Biblical beauty for the modern woman
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Monday August 11, 2025 12:27
Speaking at the official re-launch of the occasion at Molapo Crossing in Gaborone on Tuesday, the director of Nora Cosmetics, Nora McAslin, explained that the names were a divine revelation inspired by her faith. She said that the names came as a revelation from God, hence she named all the 15 shades of liquid foundations after women in the Bible. Together with her employees, McAslin said they brainstormed, researched, and sourced different shades of foundations that could match the colours of local women. She added that the company aims to empower women through beauty, with a slogan, ‘Changing Lives Through Beauty.' “What inspired the names? There is power in the name. Most women who come to us come with burdens and have stories to tell. God guided me to the names I chose. All 15 shades of the foundations are named after the powerful women in the Bible. We have Hanna, I use her. There are Ruth, Ester, Priscilla, Mary, and many more women from the Bible. The lipsticks are the characteristics of women in the Bible. We want you to carry the ministry with you. These are not just mere cosmetics, but they are a ministry, a preaching,” she said.
McAslin stated that they would soon be taking their products to other parts of the country. She indicated that she could not separate herself from the grace of God. She pointed out that in 2013, whilst fresh from school and looking for something to do, she earned herself a cosmetic job because she loved beauty and beautiful women. She explained that one day, while browsing on social media, she saw an advert from a certain cosmetic company looking for salespeople all across the world, and she applied. The company was based in Ghana, where she went for training. “That is when my journey in the cosmetic industry began. I started my cosmetics business from my small house in Phase 2. I sold them in the streets. I was a street vendor at the main mall, but when my business grew, I was kicked out of where I was selling since I sold in an open space not far from the bank. The bank was worried about the movement of people who came to buy my makeup. I then rented a small shop. At the time, I was selling products that came from Ghana that were dark for our skin tone,” she explained.
However, her business grew tremendously over the years. McAslin said she then started researching and decided to do the cosmetics that could work on local skin types. She added that her business was funded by the Ministry of Youth through the Youth Development Fund (YDF) programme. However, even though the business was making a lot of money, things turned sour when COVID-19 hit the country and negatively affected a number of businesses. She said after the lockdown, people had to wear masks for two and a half years, adding that when people removed the masks, the products were left with six months to expire, while the warehouse was full of stock. “Thankfully, I had a supportive team player. They believed in my brand. They have been my rock. They held me in dark times. I could not see the light, but they held me. I had sleepless nights as I took a loan from the bank to buy my stock. My team advised me to do face-beats so that I do not lose. We did, and along the way, we sat down together and decided to design new cosmetics that could cater to all women. We did not only want to do face beats but made shades that women can find themselves in them,” she said.
Giving a keynote address, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Arts and Sports, Tebogo Matebesi, said the re-launch was a testimony to absolute bravery for a young Motswana to go through an international business, more especially the cosmetic one. He added that McAslin’s decision not to go for letsoku but bring international beauty products that could cater to everyone was commendable. He added that with her dedication and hard work, she would go far. “I pray for you to go far. Your steps keep going up. I don’t know who you will be sitting next to, promoting your makeup. Queen Esther was my favourite in the Bible. You are talking about real women in our country. I am thankful for the value chain you are promoting,” he ended.