Nadia Ongbiboue

Founder of MUSSOFI

I am Nadia ONGBIBOUE and I created Mussofi, the cosmetics brand specializing for women with black, matte and mixed-race skin.

Mussofi is much more than a company that designs cosmetics. It is a strong brand, created to meet a real need for women with dark skin: to use products that effectively treat imperfections specific to our skin type, with a healthy and natural composition.

Our face and body cosmetics are made in France using a patented process.

With my best friend and partner Adrien AUGE, we invested in research and development for almost 2 years before officially releasing the products that we considered perfect for our users, whom we affectionately call the “Mussofi”.

Mussofi means “black woman” in Bambara, a language spoken in West Africa, and is a nod to my Cameroonian origins.

Because the Mussofi adventure also began with my own experience. I've always struggled to take care of my skin and reduce my hyperpigmentation spots. When I arrived in France, I tried every cosmetic I could: moisturizing creams sold in supermarkets, products supposedly targeting hyperpigmentation in pharmacies, homemade mixtures… even skin-lightening products.

The inspiration for Mussofi came one evening in 2021 when my eldest son, then 8 years old, told me he wished he had white skin because, in his opinion, fair skin was prettier than his own beautiful ebony complexion. He was referring to my lighter skin tone, mainly due to the skin-lightening creams I was using to try and improve my dark spots.

That day, my mother's heart broke: how could such a young child feel a desire to be physically different? His skin is his physical envelope, a strong part of his identity, and one he should embody with pride.

I understood that for all black women, but also for all their children, I had to act.

So, Adrien and I took a major turn in our professional journey by becoming entrepreneurs. Both of us had backgrounds in the agri-food sector, having met during our studies, and we learned everything: how to create a product, how to manage a company's finances, how to communicate, how to identify growth opportunities, how to innovate… Entrepreneurship is a visceral adventure that takes you down unexpected and sometimes exhausting paths. But it's also exhilarating, educational, comforting, and incredibly rewarding.

Meeting our consumers at trade shows, seeing photos of the evolution of their skin after using the products, receiving thanks, seeing Mussofi recommend products to spoil their sisters, their friends, their mothers, their aunts… All of this brings us so much, that we tell ourselves that all this work and these emotional roller coasters are worth experiencing.

Creating Mussofi is a choice I don't regret. Today, I'm proud to lead a company that solves my sisters' skin problems and helps them shine. Because they are the queens.

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Topics covered by Nadia

• Hyperpigmentation and skin spots on dark skin
• Skincare routines for black, dark, and mixed-race skin
• Natural active ingredients & clean ingredients for melanin skin
• Body care & complexion radiance
• Cosmetics made in France & healthy formula
• Well-being & self-confidence for Black women

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Find all the articles written by Nadia on our MUSSOFI blog .

Find Nadia on LinkedIn.