In early 2023, Yara Galiano embarked on a journey that would later see the birthing of one of Africa’s premium coconut processing brands. She has built Segredos do Paraíso, a purpose-driven company rooted in nature that produces 100% natural, cold-pressed coconut products. What began as a moment of personal retreat became a mission to reconnect people with real, simple, and healing products.
Before her foray into entrepreneurship, Galiano was a banker. She climbed the ladder in Angola’s banking sector for over a decade, building a career in commercial operations, organisational processes, internal audits, and strategic planning. Now, she has been invited to take up a new area in the information systems field: Compliance IT.
She’s thrived in the banking industry—energised by the challenges and opportunities it brings. Still, like many ambitious professionals, she’s also had moments of reflection, questioning how her work aligns with her more profound sense of life’s purpose. In one of those moments of retrospect, she took a holiday and went on a trip —not to chase a business idea, but to breathe.
During a trip to São Tomé, she visited a coconut oil factory, more out of curiosity than intent. But something about the scent, the process, and its purity sparked an unexpected connection. What began as a quiet moment of reflection turned into the beginning of a new passion—coconuts.
When Yara Galiano returned to Luanda, Angola, she had already fallen in love with coconuts. She didn’t wait for investors or the perfect moment; she started with what she had and got to work.
In February 2023, the Angolan businesswoman launched Segredos do Paraíso, a brand built around one core belief: the best things are still natural. Her products, which include cold-pressed coconut oil, grated coconut, coconut flour, and natural soaps made from coconut oil, are made without heat, chemicals, or compromise.
The cold-press method preserves the coconut’s raw essence, locking in antioxidants, nutrients, and the natural purity that industrial processing strips away. Through her brand, Yara Galiano intentionally resists everything artificial and overly processed.
Galiano managed branding, production, packaging, and delivery by herself at her business’s inception. However, as demand increased, the team also expanded. She trained two young individuals who shared her passion for natural wellness and ethical business practices. Today, Segredos do Paraíso produces products rooted in simplicity and sustainability.
The products are sustainably packaged using recycled materials, and customers often report benefits like improved skin, better digestion, and, most importantly, peace of mind.
Yara Galiano seeks to reconnect people with nature’s healing power and honour its gifts. Plans are underway to develop coconut plantations in Luanda, utilising improved seeds to enhance local production and reduce Angola’s reliance on imports. She is also exploring reseller partnerships and quietly laying the groundwork for a future line of organic coffee sourced from Angola. In a recent Interview with The Benchmark, Yara Galiano walks us through the twists and turns of her entrepreneurial journey:
The Benchmark (TB) Segredos do Paraíso beautifully blends wellness and simplicity—what inspired you to start this business, and how did your background in banking influence your entrepreneurial journey?
Yara Galiano (YG): What inspired me to start Segredos do Paraíso was my great interest in natural products for both body care and nutrition. In my concept of life, the truth about health lies in what is natural. I am very concerned about using processed products and the levels of industrialisation in food, body care and medicines.
The professional experience I’ve gained in banking is a school of life to apply to entrepreneurship because it’s a wealth of skills, tools, processes, risk management, people management and interpersonal relationships.
From my perspective, I see my banking experience as an opportunity to participate directly in building someone else’s company. This way, I can learn about attitudes and behaviours and live the entrepreneurial experience in practice, with successes and mistakes and the chance to correct and realign myself.
TB: Running a business can be all-consuming. How do you manage work-life balance, and what practices help you stay grounded as a founder and an individual?
Through work experience, I learnt to balance both precisely. For over 15 years, situations of tension, overload, and frustration have inevitably weighed me down, and I’ve had to learn to reevaluate and return to an assertive way because I learnt that every challenge was an opportunity to improve as a professional.
This sense of improvement was built by listening to my body for moments of retreat to rest my mind, engage in hobbies, and be with family and friends (even if it wasn’t to share, to change the environment).
There were also times when I sought therapy and mentoring.
I have also learned to manage my time better; in other words, to organise my life according to time: time to work, time to undertake, and time to rest. This professional journey has been one of the hardest lessons, but I have learned it well.
TB: What unique challenges have you faced building a brand like Segredos do Paraíso within the Angolan market, and how have you navigated them?
YG: The biggest challenge is acceptance. First, we need public acceptance. Then, we need to find customers who understand the value of what we offer. Finally, we need to accept funding to grow (Lol). In the first situation, we set up a marketing strategy to let people know who we are. We are also establishing partnerships with retailers to be closer to the public.
We haven’t even tried formally for financing yet because, according to the criteria, we don’t meet the conditions yet (smiles). Angola has no funding for micro businesses that are just starting. What exists is training for micro-entrepreneurs.
So, my financing strategy was to build the foundations of Segredos do Paraíso by establishing a client portfolio, the logistics process, obtaining some assets, such as the acquisition of the Segredos do Paraíso Farm, and having a record to show financiers what we can do with our funds and the enormous potential that exists in this sector.
TB: Can you walk us through your production process—from sourcing coconuts to creating your final products—and how you ensure quality at every step?
Currently, Segredos do Paraíso produces with a partner that meets all the conditions from planting and harvesting coconuts to the pressing process. This partnership has all the qualities, sustainability, and organic certifications from various entities, especially European ones. It was the best alternative for this project, and thus, we gained time and experience to create our business in Luanda, Angola.
TB: What are your hopes and aspirations for Segredos do Paraíso in the next five years, both locally and across the continent?
YG: This year, we plan to start importing certified coconuts from neighbouring countries to enhance the local processing of our coconut oil and coconut flour. This would lay the groundwork for us to begin applying for certification of local production.
At the same time, we are focusing on implementing and making the Segredos do Paraíso Farm productive with improved coconut seeds to become as independent as possible in national production (in Luanda, Angola).
The big dream is to expand the market and, above all, to reach the African market. This involves making these products available and raising awareness of the benefits of coconut, especially for nutrition and body care on our continent, to promote well-being, beauty, and health.
Interview conducted by Ishioma Imokhai-Bello.
