By Chinazam Ikechi-Uko.
The air is fresh, and the scenic meadow stretches endlessly as we navigate Lakowe Lakes in a golf cart. We are headed for the golfing activity on our agenda for the Beauty Hut Galentine Getaway, which celebrates the brand’s first anniversary with over 30 influencers from February 7th to 9th.
This getaway, the first trip of its kind for a beauty brand, sparked a wave of excitement online, highlighting Beauty Hut’s role in transforming the beauty retail landscape. Every post fueled online FOMO— fear of missing out— and optimism that this would not be the sole time.
Lately, Beauty Hut is known to define the zeitgeist; partnering with a multitude of renowned brands, from teaming up with Moet & Chandon, Maybelline, and Alara for Christmas specials to their presence at events like Hertitude and Street Souk.
Two months into the new year and they’re not showing signs of slowing down. For the Valentine’s season, they collaborated with Food Court, Anoela Cards, and Amapiano District. Its red and pink logo has become synonymous with fun. The Beauty Hut’s accomplishments are the reasons for a lavish celebration, and a brand trip with a star-studded ensemble seems fitting.
WHY IS BEAUTY HUT SO BELOVED:
Historically, Nigeria has struggled with a counterfeit problem; from the pharmaceutical to the body care industry– buying a product has never guaranteed authenticity. This came to a stop in the drug sector in 2001, largely thanks to Dora Akunyili. However, the body care industry was still grappling with the problem. Then came Beauty Hut.
Beauty Hut, founded by Subuola Oyeleye, is a dynamic and rapidly growing African beauty retailer offering a diverse range of skincare, makeup, haircare, and fragrance products. They cater to beauty enthusiasts across the continent, providing access to both international and potentially local brands. These brands include Maybelline, Uncover, Topicals, and R&R, showcasing the retailer’s curated selection of high-quality products.
Several of these products could be spotted on the BHTakesLakowe trip as they decorated our cottage rooms with the finest products from their catalogue. “Oh, Beauty Hut is spoiling me,” Chef Yoyo, an esteemed guest expressed. She like everyone else had a cottage where they paired with a friend or in the case of the beauty influencer, Celina Kama, paid with a twin– Felicia Kama.
Ella of Wallflower Beauty, Fifumi of 21 magazine, Chef Yoyo, and Victoria.
INTO THE BEAUTY HUT GALENTINE TRIP:
DAY 1:
February 7th, arrival day, was for settling in, Lakowe tour, red-themed dinner, and movie night. We pushed the movie night to night as the trip to Lakowe had exhausted the average person for the day.
A few hours into the 7th and the BHTakesLakowe group chat learned that beauty influencer, Marycolette is funny. She joked that she had arrived at the Beauty Hut store with her boxes at 8 am. This panicked the group because although we were expected to arrive between 8 to 10 am, most people had assumed Nigerian time (+2 hours) and had woken up. She laughed as everyone felt pressured to leave their houses, knowing that she hadn’t left hers.
As predicted lots of people came into the Beauty Hut Store, the departure station, close to noon. On the bus, we do a head count and discover that there are 40 of us. Rapper Elestee, formerly known as Lifesize Teddy, exclaims, “I love this, I just love girls.” She is seated next to another artiste, Solis4ever.
On the bus, the content creators get to work, capturing candid moments almost like paid actors. The trip to Lakowe was less than two hours long and on arrival, we were speechless.
The 308 hectares full of land, Lakowe was picturesque. As we were taken to the rooms, we learned that we were the first people to experience the new Lakowe cottages. Several rooms got a balcony view of one of the lakes of Lakowe.
A walk into our rooms and everything was mind-blowing as there were customized robes, golf shirts, visors, and eventually bikinis. Some surprises awaited us outside our rooms, including the launch of the Wallflower Beauty brand by Ella at our red-themed dinner. Ella announced an exclusive retail launch with Beauty Hut and gifted everyone products from her store. The makeup was uniquely designed, featuring heart-shaped blushes, which added to the lovely assortment of products we found in our rooms.
Products like Uncover, ÀSÀBI, Skinneeds, Topicals, Olori, Vive Hair Care and R&R skincare which are available on the Beauty Hut website. These items in our rooms coincided with the activities on the Galentine itinerary. ÀSÀBI sleepwear was also available for our nights and when we awoke for the second day, we changed into activewear by Sapphire By O or Berbie Beauty.
DAY 2:
Most people got down by 8 am for the yoga and wellness sessions but not beauty and fashion influencer, Henrietta Itepu, who had been on a half an hour jog. “I do this every day, I am running in the marathon,” she said. She refers to the annual Lagos City Marathon which was held on the 15th of February.
In a Sapphire By O activewear, she and BBN alumni Allysyn convinced everyone to walk to the yoga class instead of waiting for the golf cart. “Start your exercise now,” she said. But 10 minutes into the walk, she was nowhere to be found.
When she eventually came to the yoga class, along with other BBN alumni Saskay and Vee. She had a Topicals eye mask on, and so did everyone. Beauty Hut had provided each guest with a few packs of them and if our bodies are going to be refreshed, then our under eyes should too.
The yoga class was moderated by Jemvaris Wellness, with spray-on sunscreens by Cape&Coco at arms reach, and at the end of the class, she had us all attempt the splits. “I don’t think I am doing it well,” fashion content creator Amy Odili says. The yoga instructor reassures her that when it comes to flexibility, sometimes your left feels easier than your right. Odili discovers the truth in this as she makes a better attempt at the splits with her left leg behind.
At the end of the lesson, Angel Anosike of Nay Living takes the lead as she has everyone do a gratitude exercise. At breakfast, I discovered that Anosike’s therapeutic speech is imbued and not just a calming voice she puts on at wellness sessions.
She sits at the table and talks about how she is always looking for connections— a term for someone who’s not yet a friend or acquaintance. She advises always having a positive outlook on community development. When asked about her favourite part of the Beauty Hut trip, she says, “Honestly getting to spend time with Mc (Marycolette) and making new connections.” Her words encouraged everyone to make connections and when we left for golf, we tried this.
Little to no one had experience with golf, and novelty proved to be a great conversation starter for many. The Lakowe Golf Academy had a few instructors who taught us how to play, it also had a monitor calculating how far shots were from the 50, 100, or 150m hole. A monitor Dj TGarbs grew fond of as she discovered she might have the Tiger Woods gene.
After hitting a few balls, we came together to take photos. In our Beauty Hut golf shirts and visors, the notable content creators pointed out that this felt like the perfect moment to take group shots. Among them were influencers such as Jaiye, Fifunmi, Nonye, EHI, Dodo, Shade, Fareedah, Simi, Evelyn, Joy, Jessica, Naomi, Cassandra, Helen, Yobe, Georgia and Victoria. Along with models Laura and Ivie.
BEHIND THE JBOTTOMS X BEAUTY HUT SWIMWEAR:
Lotanna Don Of Jbottoms By Jal.
Another surprise came at lunch: Beauty Hut partnered with Jbottoms to create custom bikinis for everyone. On the collaboration, Lotanna Don, founder of Jbottoms By Jal, said, “I like to team up with people that are intelligent, so I learn a lot, so I have been thinking of doing this with Beauty Hut for a while.” The red and pink colours of the swimwear stood out at the Lakowe pool. On her inspiration, Don expressed, “I thought about the Beauty Hut package– their bags. The hot pink, I wanted to create a two-tone bikini reminiscent of the bag and it ties into the Valentine’s season.”
Jaiye and Naomi in Jbottoms X Beauty Hut.
The swimsuits were as comfortable as they were beautiful and after an hour plus at the pool, we headed to our rooms to prepare for dinner. At dinner, we ate with gratitude knowing that this was our last night together. We took turns talking about our plans for Valentine’s and after we had a games night.
DAY 3:
The last activity on the itinerary was fishing. Lakowe Lake gets its name from the dozens of lakes within its gates, and its fishing club revels in this. With our bags packed and loaded, a few of us took turns casting our rods. Casting a rod proved to be the easiest part; the challenge was bait placement. If the bait was not hooked well, the fish would eat the bait and swim off, as happened to our team once or twice.
After photos with our catch– a catfish, we rejoined the group on the bus and danced to Amapiano tracks on our way back to the Beauty Hut store– a slight foreshadowing of Beauty Hut X Amapiano District that held a week later.
The Beauty Hut Galentine Getaway at Lakowe Lakes was more than just a celebration; it was an immersive experience that highlighted the evolution of beauty culture in Nigeria. From the laughter shared among influencers to the stunning landscapes that surrounded us, every moment reflected the essence of community and creativity that Beauty Hut embodies. The thoughtful collaborations, luxurious accommodations, and genuine connections made during this trip set a new standard in the beauty industry, giving participants much to look forward to.
