In a sunlit studio tucked away, swatches of vibrant Ankara fabric lay beside sleek MacBook spreadsheets. This is the world of Doyin Amao, a woman who refuses to choose between creativity and corporate brilliance. At first glance, she may appear to be a walking paradox: an MBA graduate from Rotman School of Management, a certified Chartered Accountant (ACCA), and an AI Product Manager who moonlights as a fashion designer, but look a little closer, and you’ll find a woman full of passion, heritage, and a love for fashion.
Doyin’s story doesn’t begin in a boardroom. It begins in Oyo State, Nigeria, where a little girl with big eyes watched her mother transform into magic every morning with bold style and flowing prints. “My mom has been fashionable my entire life,” she recalls. “I used to use scraps of fabric to remake her outfits on my dolls.” Those scraps weren’t discarded remnants to Doyin, and in them, she found the seeds of a creative empire long before she knew the words “business strategy” or “digital transformation.”
At just 16, while most teenagers were dreaming of concerts and curfews, Doyin had a different wish for her birthday, fashion school. Her parents, understanding the uniqueness of their daughter’s vision, supported her in every way. Her father, in particular, became a quiet architect of her future. “He would tailor his own clothes and tell the tailor to keep the scraps for me,” she says. “He’s the one who found the fashion school for me to go to when I was 16. He believed you could be a professional and still create.”
This balance between precision and passion would become the hallmark of Doyin’s life.
After earning a BSc in Accounting from Covenant University, Doyin carved a formidable path in the world of finance and business. She mastered the language of numbers, systems, and scalable models. Her analytical mind found joy in structure, but her creative spirit never dulled.
Doyin would go on to earn an MBA from the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management, adding another pillar to her growing empire. Her career skyrocketed. Over the span of nearly a decade, she became known as a strategic powerhouse in product management, digital transformation, customer experience, and business strategy. From leading over 80 high-impact initiatives to generating multi-million-dollar returns through operational innovation, Doyin became the go-to leader for companies navigating disruption.
Her business philosophy is as bold as her wardrobe: data meets intuition, and innovation must serve people. Whether she’s optimizing global supply chains, or guiding startups through digital revolutions, her goal remains the same: human-centered solutions with lasting impact, and yet, for all the accolades, Doyin never lost touch with the girl who sewed clothes from scraps. That girl had simply grown into a woman now designing collections under her brand, OAMA, that are worn around the world.
In 2019, a serendipitous conversation changed everything. She was planning a trip, and a friend suggested creating travel-inspired pieces to capture the spirit of the journey. The idea sparked something deep inside her. “Whenever you’re trying something new, exploring a new place, I think you should do it looking fabulous,” she says with a smile.
That sentiment (equal parts style and substance) became the core of OAMA: her fashion label that blends cultural heritage, modern femininity, and bold storytelling. OAMA is about where a woman is going, both literally and figuratively.
The design process starts with a print. “Once the print is designed, I begin to put things together,” Doyin explains. “What type of outfit should I create? Where is the woman who is wearing it going?” From her sketches in Toronto to manufacturing in Lagos, to shipping across the globe, every stitch tells a story.
Perhaps the most beautiful element? Her fashion journey is rooted in family. Her brand name, OAMA, is a clever rearrangement of her father’s surname, a subtle nod to the man who believed she could do it all. “We are rooted in heritage,” she says. “The joy of my family is behind this.”
For Doyin, success isn’t just personal, “I want us to be remembered as a brand and a community that has done the work to understand the industry,” she explains. “We’re accessible, rooted in culture, and deeply intentional.”
Whether mentoring founders, managing product teams, or designing limited-run collections, Doyin leads with purpose and power. Her presence is magnetic, her mission transformational.
When asked what her younger self would say to the woman she’s become, Doyin’s answer is quietly powerful, “Keep going!”
She admits there are hard days; moments when no one sees your work, when doubts echo louder than dreams, but she’s come to learn that someone, somewhere, is watching, and when they see you walk in your truth: brilliant, bold, and unapologetic, it gives them permission to do the same.
Doyin Amao is more than her titles: ACCA, MBA, CSPO, CSM, AI Strategist, Fashion Designer, Consultant; she is proof that you don’t have to choose between the boardroom and the runway, between algorithms and art.
She’s the embodiment of modern African excellence: unafraid, unconventional, and unforgettable. From the chalk-lined sewing tables of her teenage years to executive boardrooms across North America, Doyin has stitched a life that is as fearless as it is fashionable.
The best part?
She’s only just begun…
