There is an increasing awareness in the Arab world of the harmful chemicals in personal care and beauty products. As a result, many women now read labels and look for natural products. Although this market is still largely a western one, things are beginning to change. Unlike Anita Roddick whose Body Shop products are made with ingredients from all over the world, Mona Erian, who founded Nefertari, uses mainly Egyptian ingredients.
A pharmacist by profession, Mona created her first natural body care product out of necessity. “It all began five years ago when my daughter used a shampoo which literally burned her scalp. I searched for a natural shampoo but could not find a single one. Since I am a pharmacist, I decided to make one myself using natural ingredients. I made a pure olive oil soap and was surprised by the result. I luckily got it right the first time.”
Mona is currently putting the finishing touches on her new showroom in Cairo where all of Nefertari’s 120 products are displayed. This new location highlights not only her ingenuity but also her taste and unique personality. The shop is decorated with old balconies and antique memorabilia and the products are displayed on glass shelves held up by genuine wooden scaffolding taken from an old building.
The brand name Nefertari was carefully chosen. Although Nefertari is not as famous as Cleopatra, she was allegedly more beautiful and was known as “the most exquisite of beauties.” In ancient times, Egypt had the reputation of making the best and most expensive perfumes. Perfumes then were different from what we know today. They were often based in flowers such as cornflowers, poppies, lilies, roses, jasmine, chrysanthemum, lotus, anemone and even camomile macerated in oil. Maintaining this tradition, Mona markets a body perfume cream. “Personally I am very fond of perfumes and I like it to last a long time so I came up with a 100 percent body perfume cream made of jasmine oil absolute. In ancient Egypt, this kind of perfume was made with the fat of oxen. Today I use beeswax and jojoba oil. Many body care products contain vaseline which clogs the pores and gives a phony feeling of softness.” Mona is eager to create awareness about the use of chemicals in personal care and beauty products. Though in theory, the components of cosmetics are tested, the truth is that regulations concerning the cosmetic industry are lax everywhere.
One of Nefertari’s flagship products is the milk bath powder similar to what Cleopatra used to soften her skin. She used a mixture of milk, honey and almond powder; Mona’s powder comes in an earthenware jar, copied from an authentic artifact in the Egyptian Museum. Nefertari also markets kohl made in the traditional way. In ancient Egypt there were two kinds of kohl. One was used for mummies and came from powdered rock; it contained a high percentage of lead. Another was made from a natural gum, soaked in olive oil and then burned to make the powder. “Kohl highlights the beauty of the eyes. Egyptian women in the countryside still use it. I put it in a natural olive wood container.” Mona has a predilection for olive wood which is soft and easy to work with. It is also plentiful in Egypt. Ironically despite Erian’s efforts to promote her country’s original products, Egyptians in general have failed to show an interest in natural body care products. Foreigners living in Egypt as well as tourists, especially women from the Gulf, are Nefertari’s best clients. “I have noticed that Gulf women are very aware of the advantages of natural products. My business is developing and I look forward to exporting.”