Ghana to the world: R&R Skincare brings beauty essentials from Accra to Atlanta Fashion Week

Ghanaian skincare brand R&R. Photo by Laura Nwogu/The Atlanta VoiceGhanaian skincare brand R&R made its U.S. debut during Atlanta’s Fashion Week. With a line of products that include shea body oil, whipped shea butter, and pure black soap, CEO and founder Valerie Obaze hopes to connect people to the African super ingredients that fuel and nourish healthy skin. For Obaze, that mission began at home. After giving birth to her daughter, Obaze and her husband moved from London to his birthplace of Nigeria. When searching the stores for natural and local skin products, she noticed that no African brands were being sold; the shelves were filled with international brands that weren’t selling shea butter in its pure form.& “I definitely saw that there was a gap there. And so, it was a mixed show of need, and also seeing a gap in the market that created the brand for me,” Obaze said during an Atlanta Fashion Week mixer.Named after her daughter, R&R’s focus is clean and high-quality skincare that not only benefits people but also uplifts them. Shea nuts are a key economic crop for over 470,000 women farmers in Northern Ghana. Despite the opportunities offered through Ghana being the...