Community Highlights: Meet Kofi Onumah of OHENE BEAUTY

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kofi Onumah.

Hi Kofi, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Hello, I’m Kofi the founder and chief artisan of OHENE – a DC-based, small-batch, plant-based skin care company. We are family-owned and operated. We specialize in handmade vegan soaps and moisturizers that focus on eliminating dry skin issues that have been ill-addressed by big-name brands. Our motto is “moisturizing the masses”.

OHENE means “king”. The name is derived from the Akan language of Ghana, West Africa. The Ohene logo is a variant of the textile adinkra symbol ‘adinkrahene’ which incorporates elements of purity and artisanship. To me, Ohene means more than just king – Ohene embodies royalty and the legacy of a royal family. Our supporters are royal – in mind, body, and spirit. Through our products, we seek to deliver quality fit for royalty, while instilling the royal spirit in our youth.”

My entrée into skin care started in my youth, as I dealt with my own dry skin issues. However, in 2015 I started an at-home family project to teach my first-born child about science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM), through soap-making activities. Our weekend projects grew to include close friends and some neighbors after we shared our fun stories along with our soap creations. I quickly observed that our meaningful activities helped kids tap into their inner brilliance and express their individual personalities through soap-making sessions.

It was around this same time that my wife and I were struggling to manage our youngest child’s severe dry skin issue. At the peak of his suffering, he would scratch while asleep, tearing skin, leaving scars, and resulting in soiled sheets. As a doctor of pharmacy, I knew about the medications often prescribed and was keenly aware of the negative side effects associated with long-term usage of topical steroids. In a nutshell, witnessing the suffering of our youngest was pure agony. So, I started learning about dry skin issues and the benefits and intrinsic properties of natural oils for skin care.

Determined to avoid the chronic usage of topical steroids, I worked to develop a natural soap recipe. The goal was to make a soap that moisturized while bathing, while being free of dyes, perfumes and other harmful irritants. When my wife bathed our youngest, she noticed that he and his skin responded favorably. He barely scratched afterwards relative to when using other soaps. His skin no longer felt tight and stripped. However, my wife is a doctor and was naturally skeptical of the positive effects a natural soap could have on skin in general. So, like an astute physician, she paused the soap to see if his skin issues would return. Within a week his skin had regressed. The extreme dry skin returned and the eczema flare-ups resumed. It was at that point we knew we had something special. Friends and family started noticing and inquiring about our soap and what we were doing to address his skin. So, we launched OHENE shortly thereafter to make it more accessible to the masses.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
LOL!! The road to launching and running a business has been the exact opposite of smooth. Launching a brand, in and of itself is enough to make a fragile soul throw in the towel. Startup capital can be difficult to accumulate. There isn’t a comprehensive roadmap listing all of “to-dos”.  While I come from a long line of service-based entrepreneurs, transference of business knowledge is not the daily norm. Therefore, knowing how to launch, fundraise, operate and scale is a learn as you go process, riddled with potential pitfalls.

Adding insult to injury, the pandemic created a new set of hardships. The cost for raw materials jumped tremendously and to-date or replenishment orders are frequently delayed. To hedde, we began storing larger amounts of supplies which came with a new set of considerations. Also, our regular community markets ceased under local orders, so we weren’t able to engage how we had done leading up to March 2020. Overall, it was a tough time for us as well as the community. In response to financial hardships many were facing, we began donating regularly to the local food bank to help out.

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about OHENE BEAUTY?
You’re welcome. Our entry-level product was a signature Lavender + Rosemary soap. It’s made with our ultra-moisturizing carrier oil recipe and finished with a calming blend of pure essential oil and powdered lavender and rosemary botanicals. Some users believe this bar relaxes them after a stressful day. Our bestseller is our PURE soap and is essentially our cleanest soap. It is also the only soap my youngest uses to keep his eczema in check. I stumbled into this soap one cold winter night while preparing an alkaline solution on the patio. Mixing lye with water produces a lot of heat energy. The water can briefly boil giving off a lot of steam. On that night I noticed a longtime neighbor curiously watching me through their kitchen window. I had my Pyrex cookware and a boiling substance. I imagined how I might look to the untrained eye. A few days later I caught up with my curious neighbor and explained to them that I wasn’t cooking illicit substances. Lol!!

Today, we offer eight (8) vegan bath soaps available in various natural scents, but all built on our signature recipe. We also formulated Cell Therapy – a non-greasy all-vegan daily facial moisturizer that restores skin to its best glow, without clogging pores. It comes in two (2) formats that have been particularly life-changing for me with preventing my breakouts. Additionally, we offer a collection of pleasantly scented body balms and creams that leave skin perfectly moisturized all day long. We also make Loc Libation, a vegan oil hair moisturizer. We have two (2) plant-based DIY facials that turn weekends into spa days.

Most of our products are made with imported organic oils and butters. Our shea is fair trade sourced from Ghana and our palm is sustainably sourced. We avoid dyes and synthetic preservatives, and incorporate natural color agents and stabilizers, whenever possible. All of our soaps are naturally scented with pure essential oils that deliver an aromatherapeutic experience without the toxic ingredients often masked under the “fragrance/perfume” ingredient listing.

Most recently, we branched out into apparel and are excited to offer some new creations that can be worn both at home and out and about.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
For me, decompressing with loved ones always brings me joy. Being outdoors with nature is very centering. Reading and listening to music are both trusted self-care activities. Also, for some reason, I love seeing underdogs succeed. It’s particularly gratifying to see community based nonprofits and small businesses win because through their success the community is fortified. Ideally, the small business would return value with the transference of knowledge through mentorship, capital investments, job opportunities and internships, minus the displacement of pre-existing community inhabitants and institutions that often accompany toxic gentrification. I also like whenever someone shops OHENE.

Pricing:

• Soaps – $10 ea.
• Facial moisturizers – $25 ea.
• Body moisturizers – $22 to $30 ea.
• Masks – $35 to $45 ea.
• Apparel – $75 to $300

Contact Info:

• Email: info@ohenebeauty.com
• Website: ohenebeauty.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ohenebeauty/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OHENEartisan/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ohenebeauty
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLWwHs07-I0sXVlZFWSc-9A
• Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/OHENEBEAUTY/

Image Credits
Charles Garrett Photography
Kofi Onumah