Otara Gunewardene was invited to speak at the Board Of Investment’s “Reach the Peak” program held at the Board’s Auditorium. The program is intended to inspire and encourage the BOI staff to reach aspirations they might have.

The speech focused on branding, marketing and entrepreneurship where Otara shared stories of her life as a successful entrepreneur, animal rights advocate and a fashion model.

She spoke about how she built her brand from the ground up, how she learnt skills needed to manage a business from scratch and how she balanced many different roles in her life of being a mother whilst also being a successful businessperson.

When asked about branding, Otara stated “It is important for a brand to be recognizable and be top of mind. Odel was always both of these things. It is still recognizable and associated with quality retail”

She urged the crowd to not be discouraged by any challenges they may face, but rather keep moving forwards and to never give up.