OUR STORY AS A SOCIAL IMPACT BRAND

Every brand has a unique narrative, a story that shapes its identity and purpose. The power of our story enables us to connect with you, our valued customer, on a deeper level so you can understand more about what we do and why. 

AMAZI was created in 2018 as a direct solution towards women's financial empowerment in the economy, where women are often sidelined due to systemic boundaries. Divya Vasant & Sekela Lisa Mgcotyelwa, the AMAZI founders, innovated how to bring about much-needed social justice through social entrepreneurship, a new way of doing business: where inclusivity is built into every level. This was the beginning of the AMAZI ecosystem. 

The vision that drives the AMAZI’s ecosystem, is a future where women have equal access to resources, education and the economy by creating opportunities for women to learn, start businesses, earn & grow.

At the centre of the ecosystem is the AMAZI Academy. The Academy is the initial innovation from Divya and Lisa’s conversations with women who needed ways to earn an income to become financially independent with the limited access they had to education. These women were asked what skills they would like to learn and Beauty training was the overall choice. This sparked the creation of the AMAZI Academy, where young women of colour in South Africa have access to Beauty Skills training, mentorship, and soft skills training to support them in potentially opening up their own businesses. 

However, the AMAZI team didn’t stop there. Why not enable women to earn through a Beauty Bar where they can also be trained further with hands-on experience? This was the inception of the Beauty Bars, originally 2 Flagship stores - one in N1 City and one in Kenilworth Centre - now 17 on-the-go Beauty Bars across the country. Here our Academy interns and mentors, who have been in the brand for years, can earn an income while treating you, our valued customers, to quality and affordable beauty treatments. 

To continuously innovate solutions that work for our economy and our community, AMAZI began its own skincare line, AMAZI Beauty. This is a skincare line like no other. We endeavour to be as authentically African as possible at every level. This means only using African-sourced active ingredients and producing the range right here in South Africa. Through AMAZI Beauty, we’re able to create more jobs, support our local beauty supplier community and bring amazing affordable natural skincare to you. 

Every aspect of the AMAZI ecosystem works towards our Rands and Change framework, which is how we can keep creating social impact and change for previously marginalised women in South Africa. Every R1 that a customer spends on their self-care, through a Beauty product or beauty treatment, unlocks more funds from AMAZI and the total is directly invested into the development of women through the AMAZI Academy where we upskill and support women to learn, earn and grow. With AMAZI, your rands truly create change, encouraging more conscious and intentional buying decisions.