By Manny Ita

Inspiring a world that is on a perilous path to achieving dubious beauty standards, through skin-lightening products promising a brighter, more flawless complexion must certainly be a herculean mission, but one which Avila Naturalle has over the years taken deftly in its strides, leaving profound impact on the health and lives of thousands of people since it's divine inception in 2017.

Skin-lightening creams typically contain toxic chemicals like mercury and lead in quantities that significantly exceed health guidelines. Chemicals are used in these products to block the natural production of melanin in the skin and make the skin look fairer. However, these chemicals are harmful to the human skin and body. Bleaches weaken and penetrate the skin, increasing the risk of cancer and other diseases. Indeed the dangers associated with skin-bleaching creams and products are real and alarming. The mercury compounds in these products are of particular concern, as they can cause long-term harm to the skin, organs, and the nervous system.

The desire to lighten skin is a global phenomenon. One of the root causes of this according to a school of thought lie in colonialism and white supremacy.
With reference to an American Sociological Society paper “To justify racial slavery, slave-holding interests espoused a white supremacist ideology which held that persons of African descent were innately inferior to whites. Whiteness became identified with all that is civilised, virtuous, and beautiful.

Yet today, in many countries movies, books, dolls, and other contemporary symbolism tend to depict paler skin tones and associate these with power and beauty.

There is a psychological component associated to dkin-lightening as well, beside the alarming physical side-effects. In pursuit of a lighter skin, many users are driven by low self-esteem, self-worth, and identity issues caused by dubious beauty standards in social media and other marketing channels.

The good news however is that, Avila Naturalle limited - a leading manufacturer of natural body care and household brands in Africa - has been at the forefront of the damaged skin restoration solutions for close to a decade, commited to enriching lives and inspiring a healthier and happier world by offering natural skincare solutions that deliver healthier, radiant, and glowing skin, while in the same vein addressing the challenge of low esteem associated with the skin type and complexion by promoting naturally healthy and glowing skin using truly natural and safe products, driven by the need to help Nigerians/Africans break free from toxic and harmful chemical-based body care products.

Avila Natural Limited, is focused on encouraging the use of pure and natural body care (skincare, haircare, mouth care, foot care) products.

Divinely inspired in 2017 to start working with natural ingredients to proffer solutions to thousands of people having skincare issues, Temitope Mayegun, the brain behind Avila began conducting research in which the result revealed that a lot of people are having skin issues like dark patches, sunburn, stretch marks. She also discovered that the beauty industry is filled with non-natural beauty products that have wreaked havoc on people's skin.
So Avila Naturalle began it's mission of offerimg natural products that will have no side effects on users, products that will make them happier and will also make their skin healthier, exploring also the need to proffer solutions to people who have stretch marks, sunburn, skin discoloration and hair issues. The results have been really positive and inspiring.

Affirming this, Mayegun posits; "People hardly believe that our products are natural because of the results achieved, they feel we infuse other components into our products but Integrity is one of our core values. We always go for quality raw materials too. We review our customers' experience and their feedback even the ones that are not pleasant. We analyze these feedback to come up with solutions that exceed their expectations. Avila is all about solutions. I must tell you that, we are proffering solutions to people's issues. We are trying to make people healthier and live a fulfilled life."

One big issue though with curbing this anomaly is that the global skin-lightening market, estimated to be worth billions of dollars is highly unregulated.

A 2018 Zero Mercury Working Group and Biodiversity Research Institute test of over 300 products from 22 countries found that approximately 10 percent of skin lightening creams contained as much as 100 times the authorized amount.

Despite what regulation there is, companies still produce harmful skin-bleaching products due to consumer demand – consumers which are mostly not aware that the creams can cause very harmful impacts on their health and wellbeing.

Yet there is hope that this vicious cycle can be broken with appropriate government policies and initiatives. In Rwanda for example, the“Black is beautiful” campaign highlights the dangers of creams aimed at lightening the skin using substances like mercury and hydroquinone and addresses prevailing beauty standards that support internalised colourism among the Black population of Rwanda.

Its Ministerial Order on harmful chemicals in cosmetics received the Future Policy Award for a Toxic-Free Future in September 2023. The aim of the Ministerial Order is to protect the people of Rwanda from the harmful effects of chemicals contained in cosmetics and support the skin health of the Rwandan population. This policy has outlawed products containing harmful chemicals and made them less accessible. The Ministerial Order regulates the use of specific harmful cosmetics in Rwanda. It lists about 1,343 cosmetics and regulates the manufacture, import, distribution, and use of cosmetics that have been identified as containing substances that are hazardous for human consumption.

Bangladesh is also one of the very few Asian countries that regulate heavy metals and other chemical compounds in cosmetic products, with an amount of around USD 10 million of these products seized from the Bangladeshi market, thus reducing their negative impact on human health and the environment

The Nigerian government can tow this line, given that Nigeria is the most populous black nation on planet earth with what that signifies in the light of this article.

Avila Naturalle since inception has redefined the Nigerian body care space by promoting the health and safety of Nigerians through the encouragement of the adoption of all-natural body care solutions comprising skincare, haircare, mouth care and foot care.

Mayegun says "The overall vision of the company is driven by the need to help Nigerians break free from toxic and harmful chemical-based body care products by creating a culture and an enabling environment for natural body care solutions to thrive".
"Furthermore, the whole essence of Avila Naturalle is to right the wrong in the society; to get people to appreciate their skin, to get people to solve self-esteem issues. A lot of people have self-esteem issues caused by the belief that only fair people are beautiful, and that is why they use bleaching products. So, Avila Naturalle is here to let them know that whatever complexion they have, they are still beautiful. We are here to give them products that will make them glow naturally. We are here to give them a healthy approach to achieve glowing skin. Mayegun assures.

With one of its core values being Innovation, Avila strategises regularly to ensure meeting customers expectations and striving to ensure sustainable growth through continuous improvement on all its products to enrich the lives of customers and give them a pleasant experience.

With a primary focus on organic products which starts by getting quality products from the farm, all products used for Avila production are organically grown.

"Our products are 100 per cent natural, free of parabens, animal by-products, propylene glycol, sodium lauryl sulfates, mineral oils, colourant, petroleum and chemicals. While based on purely natural ingredients, our Research and Development team are well-equipped and constantly focused on the future. This allows us to stay ahead of trends, latest development and competition. We have premium quality products that cater to hair, face, body, mouth, foot, and other private needs. There is no exception to who uses our products. We have made it possible to meet the needs of all humanity both female, male and children". Mayegun points out.
According to her,
"A carrot for instance may not be organically grown. They may apply fertilizer to it and if we use it, it will affect the overall production".

She explains that because of the dangers caused by inorganic products, there is usually a transitioning stage when you are using natural products.
"If you have been using a kind of harmful chemical-based product that have been bleaching your skin or probably toning your skin before, when you switch to natural products there may be a kind of skin purging. People have to understand that these products are natural, and they cannot work within seven days or within five days the way chemical-based products will work".

Early this year the company diversified into the food sector. Through consistency and hard work the brand Avila continues to blaze the trail with the ripple effects of its success story solidifying it's position as the leading manufacturer of genuinely natural body care and household brands in Africa

As with most ventures divine which begin small, Avila began it's production with just 30,000 coconut oil but today has over 2,000 distributors across different cadres, with a staff strength of 150 and still counting.

"Our distributors are also part of our stakeholders, I mean external stakeholders, apart from the margin they make, there is a shared value and clear understanding of the company's vision. It is not all about Temitope Mayegun, it is about the brand, the staff, the distributors, and the vision. The value chain is what we have been able to sustain over the years, and I must tell you, that is a unique selling point for us".

Skin lightening is harmful to human health and the environment. Still, too few people are aware of the dark sides of skin bleaching. Therefore, it behoves the media to raise awareness about the threats and combat dubious beauty standards based on racism, colonialism or other negative variable.

People of colour can be proud of their skin tone. Avila Naturalle and initiatives like the Rwandan “Black is Beautiful” campaign lead the way forward. For sure, governments need to step up their consumer protection mechanisms and implement the Minamata Convention which does not allow the manufacture, import, or export of cosmetics (with mercury content above 1ppm).
In conclusion, we are all beautiful. The diversity of skin colours is what makes each and every one of us beautiful and special.