Raising their family in London, Nigerians Chris and Ada Ngoforo were keen for their children to stay in touch with their West African heritage. But the couple became concerned that their three young daughters didn’t speak any Igbo, one of Nigeria’s ethnic languages. “We thought amongst ourselves what we can do to actually help them to learn Igbo more,” says Chris Ngoforo. This desire to encourage their children to connect with their roots, coupled with an increasing frustration with the difficulty in finding black dolls that resonated with their daughters, led the entrepreneurial couple to take matters into their hands. What started as a way of helping their daughters engage with their heritage quickly became a business opportunity. Soon after, the couple launched their own range of toys, called Rooti Dolls, programmed to speak in several native African languages and promote positive self-images.

www.rootidolls.com