Raised in Japan and graduating from the Business School with an MA(Hons) in International Business in 2013, Emma spent the first few years working in Europe. She set up a tech company in Copenhagen, working as Head of Marketing, then lived in Spain.
While there the company was accepted onto an accelerator by a leading startup incubator. Emma then returned home to Tokyo, working for McAfee and then Kurasu as their Marketing Director.
However, it was a move to Vancouver in 2018 to do digital marketing for a tech company that led to Emma meeting her co-founder, Shannon Edlington, and ultimately their first steps into the fashion world.
"We met when I first moved to Vancouver" says Emma, "and instantly became good friends. We soon discovered that we both had an interest in fashion and shared dreams of owning our own businesses in the industry.
"I have always had a passion for companies which sell products that focus on sustainability, quality, and craftsmanship, and given Shannon’s experience as a fashion designer, building a sustainable fashion brand seemed the natural option for us.
With the detrimental impact of fast fashion, we both wanted to build a business that added to the solution of a problem rather than contribute to it.
They launched their own womenswear brand Adeera in 2018, initially as an online retailer for online brands. It did not take them long to discover that they were missing their true passion of creating a product so, in 2019 they pivoted the business and started to design their own products.
"We wanted to design clothes for the city-woman who is fashion forward and loves a touch of luxury. We wanted to give women the confidence to be who they really are.
"Our first collection was entirely made of 100% mulberry silk. Everything is sustainably made locally in Vancouver. The craftsmanship is amazing. Initially we worked with local dressmakers to help us make the prototypes before working with a production company who specialise with this type of material.
"Perhaps most importantly, everything is completely made to order so we are not carrying unnecessary stock and there is no waste."
Reflecting Back
Emma brings the business insight to Adeera so reflecting back on her business degree she says that out of all the things she learnt, probably the one that is used most is how to build an effective business strategy and plan. She also stresses the importance of budgeting.
"Learning about strategy and various business tactics is great, but learning to do all of that within a budget is crucial for the workplace."
That said, nothing could have really prepared them for the past year.
"We launched our business during the pandemic, so we have been affected from the very beginning. Our first collection features designs that are more occasion-wear, which of course we realise our customers didn't have many chances to wear because of restrictions.
"With restrictions continuing in 2021, we have decided to make our upcoming designs more wearable, which we hope will resonate with our audience. We are also keen to have in-person events and pop-ups, but we will of course have to monitor the restrictions here in Vancouver, before we can put this in place."
Looking Ahead
Looking ahead to the future, their vision for the business is to become a well-known brand across continents.
"We want to become known for beautiful, sustainable designs and for our ethos of empowering women to be confident in their authentic selves.
"We also want to launch a programme to give back a portion of our proceeds to organisations that support young women going to school and taking the right paths to build a strong life for themselves."
One question Emma is often asked is, does it work when you are best friends with your business partner? After all, the business only started because they were close friends sharing ideas over a glass of wine.
"To be fair, we did wonder the same thing when we first started. That said, we already knew our personalities were similar and felt that we tended to approach things in a similar way.
"I would say that two main things make it work. Firstly, we bring different areas of expertise to the business with my marketing and business background, and Shannon being a fashion designer.
"Secondly, we trust each other and were both keen to have fun with the business and we feel that this attitude will get us through whatever life throws at us."
Certainly the past year has proved that whatever they have had to face, their business partnership is stronger than ever, with their next collection about to launch in May.
And with both founders continuing to hold down full-time jobs as well as run their business, Emma assures us that their friendship continues too, with many planning meetings taking place late into the night!