From a pool of thousands of entries received by the end of October 2021, the newly announced Skinfluencers will go on to receive a share of the overall R1 million in prizes.

Each year NIVEA’s Skinfluencer search sees an unparalleled response from South Africa’s brilliant creatives, and 2022 was no different, especially as the competition entry date was extended.

The 10 winners will embark on a year-long journey with NIVEA to acquire a range of skills, work hands on with the brand and community, while also receiving invaluable exposure to the health and beauty industry. Winners will each receive a vlogging kit, laptop, and a range of other services and tools along with prize money, all valued at R100 000 each, which will revolutionise their platforms and content creation abilities. The end goal is to create tangible impact for women in South Africa, and their communities.

“Distinguishing the trend and impact of unemployment and connection to online content entrepreneurship in South Africa particularly, NIVEA noted that this was a driving factor in investing in an initiative that looked to uplift, care for and empower women in the digital space. The NIVEA Skinfluencer initiative is just the beginning for these top winners. With the platform and tools provided, we aim to take the health and beauty domain by storm, while creating a larger impact on the community that helps bolster women in their careers,” shares Sinenhlanhla Njapha, NIVEA Brand Manager.

As a brand that is conscious about sustainability and going beyond the industry’s traditional notion of skin care and beauty, NIVEA has taken to the South African community, with an aim to create a meaningful difference in the lives of the people they serve.

“The competition was tough, and our winners have truly raised the bar. We look forward to seeing these unique individuals shine and showcase more of their authenticity in the content they create throughout the year. NIVEA is proud to have created a platform that empowers South African women through practical tools and knowledge aimed at making a positive impact on the community at large that has already seen this initiative poised to be a gamechanger in the health and beauty space,” says Njapha.

Disrupting this market, NIVEA’s 2022 winners comprise of:

Mahlatsi Legodi from West Rand. “There’s something about your talents, passions and interests that just nags you and gives you sleepless nights until you pursue and see them through. I simply just had to enter this competition because I knew it was right up my alley,” Mahlatsi explains about her inspiration behind entering the 2021 NIVEA Skinfluencer Search.

Khwezi Madlala from Durban. “I genuinely embody NIVEA because it is a brand I truly love and trust. My love and passion for skincare and content creation inspired me to enter this competition. Striving to put my confidence on display in order to reach success was my biggest motivation behind entering,” Madlala explains about entering the 2022 NIVEA Skinfluencer Search.

Boipelo Bokaba from Centurion. “I was looking for an opportunity to take my digital content creator career to the next level and I couldn’t be more honoured to be one of ten talented ladies to form part of this empowering experience”, says Boipelo. This dynamic young lady believes that her authenticity, genuine down-to-earth nature, and her creativity are all elements that gave her a competitive edge over the other entrants.

Noxolo Fani from East Rand. When asked what she was looking forward to in terms of knowledge and skills development in the NIVEA Skinfluencer 2022 journey, Noxolo says, “I’m a firm believer that we need to be teachable and that we never stop learning as human beings. I am super excited to learn many new skills and gain insights and information from a trusted brand like NIVEA and even from the other Skinfluencers. I look forward to working together to grow our audiences and engage with them with relevant and inspiring content.”

Khensani Mnisi from Witbank. As an avid NIVEA skincare user, Mnisi shares, “NIVEA is a brand that cares for the community by not only ensuring they offer quality and reliable products to consumers but by also providing programmes like the Skinfluencer competition to show care that’s not just skin deep. These opportunities are a great way to give a brand like NIVEA a competitive edge and ensure that they make an impact in the lives of others which is very important, especially in these trying times.”

Sarah Mkhize from Cowies Hill. “I am really excited for my time as a NIVEA Top 10 Skinfluencer in 2022. The opportunity to learn, grow and be exposed to a bigger picture makes me feel so optimistic for what the future holds and opportunities that will be made available to me,” says Sarah.

Reuellyn Ramiah from Germiston. This initiative by NIVEA provides people with encouragement and hope to move forward despite the impact felt by the pandemic. I am really excited about this journey with NIVEA and can’t wait to enhance my skills and knowledge when it comes to skincare and content creation, all while making a positive change,” says Reuellyn.

Khwezi Mkhize from Mount Edgecombe. This campaign is set to empower us aspiring content creators with the skills and expertise needed to elevate us, while laying the foundation for becoming disruptive and effective generators sharing meaningful content in the beauty and skincare industry. I cannot express enough how grateful I am to NIVEA for this opportunity,” says Khwezi.

Wisisile Khoza from Mpumalanga. Wisisle is a woman who prides herself in upliftment and believes that these days, people have moved away from thinking that women are just a reflection of beauty. “Women are individuals, with goals, principles, beliefs, families, businesses, creativity and a voice to not only speak about change but actively influence opportunities that ignite strength, hope, love, intellect to actually bring about change needed for the betterment of our society,” she says.

Awethu Radebe from Umlazi. “This opportunity to work with NIVEA allows me to grow myself and my brand. I plan to continue to be authentic, real, relatable, and consistent on all my social platforms. While I am learning how to perfect my new trade over the next 12 months under the care and guidance of NIVEA, it’s still important to me to speak to my audience, engage with them and be myself. As a 2022 Skinfluencer, I am most looking forward to learning how to effectively market a certain product, how to engage better with my followers, how to socialise with other people and establish relationships with other content creators as well,” Awethu says.

South Africa is no stranger to strong and powerful female entrepreneurs that own their industries. With this 4th digital revolution, we see the diverse growth of content creation taken to new limits. Despite a challenging 24 months in the corporate sphere and entrepreneurship space, women in business continue to push the limits and create opportunities.

Previous winner from the 2021 NIVEA® Skinfluencer Competition, 33-year-old operations manager, Ofentse Lekwane, reflected on her take-outs from her Skinfluencer experience last year. “As a NIVEA Skinfluencer I had the opportunity to bring diversity into the beauty space and share my skin challenges and debunk myths about albinism. It has been so rewarding to be part of a movement that redefines societal beauty standards. I learnt to appreciate and believe in the power of my voice to authentically connect with my audience by simply being human and sharing that I too have skincare drama that I have to deal with while chasing my goals and ambitions to be seen and recognised for who I am,” said Lekwane.

The NIVEA Skinfluencer search was designed to provide aspiring content creators with the tools and knowledge required to build their digital careers and make an active change in their own lives, but in other women’s lives as well. Realising the potential that these creators hold is key in becoming part of this global shift.