Bojana Sentaler
Bojana Sentaler is a Canadian fashion designer, Founder, President and Creative Director of Sentaler since 2009. She is known for her line of luxury alpaca outerwear and accessories.[1]
Bojana Sentaler | |
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Bojana Sentaler | |
Born | Belgrade, Serbia |
Nationality | Canadian and Serbian |
Occupation | Fashion Designer |
Known for | Luxury Outerwear |
Website | sentaler |
Background
Born in Belgrade, Sentaler emigrated to Canada from Serbia when she was eight years old.[2] She attended the Schulich School of Business at York University in Toronto and graduated with a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree in Marketing and Finance.[3]
She began her career working for a corporate beauty brand. After a short time, she left her position to pursue being an entrepreneur. In 2008, she traveled to Dubai and began a small business creating economic investment reports on the MENA region for a UK newspaper.[4] In 2009, she traveled to Peru where she discovered alpaca fabric and launched the Sentaler Canadian luxury outerwear brand.[5]
When the time came to choose a career path, Sentaler chose to focus on the business for stability instead of attending a fashion school.[6] After graduating from the Schulich School of Business, Sentaler took a position in sales and marketing with a corporate beauty brand.[7] She found the corporate environment too restrictive for her creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. This led her to resign and travel to Dubai to explore opportunities in fashion.[8]
In 2008, while living in Dubai, she worked on economic investment reports on emerging markets, particularly the MENA region for a UK newspaper.[9] While interviewing various corporate CEO’s and Saudi sheiks, Sentaler had the opportunity to interview Karl Lagerfeld, who had recently designed luxury villas in Dubai.[10] After the interview, Sentaler expressed her dreams of becoming a fashion designer. Lagerfeld remarked, “You either have it or you don’t, and if you have it, go for it.” [11] After discovering alpaca fabric in Peru and spending time studying its unique properties, Sentaler decided to launch a luxury outerwear brand. She designed her first seven “dream coats” and founded the SENTALER brand in 2009 in Toronto.[8]
Awards & honours
References
- Williams, Ingrie. "Meet the Toronto Designer Behind Meghan Markle's Fave Winter Coat". Readers Digest Best Health. Best Health Mag.
- "Britanska princeza voli srpske kreatore: Kejt Midlton u kaputu Bojane Sentaler Nikolić".
- Kelly, Deirdre. "The Sophie Grégoire Trudeau coat: a Canadian fashion success story". The Globe and Mail. The Globe and Mail Inc. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
- "sentaler-on-10-years-of-sartorial-style-and-why-meghan-markle-adores-the-brand-so-much/#14d908723717".
- "Sentaler". 15 August 2017.
- Davis, Erin. "Canadian Designer Bojana Sentaler Goes Global After Meghan And Kate Made Her Coats Famous". Notable Life. Notable Life. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
- Dion-Marquis, Sarah. "Profile: Bojana Sentaler". Fajo. FAJO Magazine. Retrieved 5 September 2012.
- Kelly, Deirde. "The Sophie Grégoire Trudeau coat: a Canadian fashion success story". The Globe And Mail. The Globe and Mail Inc. Retrieved 14 July 2019.
- Leigh, Tiffany. "Sentaler On 10 Years Of Sartorial Style And Why Meghan Markle Adores The Brand So Much". Forbes. Forbes Inc. Retrieved 26 June 2019.
- Bains, Pahull. "Looking Back at 10 Years of Sentaler Milestones, Including the "Meghan Coat"". FASHION Magazine. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
- Liu, Leona. "A-listers Meghan Markle and Gigi Hadid add to allure of Sentaler's winter coats". Style. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
- Ngao, Erica. "Here are all the 2019 CAFA Nominees". Elle Canada. Elle Canada. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
- "International Women Achievers Award". Retrieved 8 March 2014.