Faces of Entrepreneurship ft. Anne-Marie Roy

Anne-Marie holds both a Bachelor of Arts and Education degree from the University of Ottawa. She started her career at uOttawa in 2014 in Employer Relations for the Telfer Career Centre and has since occupied various roles in External Relations leading to her current role as an Alumni Relations Officer at the Telfer School of Management. Anne-Marie is passionate about building a strong community of Alumni for Telfer and this role enables her to cultivate relationships with young and more seasoned alumni to promote a strong sense of belonging and engagement toward their Alma Mater.

Outside of work, her entrepreneurial spirit empowered her to found “Adellaide”: a crafty fundraiser project where she upcycles pre-loved clothing into hair accessories and donates a portion of the proceeds to various Children’s Hospitals & Charities. This particular cause is near and dear to her heart following her daughter’s battle with Leukemia in 2019. To date, she has raised $2,200 for CHEO in 2020!

What does entrepreneurship mean to you?

To me, entrepreneurship means being resourceful with what you already have, exactly where you are and thinking outside the box to bring an idea to life and (bonus!) giving back to your community in the process.

How are you entrepreneurial?

I don’t think I am overly talented in one particular capacity, but I do think of myself as resourceful and making the most of what I already have. Nowadays, tutorials are so accessible that it is easy to self-teach so with a bit of motivation, finding what makes you tick and wanting to share it with the world, bringing your ideas to fruition is easier than ever. A simple text message to my friends was all it took to get this (crazy) idea off the ground. The interest and enthusiasm for supporting a good cause in addition to the positive feedback is what gave me the confidence to put myself out there and launch my Instagram page.

How does an entrepreneurial mindset contribute to your life?

Having an entrepreneurial mindset has given me a deeper purpose during this pandemic. Creative by nature, I needed to keep my hands busy with all this free time at home and decided to pick up sewing (my grandmother gifted me a sewing machine). I Started upcycling my pre-loved clothing into hair accessories. Sharing my genuine story about why I started and why I want to give back to Children’s Health causes resonated with so many and this has allowed me to build a community around one same objective of “Making everyday a good hair day (while giving back)”.

*This feature was published as a part of the Faces of Entrepreneurship Campaign, 2021.