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Meet the face behind SA's first plaster designed to suit various skin tones

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Launched in 2013, Plasta is based in South Africa and has a simple mandate: to provide products that cater to the needs of our diverse demographic. Regardless of your skin tone, Plasta is sure to have a product to better suit your needs.

We chatted to Lize Hartley, the founder of Plasta, about her mission for the brand.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your background:


My background is pretty much all over the place! I studied a BA in languages and politics at the University of Stellebosch with the aim of becoming a journalist, during which I started working at the student radio station.

This was something I really enjoyed and soon I was presenting the breakfast show as well as doing two shows a month on MK (DTSV’s former local music channel).

After I graduated I ended up not doing my honours in journalism but moved to Johannesburg to do my honours in media and culture studies, during which I also worked at Jacaranda FM as a production assistant and Supersport as a rugby presenter.

I then got into the publishing world, doing social media and online PR coordination for several women’s titles, which led to my taking a job at a below the line ad agency where I worked as a digital strategist.

I resigned from that job earlier this year, however, to take Plasta on full time. I am currently doing a BCom in Business Management through UNISA.

How did Plasta come about?

I was watching a woman trying to find a slip in a local department store, and she couldn’t find one that wasn’t beige. This got me thinking about how many products are not manufactured bearing people with different skin colours in mind, and plasters was one of them.

I did some research, found that the product did not exist, and set out to change that.

What do you think about the term 'nude' and how can your product change the way this generalised term has been used in daily life?

If you look for a "nude" shoe, underwear, or anything else, chances are you’ll get something beige! But nude is not a colour, it’s a concept! 

I hope Plasta will help drive that point across by catering to a variety of skin tones and speaking to a need that has been ignored until now. 

Feedback you are getting from the public?

The feedback has been very positive, which is so encouraging! Almost every person that I tell about Plasta tells me that they have discussed the need for this before, which just goes to show that people want plasters that cater for different skin tones! 


Image source: Supplied

What is the best and worst part about your job?

The best part is seeing this business get off the ground and grow. Figuring it all out is really exciting, and I am learning so much! I also get so much joy from the positive feedback people send me after using the product.

I’ve had people as far as Holland and England send me photos and praise for the product, which makes all the hard work so worth it! 

I guess the worst part is having some retailers reject the product. I’m desperate to make them see why consumers want and need Plasta, but sometimes they simply aren’t convinced. I’m hoping that will change in time, though! 

Where can we find these products?

Plasta is stocked in Spars and pharmacies around Cape Town as well as pharmacies in Johannesburg and surrounds. We’re working on making it more widely available, but in the meantime it is also available online at plasta.net or on takealot.com.

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