Make-up Artist Turns Setback Into Success
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Monday August 24, 2020 11:46
Unlike many young people who threw in the towel when the going got tough, Loeto decided to come up with a business idea that would generate income so that she puts food on her table. This 23-year-old Motswana woman grew up as an intelligent girl. She passed her final examinations from primary to senior secondary schools with flying colors.
At university, she studied Bachelor of Law from 2014 to 2016 and took a gap year in 2017. When she returned to school the following year, she lost her government sponsorship and had to pay for herself for the remaining two years. However, her dream to be a lawyer could not come true as her parents could not pay for her final year. She decided to come up with ideas to generate income that was when she picked up Face Beats outfit.
“As a self-taught makeup artist, I have mastered the art of adjusting to a new face each time and give them a tailor-made face beat according to their different facial features. I used to watch a lot of YouTube videos to learn more and would practice on different people all the time to perfect my skills. It is important to have qualification for what I am doing, which is why I enrolled at Shahnaz Herbal Institute for a makeup course which I am doing part time while still work at MAC Cosmetics Botswana,” she explained.
Loeto also said Face Beats By Boi was first born out of her passion for makeup. She said she was inspired to come up with that business idea by her passion for makeup. She explained that growing up she used to play with her mother’s makeup. She added that her business offers all sorts of makeup services from day makeup, music video shoots, and photo shoots, bridal and events makeup.
She also offers makeup tutorials. She offers one-on-one and group tutorials depending on what her clients want. She says she believes it is important that each woman knows how to do their own makeup so that they could enhance their natural beauty and feel good about themselves. She says she uses MAC Cosmetics because they have a wide range of foundation colors, which makes it easier for her to find the right shade for each of her customers.
“People are supportive of my business but makeup is a seasonal business and does better in summer when there are more weddings and events. I plan to start my own makeup line as big as MAC Cosmetics with a wide range of colors light enough for the lightest person and dark enough for the darkest person. Besides makeup I also have a Podcast where I discuss all things regarding mental health because it is important to look good outside but also equally important to look beautiful in the inside,” she said.
The facility is called Boi’s Therapy Corner and has over 10 international countries besides Botswana. She said the links to her Podcast were available on her Instagram @Boi_yii. She thanked her mother Mpule Loeto for buying her first set of makeup when she started her business saying she was also supportive of her in all aspects of life. She also said her late father Michael Loeto taught her to never give up and keep pushing no matter what.
She aspires to be a motivational speaker one day and help people of all ages to deal with life trials.