Teliso Phaila Stemmer Selema is one of the amazing women who showcased their brands at The Flamboyance Clique’s Delightful Budtime Matinee event held on the 8th of October in Witbank. The meet was Teliso’s first.
“I was supposed to attend one before but lockdown was implemented. At the time, I sold black and white clothing, so that’s what I was going to showcase. By the time this one was announced, I knew I wanted to shine the light on Teliso only,” she shares.
Teliso Cosmetics manufactures and sells their own petroleum jelly, body and hand cream. “All our products are infused with aloe vera, that’s how we differentiate our brand from others.”
Teliso and Nompumelelo Mondlane, who co-founded The Flamboyance Clique met at a women’s church conference. She explains, “Mpumie sat behind me. I talk a lot, she talks a lot, so we connected. And she has established a wonderful community of women. Three years later we’re really good friends.”
AS WOMEN, WE CAN STAND TOGETHER AND SUPPORT EACH OTHER
Teliso ‘talks too much’, but she describes herself as also shy, so although she had prepared very well for the showcase, she was still a little uneasy.
“I told myself I wasn’t going to talk a lot. When I got there ah, beautiful ladies and really cool businesses! I started questioning myself. But then I realised ‘this is a showcase’, the point is to be out there and sell Teliso. As fate would have it, some speakers were late so I volunteered to speak. And girl, I spoke! After my talk I had women saying ‘thanks for encouraging me’, ‘that was powerful.’ Two ladies who bought our products have even sent positive reviews, so that was a big win for me.”
Teliso thoroughly enjoyed the Matinee. “It was such a nice gathering of women supporting each other, genuinely happy for each other’s businesses. I remember thinking ‘I want to support all of them’, I loved it. The theme, ambiance, everything was on point.. It was just beautiful. And it was such a reminder that as women we can stand together and support each other,” she adds.
Teliso shared her business journey and life story with us:
I’VE BEEN SELLING SINCE I WAS 7
The beautypreneur grew up in Lesotho. “I’m a typical village girl. I wanted to become a pilot growing up. But I studied Accounting because I did okay and passed, not out of passion. While I was in tertiary I met a lady at church who owned an Advertising company. I asked her for a job, she said yes and as they say, the rest is history.”
Teliso tells us that selling is almost second nature to her. “I’ve been selling since I was 7, my mom’s tupperware was sold by me. In matric, while people were studying for exams, I was packaging popcorn to sell the next day. Result day was scary when I started remembering what had been doing instead of studying. The nerves were killing me, but I made it, thank you Lord!” she laughs.
Before the pandemic and consequent lockdown, Teliso ran a kids transport and sold magwinya. “But then schools were closed and people weren’t allowed to go out. My income dried up. I started thinking hayi man, at home they’re always teaching us something, like how to make atchaar or vinegar. So I asked myself what else I could venture into and learn since we’re locked in and I settled on making cosmetics. Three years later we supply in the Free State, Botswana, Swaziland.”
THE CHALLENGE OF MARKET PENETRATION, DISTRIBUTION & NEGATIVE FEEDBACK
Entering a market already being dominated by a competitor will never be easy. “There is one brand in Lesotho that everyone knows, so I knew it would be hard for people to want to buy from me when they don’t know me.”
Given lockdown restrictions, distribution was an early challenge. “The goal for me became getting my product to just one person, and then let word of mouth work for me. We’ve really come a long way since then. This year I relaunched the brand as Teliso Cosmetics, I figured I should use my name this time,” she shares.
When you sell products, your customers have certain expectations and they will likely not experience your products the same way. “Getting negative feedback was hard because people would come saying you promised this, it hasn’t happened. But I appreciated those that came and said our products worked or they helped me. Very recently, a lady came and said one of our products had only worked on her body, but that her feet were still dry – this after just one day of use. So I advised her to give it time to work. No matter how many great reviews you get, one negative one will always find a way to get you down. But I shrug it off and focus on the positivity as much as I can.”
Teliso also found her idea and model being looted by shady characters. “I unfortunately ventured into partnerships with people I thought I could trust only to find out they were vultures who wanted to steal my ideas.” She says she’s now running her company with the one who gave her this idea, God.
Did those close to you see you coming?
“Yes. The people closest to me, like my best friend, knew I was different, and built to make something out of myself.”
What do you do for fun or to relax?
“I go out with my family and friends. We are all so spontaneous. We could hop in the car now and go to Nelspruit. I love music, listening to jazz or whatever, at home, just jamming, makes me happy.”
Other than selling and making money, what can you do?
“Motivational speaking. I do well encouraging people to realise their potential and believe in themselves. Everytime I think of trying it out I think but I’m shy but then I think after I talk to people it resonates. I’ve been researching about it.”
FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD
“There’s nothing like action. I’m Christian and I’ll always speak to help them lead better lives. Most Christians like confessing the word and may even believe in themselves and gifts, but it’s time for them to act. Stand up and do something. Money won’t come to you while you’re sitting and praying. Money isn’t emotional, it’s intentional and transactional. Affirmations are great, but do something!“
