Direct from cooperatives, since 2021
African ingredients, sourced where they grow.
Chebe, ambunu, shea, moringa, spirulina, hibiscus. Bought directly from named cooperatives in Chad, Burkina Faso, and Ivory Coast. Sold to consumers, formulators, and wholesale buyers, without brokers.
Shop by ingredient
Six pillar ingredients. Each from a place we can name.
Every product page tells you the cooperative, the harvest window, and the QC trail. No vague “ethically sourced” claims.
Guéra, Chad
Chebe powder
Hand-blended by the Guéra Women’s Cooperative. The original Chadian recipe, never adulterated.
Guéra, Chad
Ambunu leaves
The detangling partner to chebe. Whole leaves, single-origin, dried in shade.
Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso
Shea butter
Unrefined Grade A from women’s cooperatives in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso. Stone-ground, no hexane.
Wholesale & bulk
Buying for your salon, brand, or production line?
From 1 kg samples to multi-ton production runs, we ship worldwide via DHL Express with phytosanitary certificate. Each order quote is built around your specific volume and destination. Same chebe supply chain trusted by Design Essentials since 2022.
- ✓ 1 kg minimum, no upper limit
- ✓ Custom quote per volume & destination
- ✓ DHL Express worldwide, 1–3 days
- ✓ Phytosanitary certificate included
- ✓ Direct cooperative sourcing
The communities
Real cooperatives. Real relationships.
Our chebe and ambunu come directly from the Guéra Women’s Cooperative in central Chad the same supply chain trusted by Design Essentials since 2022. Our shea butter comes from women’s cooperatives in the Bobo-Dioulasso region of Burkina Faso. Our cocoa is sourced from producer partners in Côte d’Ivoire’s Bondoukou region. We pay our partners directly and reinvest into community infrastructure boreholes for drinking water, school renovations, and healthcare for community members in need based on what the communities themselves identify as priorities.
Why direct from cooperatives
The story behind your ingredients is now part of the product.
Most “African ingredient” sellers buy from middlemen who buy from middlemen. By the time chebe powder, shea butter, or moringa reaches your shelf, three to five hands have taken a margin and nobody can tell you the village it came from. We do it differently. Our chebe comes directly from the Guéra Women’s Cooperative in Chad the same chebe supply chain Design Essentials chose for their African Chebe Growth Collection. Our shea is hand-pressed in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso. Our cocoa comes from Côte d’Ivoire. The moringa, spirulina, and hibiscus we ship are sourced through direct producer relationships across our Pan-African network. Every shipment leaves Cotonou, Benin, with a phytosanitary certificate.
What this means for your brand
When you build a natural haircare or wellness line, the story behind your ingredients is now part of the product. A vague “ethically sourced” claim does not cut it anymore. Your customers want to know which country, which region, which producer relationship. We give you that traceability: country of origin, cooperative or producer relationship, and the same supply chain trusted by major US haircare brands like Design Essentials.
Built for serious buyers
Whether you need 1 kg to test a formulation or several tons for a production run, our catalog covers the pillar ingredients of African natural beauty and wellness: chebe, ambunu, unrefined shea butter, raw cocoa butter, moringa, spirulina, hibiscus, and more. No fillers. No synthetic fragrances. No mystery middle layers. Every shipment leaves Cotonou via DHL Express with phytosanitary certificate, 1-3 days to most destinations worldwide.
Journal
Field notes, recipes, sourcing trips
What customers say
Stay close to source
One email a month, when something is worth saying.
Harvest updates, new arrivals, recipes from the kitchen, and the occasional dispatch from a sourcing trip. No discount-bait.