almost gave up hope,” she says.

Instead, the then 24-year-old was determined to find an answer and started doing her own research.

“My family was part of the journey from the beginning. We established Xitsavi Health in 2017 and worked with CW Pharmaceuticals. My father knew its founder Charles Moolman, who had over 20 years’ experience in the pharmaceutical industry,” says Hlengani.

The successful partnership led to the launch of Hlengani’s Zuru Skincare collection, for adults and children, which is manufactured and distributed by Xitsavi Health.

“The adults’ facial range treats dark spots, acne and pigmentation; and the baby range, Zurubaby, caters for children up to five years old. Zurubaby promotes healthy skin and treats dry, sensitive and eczema-prone skin,” Hlengani explains.

She also received assistance from the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency (GGDA) to market her business. The GGDA assisted Hlengani with posters and flyers which is in line with the organisation’s aims of helping businesses to unlock investment and expansion opportunities.

“During the 2020 lockdown, things went quiet and so did some of our customers. We understood that the times were difficult financially, but COVID-19 put our plans to grow and venture out of South Africa on hold.”

Hlengani approached the Gauteng Enterprise Propeller (GEP), which promotes, fosters and develops small enterprises in Gauteng to assist her with COVID-19 Relief Funding.

Her company was assisted with R12 000 from the GEP.

She added that the pandemic came with a lot of valuable lessons around online marketing.

After three years of self-marketing and online advertising, Hlengani’s hard work and determination paid off and she signed a deal with Clicks for Zurubaby. The range is now available in 32 Clicks stores nationwide.

She also added that she would like to see her products being sold in all retailers and boutique outlets throughout South Africa, and aim to make Zuru Skincare a household name in Africa.