Milton Keynes-based Naturally Tribal Skincare has secured a £70k investment from Enterprise Loans East Midlands through the Midlands Engine Investment Fund.
The skincare brand is to use this finance to begin exporting to the U.S and Africa, while also boosting production and building its product range.
Shalom Lloyd, a trained pharmacist and multiple award winner, set up Naturally Tribal Skincare in 2014 after her new born son Joshua developed terrible eczema.
Shalom Lloyd, founder and managing director at Naturally Tribal Skincare, said: “Naturally Tribal Skincare was founded out of my desire to develop a product that helped soothe the symptoms of eczema.
"Our skin is our largest organ and absorbs a lot of what we put on it so the skincare products we use are extremely important. Therefore, our products are not only vegan and cruelty free, but also synthetic chemicals free.
“We import our ingredients from Africa for research, testing, formulation and manufacture in the UK. We really pride ourselves on our ‘source to jar’ traceability and supporting the community in Nigeria’s Essan Kingdom where our ingredients come from.”
Matthew Wright, business advisor at Enterprise Loans, added: “Shalom is incredibly professional and Naturally Tribal was brought about through her own experience and sheer hard work.
"I’ve been incredibly impressed with her passion for the business and the quality of the product so I’m delighted to help take her business to the next level.
“The last three years have been about setting up the business but now Naturally Tribal is ready to invest in larger quantities of stock in order to deliver its strategy and grow, especially into international markets.”
Vicky Hlomuka, growth hub manager at SEMLEP, said: “It is so important to see local businesses, like Shalom’s Naturally Tribal, being able to expand to new markets. The Midlands Engine Investment Fund is a great choice for local SMEs looking to develop in this way, which is exactly why SEMLEP invested in MEIF.”
The MEIF project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the ERDF as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.
Naturally Tribal Skincare is available to buy via the website www.naturallytribalgroup.com as well as in selected independent stores, the TJC shopping channel and most recently via Amazon. Products RRP from £12.99 - £40.
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