When our founder, Elsie Ocran, started making shea butter skincare, she was thinking about ingredients, customers and markets. She couldn't have imagined how far the journey would take her, or how much of it would happen beyond the business itself.
One of those moments came in Tamale, northern Ghana, the region where GGLOW's shea butter comes from.
Inside the Sagnarigu Chief's Palace
During her time in Tamale, Elsie was given the opportunity to visit the Sagnarigu Chief's Palace.
One detail stayed with her: the traditional arrangement of the huts. She was told that the larger quarters were traditionally given to the first wife, with separate spaces for the second and third wives.
Elsie is careful to point out that this reflects one particular traditional household structure, not Ghanaian culture as a whole. Still, seeing it firsthand made her reflect on how much history, family, culture and tradition can be held within the spaces around us. A building can tell you who lived there, how families were organised, and what a community valued.
Why culture matters to a skincare brand
It might seem a long way from a palace in Tamale to a jar of shea butter in London. For GGLOW, it isn't.
Shea butter carries centuries of tradition in northern Ghana. The knowledge of how to process it has been passed down through generations, much of it by women. Shea is often called "women's gold" because it supports cooperatives, many of them run by women.
Understanding the culture behind an ingredient is part of sourcing it respectfully. It's why Elsie goes to Ghana in person, listens, asks questions and learns, rather than buying from a distance.
What being a founder really means
For Elsie, moments like this are among the things she values most about being a founder. As she puts it, the journey takes you to places you never expected, introduces you to people and stories you might otherwise never encounter, and reminds you that there is always more to learn.
That curiosity shapes GGLOW too. A founder who keeps learning builds a brand that keeps improving: in its products, its partnerships and the way it treats the communities behind them.
What it means for you
Every GGLOW product carries a little of that journey. When you choose us, you're supporting a brand that respects where its ingredients come from, and the people and traditions behind them.