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CATHERINE ADDAI
VOLUME 17, ISSUE 3
2020
With hustle and heart
Group Publisher Sanjay Agnihotri
By Ramya Ramanathan
Editor Ramya Ramanathan rramanathan@metroland.com
Tell us about yourself
I am a designer and CEO of Kaela Kay. I’m also a wife and mother to three fabulous kids. I was born in Ghana and my family moved to Amsterdam when I was three and lived there till I was seven. My mother and I moved to Canada and I remember turning seven here in my new country. We came to Canada because we had family here already and knew we would get family support.
Editorial Design Safi Nomani Digital Media Developer Kamil Mytnik Sr. Ad Manager Ricky (Kawaljit) Bajaj rbajaj@metroland.com Tel: 905 273 8170 Assistant Manager Laura Jackman ljackman@metroland.com
Tell us about the work you do. What inspires you?
General Inquiries: info@canadianimmigrant.ca
As a fashion designer and business owner, I am striving to build a brand and a business with purpose and stability – one garment at a time. My clothes focus on using prints native to Ghana but fashioned into modern North American attire. My team consists of three seamstresses, an assistant and a marketing representative – currently all positions are held by women, a fact that is very important to me. I’m inspired by women, working moms, boss babes who are striving to be better and build the lives they want to live – and do it all looking fabulous. I’m inspired by my heritage and Ghanaian roots as well as my Canadian upbringing and exposure to fashion and style. I want, through my brand, to share my heritage in the prints and share North American fashion through the styles – a beautiful blend.
Circulation/Distribution Inquiries: ljackman@metroland.com ISSN 1910-4146 Opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the publisher
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canadianimmigrant.ca TORONTO 3145 Wolfedale Road, Mississauga Ontario, L5C 3A9 Tel: 905 273 8111, Fax: 905 277 9917
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hana-born Catherine Addai is CEO, designer and lead stylist of Toronto-based clothing label Kaela Kay, which she describes as a lifestyle brand for the modern woman who wants to express her inner colours in an outward way.
How did you get started as an entrepreneur? What are you currently working on?
I literally fell into it. My mother bought me a sewing machine and I started sewing for myself and a few friends – the rest is herstory. I’m currently working on a very special but super private project for August as well With a degree in health informatics, Addai worked as a fall collection. I am learning to navigate the future in the corporate sector for a decade. In 2017, she quit of fashion in a pandemic. My boutique has reopened her job to focus on running her business full-time. Over [after COVID-19] and I’m also focused on bringing the years, she has taught herself to sew, design, manage clients back in smoothly and safely. people, be a businesswoman – all with no formal training; as she says with simply “hustle and heart”. What is your advice to other immigrant She has turned her passion into a successful six-figure entrepreneurs? For me, Canada has been a great place to start my clothing company. business especially one with such a cultural focus. In April 2019, she opened her flagship retail store My brand, my aesthetic and style has been very well Kaela Kay Fashion Boutique & Design Studio to offer received and growing. There are also a lot of great her customers a place to connect with the fabrics, enjoy resources and support, some geared towards immigrant the shopping experience, express their personal style, women in business. So far, whatever information I’ve and immediately buy and wear African print fashion needed or looked for, I have found the resource for. and creative fashion. She has won many international Visit government sites and find out about available programs and go for it. and Canadian fashion awards.
CANADIAN IMMIGRANT Volume 17 Issue 3 | 2020
