CNN CELEBRATES 'AFRICAN PRIDE' MAKE-UP ARTIST 'TARA FELA-DUROTOYE'

Tara Fela-Durotoye is the CEO of House of Tara International, a household name in her native Lagos, where the company develops makeup, perfume and accessories that eschew the Western-centered tastes of the big cosmetic firms in favor of products designed specifically for Nigeria's women.

In 1998, aged 21, Fela-Durotoye was already on her way to becoming a qualified lawyer when she launched House of Tara as a makeup studio, at first specializing in makeup designs for brides and their wedding parties. Her artistry proved a hit with Nigeria's booming middle class and, today, the company employs over 3,000 beauty reps across West Africa.

She says she was drawn to cosmetics by her inspirational step-mother, by seeing "what makeup actually does to a woman in terms of self-esteem and confidence."

The Tara beauty range was born out of her frustration at the lack of suitable cosmetics available in Nigeria -- "Importers didn't know exactly what was right for Nigerian women," she says -- and sense that her products could fill the gap while encouraging pride in home-grown glamor.

"A lot of the Tara products are named after either beauty icons or beauty philosophies in Africa," says Fela-Durotoye. "For us it's about sharing the world and sharing our culture to the world."

The past few years have seen the company expand into catwalk and film makeup design as Lagos fashion and cinema scenes have flourished. WhenFrench pharmaceutical giants L'Oreal came to Nigeria looking for a partner to help introduce their Maybelline range to the West African country, they signed up with Tara, earning Fela-Durotoye a spot on Forbes' list of "20 Young Power Women In Africa" in the process.

CNN