Sisters, Daughters, Entrepreneurs: Navigating Business & Family At Hibiscus Monkey

In the evolving world of skincare, Hibiscus Monkey stands out as India’s first body specialist brand, addressing niche skin concerns with targeted, plant-powered solutions. Founded by a powerhouse family trio—a mother, Mona Mehta, a former corporate banker and Chartered Accountant, and her twin daughters, Naina, a Harvard MBA and former Unilever employee, and Roshni, an MIT and Harvard MBA-MPP graduate who has worked with the Government of India—Hibiscus Monkey blends expertise with a commitment to natural, effective skincare.

While working together as a family brings unique challenges, Mona, Naina, and Roshni have found a balance by respecting each other's distinct strengths and maintaining clear communication. The Mother-daughter trio shares insights about blending individual skills and staying focused on their common mission.

Background

People ask us what it’s like running a company as a mother and twin daughter trio - We tell them that it is a riot! How could it not be? What do you expect when a mother is working with her daughters? Or when two sisters are working together? The Hibiscus Monkey workplace is boisterous, loud and filled with banter just as our dinner table conversations are. It truly is a family affair and that is core to our values as a company too.  

Hibiscus Monkey was incubated at Harvard and MIT when Naina and Roshni were completing their MBAs. A major component of the incubation program focused on uncovering founder dynamics. As a result, going into venture building, we knew from the onset that balancing family dynamics in a startup would be a delicate dance. Unlike most workplaces, here the lines between personal and professional life blur. This comes with many advantages, but a few disadvantages too for which we have overtime set up guardrails, which we are going to share with you!

Three Pieces of Advice for Family-Run Businesses

1. Set Clear Boundaries: One has to learn to strike a balance between being family members and business partners. As a family that works together and lives together, work never ends and this can lead to severe burnout. Further, as a family, we have high standards for ourselves and our business. Oftentimes, this can lead to setting unrealistic goals and taking on undue stress with an inherent desire to live up to those expectations and not disappoint the family.

It's important to compartmentalise work and personal life. This means setting aside specific times for me-time. We have to consciously disconnect from work. So, Sundays at Hibiscus Monkey are sacred! We strictly don’t talk about work and spend the day pursuing activities that add to our personal growth – be it learning to play a new sport, going to art galleries, or simply taking the time to read a book!

2. Acknowledge The Individual Effort: A major advantage that comes from working with close family members is that we are naturally aligned on the same values, principles and ambitions when it comes to our business. We basically operate as one big unit rather than individuals. 

However, oftentimes in collectively pursuing that big ambition and dream, we overlook celebrating the small wins or forget the individual effort. While it might feel strange at first, it is important to commend each other for little wins just like one would with their colleagues in a corporate environment. At Hibiscus Monkey we realize that positive words of affirmation go a long way. As family members, we take each other for granted and sometimes it is important to articulate appreciation for one another, it can be very encouraging!

3. Compartmentalize Business Conflict: One of the biggest advantages of being a family-run business is the inherent trust and understanding we have for each other. Here at Hibiscus Monkey, we can be brutally honest without fear of offending one another. When we disagree on a matter, we argue it out without walking on eggshells, only to land up at the most optimal decision in the end. This has allowed us to make tough decisions and overcome obstacles together.

However, this comes with disadvantages too, especially if you conflate workplace conflicts with personal conflicts. We have learned it is best to leave those disagreements in our office and not take them home. Any disagreement in the office is simply entertained there and not discussed at home.

Despite the challenges, we would not have it any other way! Being able to find founders in our family members has been a blessing. We dream together, we fail together and we build together – just as we do in life. In the last 2 years, we have been able to create a company that reflects our family values and our passion for body care, while creating memories for a lifetime.