GTCO Fashion Weekend: Lessons in Longevity, Next Generation Brand Building

The GTCO Fashion Weekend’s masterclass, 'The Power of Story: Building Brands People Believe In,' delivered a dual lesson in market survival while a 13-year veteran preached a doctrine of radical 'customer obsession,' a leading next-generation founder, Jade Oyateru of Uncover Skincare, demonstrated how to build a globally competitive brand by solving problems specific to the African consumer. 

The African Skincare Revolution

Introducing the masterclass, Jade Oyateru, Co-Founder and COO of Uncover, showcased the potential of African brands to compete internationally. Uncover, a fast-growing brand that merges advanced Korean skincare science with African botanicals, has redefined beauty by focusing specifically on melanin-rich skin.

Under Oyateru’s leadership, the brand has secured multi-million-dollar funding, expanded across eight African countries, and earned recognition from global outlets like Bloomberg and Vogue Business for its approach to redefining beauty through targeted solutions.

Oyateru, who holds an MBA from Imperial College London and previously held roles at Unilever and Nestlé, embodies the spirit of building globally competitive African brands driven by purpose and advanced business strategy.

The Veteran’s Secret: Embrace the 'Tourist Customer'

A successful founder celebrating 13 years in the fiercely competitive beauty industry offered candid advice on achieving sustained relevance in a market that constantly seeks novelty.

The founder revealed that the key to survival is accepting that modern beauty consumers are driven by trends, not loyalty.

 "We had to accept that very early on. That our customers are not here for a lifetime. They're here for a good time."

To counteract this, the brand focused on absolute product excellence and problem-solving, building its reputation on reliability. Their innovation is rooted in deep empathy for their "booked and busy" customers who need functional products, like long-lasting colour, that simplify their lives.

 "You have to be really comfortable with what you are doing, it's not about me. It's about that we are showing up in the best possible way for our customer."

The essential tool for longevity, the founder stressed, is continuously surveying customers to understand their competitive landscape and product needs.

The Three-Part Mandate for New Startups

The veteran founder concluded by laying out a clear, three-part mandate for any entrepreneur launching a new venture: Spend some months agonizing over whether the market truly needs your idea and why a customer would choose you over the competition. "Just because you like something doesn't mean that that's a business." Do not fear financial metrics. Understand the true cost of production, payroll, and freight. If you aren’t good with numbers, "Bring on a partner or hire someone who is good with numbers.

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 Management is the hardest part of scaling. Entrepreneurs must be intentional leaders, recognizing that "Managing people is actually harder than managing the business."

The session ultimately encouraged Lagos-based entrepreneurs to leverage their massive local market size, noting: "You guys don't even have to leave your backyards in order to be successful. I want you guys to be very comfortable with starting exactly where you are, right here, with exactly what you have."