Shades & Layers
Shades and Layers is a storytelling platform celebrating Black women and women of colour who are building something of their own — on the African continent and across the diaspora.
The podcast launched in 2020 and is now more than 100 episodes strong. In 2025, the show was nominated for Best Long-Time Podcast at the Black Podcasting Awards.
In each conversation, host Kutloano Skosana sits down with founders to explore business ownership, representation, and what sustainability and success really mean in a complex, interconnected world. The conversations are wide-ranging — part masterclass in entrepreneurship, part wisdom for living well — and always a space for women to be fully human: to share the quirks, the doubts, and the vulnerabilities behind the highlight reel.
These days, Shades and Layers is two things woven together. Alongside the podcast, Kutloano — now exploring a new chapter of her own in Italy — sends Life Notes: honest monthly letters on identity, motherhood, reinvention, and the business of building a life.
Shades and Layers’ founding philosophy is: a story well told can change your life, you don't need big accolades for your entrepreneurial journey to matter.
The guests span beauty, fashion, and wellness, North and South: Dr. Theo Mothoa-Frendo on building a science-based African skincare range with USO; Taryn Gill of The Perfect Hair on supply chains and brand-building; Katonya Breux of Unsun Cosmetics on melanin and sunscreen for every skin tone; Abiola Akanni of IYA Well on non-performance in yoga; and designers like the late Maria McCloy of her eponymous fashion label, Nkuli Mlangeni-Berg of The Ninevites, and Candace Lawrence of Modern Gesture, championing handmade, custom, and circular production.
Whether you're here to listen, to read, or to build something of your own — welcome to the circle.
Shades & Layers
The Perfect Hair with Taryn Gill (S2, E12)
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My guest today is Taryn Gill, South African entrepreneur and founder of haircare brands such as The Perfect Hair, Curls in Bloom, and the trademarks SuperCurl and Soft Sista.
Taryn’s story is a true masterclass on how to manage your career, spot opportunities and using your experiences for business success. She has worked for some of the greatest names in SA publishing and media. She’s an alumna of the business reality show, Shark Tank, and the high priestess of a community built around her first brand, The Perfect Hair.
We caught up at a time when South Africa was starting to reckon with the riots that shook the country after former president Jacob Zuma was arrested (story linked below in the mentions). The country was also in the middle of yet another hard Covid lockdown.
Mind you, while all of this was going on, she was also in the middle of finalizing a partnership with a local distributor and hosting Taryn’s Table Talk, a series of important conversations about natural hair under the auspices of her own brand, @curlsbytaryn
Mentioned In this Episode
South African Riots
Sowetan
Township Economics
Justice Malala
Dawn Robertson
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
Jane Raphaely
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