How did we get started with HABIBI? Part I – Stop and Smell the Roses

We get this question A LOT and we love sharing our story because we must answer the “why” before we get to the “how”.

Shakir and I (Tabassum) were living the typical American lives working towards the American dream. Both of us are children of immigrants from middle class families. We found ourselves young, married, and working (almost all the time, or at least it felt like it). We had 2 young kids and a third on the way. I am a Doctor of Pharmacy and Shakir is a computer scientist with a strong background in finance and economics. With so much on hand, we found ourselves too busy for ourselves and each other. Work, kids, appointments, errands, chores, family commitments, etc.

At some point around here, we realized that time was flying by and everyday felt the same while we and our children were just growing older. So, we decided that we wanted to make/do something together that would allow us both to enjoy time together while using our skills/degrees in synergy and also remind others of the importance of slowing down to enjoy our time, health, and blessings with those we love the most. Almost in a literal sense, we wanted to remind everyone to Stop and Smell the Roses.

One of our passions is to travel and try new cultures, foods and scents. Along with our travels, we always enjoy bringing gifts back for our family and friends. After having visited several different countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Fareast Asia, we realized that the fragrances we had available in the US were very linear and all too common. Also, if we did try to find something unique or exotic that was premium, it cost an arm and a leg.

All of these discoveries were being made in 2015 (the year that we can all remember as one of the most divisive in our nation). Politically and economically, there was instability, fear, and disunity.

My husband and I realized that there was so much we all needed to do to  change the overall sentiment of disunity. It was not the America our parents had migrated to and certainly not the America we grew up in during the 90’s. We realized that we needed to focus on something that brings universal joy to everyone without boundaries of race, color, creed, culture. Like the effect different cuisines have in bringing everyone to the table, we wanted to create something that is uniquely ties together different scents from around the world and brings people together. Our passion of fine fragrances naturally led us into this amazing endeavor of making beautiful, unique, premium fragrances that would evoke emotions of love and happiness while kindling unity and togetherness. We called it HABIBI which means my beloved in Arabic.  

The “how” is to be continued…