Our STORy
WHY We STARTED HIGH NET WORTH WOMEN INSTITUTE
In 2021, we were introduced by a mutual friend, and it didn’t take long for us to discover our shared passion for empowering women in the world of wealth and financial literacy. Both of us had repeatedly encountered financially successful women who were seeking, but unable to find, financial guidance that went beyond the basics.
As financial professionals, we too struggled to find advanced, tailored resources for women. That's when we realized something crucial: If the information we were searching for didn’t exist, we would create it ourselves!
So, High Net Worth Women was born—a space where you can access not just basic advice, but the intermediate and advanced financial knowledge you need to thrive. Our mission is to offer you the tools, education, and support to confidently invest, grow your wealth, and become the architect of your financial future.
MISSION
Our mission is to equip you with the most meaningful and impactful methods to become the architect of your own wealth on your own terms. Using our framework of ‘The 4 Pillars of Female Wealth’ we provide you with comprehensive tools and hands on support to take charge of your wealth journey.
VISION
Our vision is a world of financially confident women leading the lives they’ve always dreamed of. HNWWI fosters and facilitates women to reach their full financial potential and have the freedom to choose their versions of a perfect life.
About Steffi
Co-founder & CEO
Lead Course Designer and Instructor/Mentor
I grew up in a northern suburb of Milwaukee as the oldest of three girls. I’m biracial - my mother is white and my father is black -which was an interesting thing to be in the 70s and 80s in Milwaukee, to say the least.
I spent my time as a kid at the ice rink in the winter and on a nearby Lake Michigan beach in the summer.
Reading is a passion I took up young. If I wasn’t outside, I could be found in a quiet corner with my nose buried in a book. (Historical biographies and Nancy Drew were favorites.) My greatest ambition became to travel and experience the world, which I have and am still doing.
I went to University School of Milwaukee, a private college prep high school, then attended Pomona College in California, and after that traveled and lived all over the US.
In 2004, I headed to England to study for an MBA at Edinburgh Business School’s London campus, earning my post-graduate diploma in 2007. It was there I found my way into working in the family office sector in 2008.
In 2020 I started HNWWI to serve the tremendous unmet need for practical, tactical financial education and how to create and manage a fulfilling, wealthy life.
Women have particular interests and needs that are just not being addressed by the financial industries, so I’m focused there, although I do work with men, couples and families.
Being biracial is a unique life experience and a great blessing. As a child, I often felt I was a misfit for being different but now I see myself as the bearer of harmony and unity.
Society can be harsh on people who are “outliers” of any sort. I”m an outlier. Being high net worth makes you an outlier. I thoroughly understand the challenges anyone like us faces.
I graduated from Edinburgh Business School with the full MBA in December 2024 and am going on to do doctorate level research on women, family offices and wealth, with the intent to publish the research.
Whatever your back story and current circumstances, I”m ready to listen to and connect with you and work with you to create the LOVE, LEVERAGE & LEGACY you would like to have in your life.
About Hannah
Co-founder & COO
Hannah’s extensive experience in finance and business management, spanning over two decades, has established her as a highly skilled and trusted expert in the industry. Leveraging her expertise in these fields, she founded HP & Co., a boutique business management firm in Los Angeles, CA, and High Net Worth Women Institute, where she has dedicated herself to advancing financial education for women.
Hannah began her career working with a leading retail bank and later shifted into investment banking where she worked with prestigious investment institutions managing high net worth clients in the heart of Beverly Hills, California. She has also worked directly with entrepreneurs and startup companies as a consultant, and with well-known business management firms in Los Angeles, managing both individuals and families.
After gaining years of highly specialized and targeted knowledge, she started her own firm, HP & Co., to focus on helping entrepreneurs and individuals manage their portfolios, businesses and lives. Some of her projects include creating generational wealth plans, managing high-value personal assets, and building teams around her clients to ensure their financial success.
Hannah has a special interest in helping build community and support for female entrepreneurs. She currently serves as COO of High Net Worth Women Institute and is a member of the W Source and the XX Project, networking groups for female professionals. She is also on the board of the UC-Santa Barbara Women in Leadership Executive Program. Hannah strongly believes that there is no reason we shouldn’t all be millionaires, and all of her work is dedicated towards making this a reality.