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Ashley
Dupree follows her heart into Eco Fashion
"My
job is like a dream," says Ashlee Duprey. "I love selling something
I can believe in." Duprey's faith is based on eco-friendly fashion as
the clothing of the future. As manager for international wholesale accounts
at Under
the Canopy, a leading natural and organic apparel company, Duprey
is responsible for getting the goods into the hands of retailers. It's
a vital business link between products and customers that means success
or failure in business, and a connection that many small, new, and inexperienced
companies fail to make well enough to survive.
Duprey started up this link at Under the Canopy. "The company had many
requests for a wholesale division as the market evolved," she explains,
"and I had experienceÑI came in with new systems which I had to customize
to our needs and began the development of a whole new sales division.
I dealt with PR and took part in designing sales materials for our reps,
both in the U.S. and internationally." To judge by the fast-growing
sales of Under the Canopy, Duprey is helping carve out a profitable
niche for its natural and organic fashion.
"I love selling something I can believe in."
Duprey, 22, was hooked on the idea of sales at an early age. Raised
in British Columbia and Alberta by parents who worked as merchandisers
and in marketing and sales, Duprey naturally studied advertising and
marketing at Mount Royal College in Calgary, Alberta and later, at Florida
Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Florida, where her family had relocated.
It was a logical step for her to sign up for an internship as a salesperson
("it must be in my genes") for a major pharmaceutical company in the
U.S.Ñonly to discover that the product mattered less than high sales
figures and high-pressure techniques. "They didn't care what you did
to sell the drugs, deception was part of their tactics. The idea was,
'anything to sell.' I found it difficult to sell something I didn't
believe in," she says.
"You
can be ethical and professional at the same time."
Duprey grew up with organics in her daily life, as well as aromatherapy
vitamins, essential oils, and holistic health practices. And she wanted
to be involved with fashion after modeling and organizing fashion shows,
which led her to discover fashion as an industry. These two related
interests led to an Internet search for an eco-friendly clothing companyÑand
her discovery of Under the Canopy.
"I decided I needed to follow my passion," explains Duprey, making it
all sound so simple. What's next for the budding businesswoman? More
studies in advertising graphics ("I love pulling images out of my mind
and transferring them to a page to share with others") and a long-term
commitment to the eco-fashion field. But her concern is for more than
just the mechanics.
"I want to be involved with business in a way that feels right," she
says. "You can be ethical and professional at the same time." Now there's
a pitch with value-added appeal.
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