From Frustrated Mom to Founder: How Meng Li Built the Parent-Focused Diaper Bag Brand Huhu

From frustrated mom to founder, Meng Li built the parent-focused diaper bag brand Huhu to solve her own problems packing for two kids. After testing over 10 iterations, Meng launched her first Huhu bag earlier this year.

Meng talks transparently about navigating the world of product development, marketing, and content creation as a solopreneur. Her journey from idea to launch wasn’t quick or easy, but she persisted through the pandemic despite having no previous experience on the product side.

Now that she’s launched, Meng shares what strategies are working for Huhu, like press and influencers. She also discusses the importance of giving yourself more time than you think for metrics like time to purchase. Spoiler: it takes more touches than you’d expect!

What we discussed:

(01:04) Where the idea for Huhu came from

(04:03) Learning product development from scratch

(06:56) The long journey from idea to first customer order

(08:04) Finding and vetting product partners

(13:26) Marketing solo vs. managing a team

(23:19) Press and influencers driving conversions

(25:24) Working with micro-influencers

3 Things Huhu’s Launch Can Teach You:

1. Start talking to experts long before you think you need them. Meng started networking 6-9 months before she was ready for a partner. "I started working on this in the height of COVID, during 2020. So everything had to be done remote, and I couldn't meet people in person, I couldn't look at any of the materials in person."
2. Give yourself more time than you think. It took 10+ iterations over 2 years to go from idea to launch. "So I started thinking about the idea towards the end of 2020. And then, for the bulk of 2021, I was trying to find the right partners, finding the right industrial designer, finding the right factory to work with. And that took a long time, probably about six to nine months."
3. It takes multiple touches before purchase. Don't expect instant conversions from a single ad or post. "I've seen that with people who convert it takes them six visits to the site before they make a purchase. So with, with paid media, I think it helps with top of funnel getting people in, but you have to do a lot of other things to ultimately help them make that purchase."

Links:

Huhu: Website | Instagram | TikTok

Connect with Meng Li: LinkedIn