Kirsten and Aiyven Mbawa - on the power of imagination, and teen entrepreneurship

Smashing The Ceiling

To open Season 4, I’ve got two guests with me with this week, and if you’re looking for inspiring women in your life, then these two are it.

Kirsten and Aiyven Mbawa are sisters from Northampton, England and they’re 13 and 12 years old respectively. Nothing unusual there. What is unusual is that both Kirsten and Aiyven are published authors and business owners. Their love of reading has driven everything they’ve done so far, and you’ll hear in this chat the effect on their lives that they both attribute to books. Their company, Mbawa Books, produces monthly subscription boxes for teens containing diverse titles with relatable, representative heroes from a wide range of authors, as well as stories written by Kirsten and Aiyven themselves. Their output is prolific, and having tasted success with their first books, which they self-published but subsequently got onto the shelves of Waterstones through their hard work and tenacity, they are well on their way with their next novels.

Kirsten and Aiyven are the face of their brand. They have help from their mum, Ndah, but have themselves appeared on Steph’s Packed Lunch on Channel 4 and in various local and national press. Kirsten confidently told me she wants to be prime minister, and I just wouldn’t put anything past these two.

Useful Links

Mbawa Books Website: https://www.mbawabooks.co.uk

Subscribe to Kirsten and Aiyven's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1-zobH5aogUrGF02gIW3lw

Follow Mbawa Books on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mbawabooks/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mbawabooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mbawabooks/