Startup Story
Narcia Taalumba Walle is the co-founder and ceo of Margarida & Rose Beauty Bar in Mozambique. Margarida & Rose is a nail spa, make-up studio and cosmetics store that provides offers high quality products and services in a relaxed environment. The business was founded through a joint venture in 2021 and employs 4 women from the local Mozambican community. Narcia has 7 years’ experience in the beauty industry as a cosmetics retailer through her company Rose & Rose Store that has been catering to the Mozambican market since 2015. She is also a corporate lawyer, certified SAP consultant, and a humanitarian working for the UN WFP.
LoA chatted to the highly experienced beauty business entrepreneur Narcia Walle this month to find out more.
What does your company do?
We specialize in the retail of beauty products and cosmetics from KIKO Milano and Fenty Beauty. We offer a wide range of beauty services, from manicures and pedicures to lash extensions and makeup application, and provide promotional spa packages for brides and bridesmaids, couples, and solo spa days.
“I wanted to create something different in the Mozambican market. After years of selling beauty products in Maputo, I wanted to create a space where people could relax, have a drink, experience self-care time while accessing quality beauty products.”
What inspired you to start your company?
While living in London for a year, I had access to different costumer experiences regarding beauty services. There were many beauty parlors, in this case beauty bars, with such personality that provided beauty services in a relaxed and fun setting, with drinks and laughter creating a space where people could come together and have self-care time. I wanted to bring this concept to Mozambique, change the way people experienced their time in the hair salon, which is normally packed, with the smell of burnt hair etc. I wanted to create something different in the Mozambican market. After years of selling beauty products in Maputo, I wanted to create a space where people could relax, have a drink, experience self-care time while accessing quality beauty products.
Why should anyone use your service or product?
We are special because for us, it is not about the end-product or service, it’s about the experience. All details matter, from the greeting smile of the receptionist, the clean, inviting, and relaxing setting, to the quality of the nail service or beauty product offered, and even the temperature of the champagne or cocktail served matters. We want to give our clients a full and best possible customer experience, create memories with them, and eventually forge a long-lasting relationship.
“We are special because for us, it is not about the end-product or service, it’s about the experience.”
Tell us a little about your team
We are a small team of 4 professionals. I am a makeup artist and responsible for retail of cosmetics; we have two nails and pedicure professionals; and a receptionist.
Share a little about your entrepreneurial journey. And do you come from an entrepreneurial background?
I do not come from an entrepreneurial background, aside from participating in regular school bake sales as a teenager. I recall that prior to graduating from law school, I had a gap year to write my thesis and stumbled across a container with clothing and KIKO Milano cosmetics from Portugal. At the time, I hired a professional photographer, paid my niece to model, and took photos of the items which, I sold through a Facebook page that I created called Rose & Rose Store. The page was a success, we grew to 10 thousand followers, I managed to earn a decent living by making deliveries of the items in my small red Toyota across town. That’s when I fell in love with makeup and knew since then that I wanted to work in the beauty industry. Years later I graduated from an MBA, opened my own beauty bar, became a certified makeup artist, and I am living my dream through this start up.
What are your future plans and aspirations for your company?
I would like to venture into cosmetology and create my own brand of cosmetics. Regarding the beauty bar, I plan to branch out into a manicure express business model, where we have branches of our beauty bar in high foot traffic venues, such as shopping malls and hotels.
“We want to give our clients a full and best possible customer experience, create memories with them, and eventually forge a long-lasting relationship.”
What gives you the most satisfaction being an entrepreneur?
Our client feedback. The smile on our customers face when we surprise them with a saxophone piece on their birthday spa session, when they tag us in photos on social media, or when they have constructive criticism on areas in which we can improve and grow. I particularly am proud of the fact that I can create jobs that allow other Mozambican women to earn a living through my dream and knowing that I can pass on know-how to other women like myself who may start their own businesses one day with the lessons that they have learned.
What's the biggest piece of advice you can give to other women looking to start-up?
It’s all about people. Not only the customers that you cater to, but most importantly, the people that you hire, because, they essentially make or break the business. So choose them wisely, invest in them and be human.
Contact or follow Margarida & Rose Beauty Bar
WEBSITE | FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | EMAIL nwalle@margaridaerose.com
Why LoA loves it…
We often hear that passion drives success in business, and for Narcia Walle, her passion for the beauty business has transformed her own career and entrepreneurial journey. Today, she is building not just a brand, but an experiential beauty business that sets itself apart in the marketplace. For her, customer experience is everything, and she is focused on creating a luxury beauty and self-care experience that lasts long afterwards in the memory. — Melanie Hawken, founder & ceo, Lionesses of Africa