Case Study | Nourishing the roots of black beauty | Branding Agency Australia | Brand Strategy | Restaurant Design | Industry recognition

UNDERSTANDING CONTEXT

Nana Konamah is a well-educated, intelligent and articulate West African who loves her native Ghana.

Apart from intimate involvement in her family business, an infrastructure conglomerate, Nana is passionate about liberating young Ghanaian women from the shackles of borrowed self-image and self-worth, a legacy from their colonial past. She was keen to launch a range of hair and skin care products that helped Ghanaians revive and preserve pristine African beauty. Nana discovered Bubblefish’s impressive brand building work through social media.

ANALYSING ISSUES

This was a crowded category where stakes were high and tastes very fickle. Big players dominated the scene and technology was changing the game. The new brand was being created for the African market, but its viable future would depend on generating demand among darker skinned women around the world.
The local brand had to be globally relevant and appealing with little glitz or glamour.

IDEATING STRATEGIES

The intent was to come up with a name that captured the essence of the product benefit. In a market that was teeming with outlandish names, Nana agreed to keep the branding pure and simple. The upshot was Pure Persona, a direct reference to the brand’s promise of innate, natural beauty.
The tagline Seek your inner beauty was a call to young African women to rediscover their pristine looks using traditional styles and treatments.

CRAFTING SOLUTIONS

Simplicity was at the core of the Brand’s expression. The name had to be rendered in a style that was free flowing, aesthetic and evocative.
The master stroke, literally, was the adaptation of the “Sankofa”, an Adinkra symbol to represent the letters ‘P’ in the brand name. Adinkra cultural motifs have special significance to West Africans with the “Sankofa” symbolising the idea of “positive reversion” or reverting to the past, a theme central to Pure Persona’s purpose and positioning.
As in the strategy, innovation and tradition beautifully crafted together a breathtaking promo video featuring Nana as the face of Pure Persona. The underlying brand purpose to inspire other proud African women to join the movement of #PurePersona by embracing their own version of natural beauty.
Another powerful video of Nana's personal story was also created as part of the launching strategy.

"The whole persona was shaped by pure values and unpretentious thinking, a rarity in the beauty business."

PRIMING FOR SUCCESS

The visualisation of Pure Persona was not merely a physical expression of the brand’s identity. It became the inspiration for defining every touchpoint. The physical product, its packaging, messaging and the whole persona was shaped by pure values and unpretentious thinking, a rarity in the beauty business. The brand is undergoing pre-launch testing.
A spin off benefit of the venture is the potential for employing Ghanaian women in Shea nut growing as well as in the product’s distribution/promotion.