Check Out Hanna & Anne-Louise’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hanna & Anne-Louise. 

Hi Hanna & Anne-Louise, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
We joke that we’re twins from opposite coasts (H West Coast, AL East Coast), joined by our first employer (BCG) in Minneapolis (our first project), followed by China (where we both did a 1-year externship).In China, we ate, adventured, grew, and started a lifelong friendship. We returned to our respective coasts for business school (H to GSB, AL to HBS) and got married, where we were each other’s bridesmaids. Now, we are both mothers, co-located in California, and on a new adventure as entrepreneurs building Habbi Habbi – a journey of experimentation, vulnerability, excitement, discovery, joy, and fulfillment.

We decided to start Habbi Habbi because we were both trying to raise bilingual kids (for different reasons) – H for heritage and family, AL for exposure and opportunity. In the US though, it feels like bilingual education is a “high school subject” – even though language is learned so much more easily during the critical development period when kids are young. Therefore, only families that really prioritize it and have special resources (e.g., grandparents or family who are native speakers, special nannies or tutors, etc.) are able to access language learning. We wanted to make language learning accessible for ALL families – regardless of whether you were native or not. Accessible AND fun.

That’s why we made 

– A magical Reading Wand (because it’s so fun!) 

– That is multilingual, rechargeable and so easy to use (just turn on and tap) 

– Accessible with any of our bilingual materials (books, puzzles, flashcards) 

– That can be played in Bilingual mode (for most people), Target language only (for more immersion), or even English only! 

– Every inch is tappable – so 60-300 clips per book, with words/phrases/sentences and fun musical clips and tunes that delight kids 

– We currently have 5 languages available: Chinese (Mandarin), Spanish, French, Korean, and Hindi

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
This question has so much to do with expectation! So perhaps the biggest challenge is managing our own expectations and trying to decide what kind of company we should be. 

There is a lot of expectation that businesses should “explode” or go viral. And 99% of the time, that’s not the case. So, we just focus on one foot in front of another – and just focusing on the basics – our mission (making language learning more accessible for all families) and executing as best as we can through a high-quality product and service. And we think those in our community can recognize the care that has been put into the product and company! 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
We are most proud of being able to make an impact on communities and families. A few memories & examples: 

First – We got this large group order from a hospital. We thought they were just stocking their hospital library. But then when we dropped off the order, we learned that the hospital had a program for NICU babies … that would track them for the first three years of their development to make sure they were ok. When they were 3, they would ‘graduate’ from the program, and our sets were meant to be their “graduation gift.” When we learned how our products were going to be used … our hearts just exploded. 

Second – We started getting messages from moms in the adoption community who were so happy and grateful for our product. They told us how they loved it because it was a great transition for their newly adopted kids – and how it helped them learn as well. We heard from parents who were separated from their adopted kids (COVID travel restrictions; it’s so sad!) but also heard about it and sent us messages about how they were so excited to try it. Their gratitude – including from those who hadn’t even tried the product yet but were just so happy to know it existed – made us realize we were just very tangibly adding value to a community. 

Pricing:

• Starter Set | 1 Wand + 5 Books | $115
• Collector Set | 1 Wand + 20 Books | $370
• Bilingual puzzles | $25
• Bilingual flashcards | $25
• Bilingual Books | $20-25

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.habbihabbi.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behabbi/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BeHabbiShop/
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/mH6idwNtc_U