“We make everything from scratch,” she said. “We don’t buy pre-made bases. I formulate everything. All of my products have a unique formulation.”

“Everything you need for your skin, nature has it. We take care of the inner and outer beauty. You can even eat our Shea butter! Our motto is, ‘If you can’t eat it, you shouldn’t put it on your body.’”

Ndiaye’s popularity and business success did not happen overnight. It was a long, hard, step-by-step climb that took years before she was positioned to open her store. Ultimately, it took hustle.

She began by offering samples and displaying her butters anywhere and everywhere she could. Her first stop was the Crenshaw Mall. “I had a small square table, and I would stay there the whole day and only make $20,” she said. “I didn’t give up, though. I was there every day for 15 days. I had no doubts – I knew people didn’t know the product yet.”

In tough times, she rode the bus, giving passengers samples and sometimes selling a small jar of Shea butter for $5. “I did that for a month,” she said. “I would make $10–$15 a day.”

Singularly focused, she put down a carpet and sold butters at the Hollywood Walk of Fame and for five years hawked her wares on the Venice Beach boardwalk. The beach presented a problem that led to a breakthrough: in the sunlight, her butters melted.

“I had to find a way to sell it without it melting,” she said. “I started putting the Shea butter in buckets and scooping it up in front of the customers. I did county fairs and festivals. People started recognizing me. That’s how I got the name ‘Body Butter Lady.’ Everyone would ask, ‘Are you the Body Butter Lady?’ I actually didn’t have a name before that.”

Today, she sells her products out of a spacious brick-and-mortar business located on Market Street in downtown Inglewood. She also makes the rounds at various Farmer’s Markets, festivals, and special events around Los Angeles. Many of her customers buy her products for the luster and softness they impart to skin, not necessarily to treat a skin condition.

“I’ve been in this store six years,” Ndiaye said. “I didn’t want to do malls. I wanted to have a brick-and-mortar where I make my own hours. This is a Black community, and my whole goal from the beginning was to serve the underserved communities. I want to tell other business owners it’s possible to be here with quality products and yes, people will come and patronize you.”

Trusting her intuition has served her well. Her first scent, called Mingle, is still her best seller. Other scents include Patchouli, Lavish, Cherry Blossom, Tango, Egyptian Musk, and Rose. One butter is unscented. Her brand has expanded to include body scrubs, hair food, deodorants, tooth powder, bath & body oils, soaps, candles, face masks, lip oil, lip scrub, bath bombs, shower steamers, beard oil, shampoo/body washes, and shampoo and conditioner bars.

In addition to her popular skin care products, right next door to her shop, in another storefront, Ndiaye has the Serenity Lady Wellness center.

There, she sells herbal remedies, teas, spices, African folk medicines, immunity boosters, essential oils, tinctures, smudges, carrier oils, and more. Services include hand rejuvenation, foot stimulation, scalp manipulation, face revitalization, and yoni steaming. She also plans to include sound baths, scream therapy, laugh therapy, meditation, yoga, and more.

After working hard on formulating her products, she is now focused on strengthening her business acumen. Eager to gain more business knowledge, Ndiaye enrolled in a one-year Business Management class at West LA College this fall.