About Us

I was born and raised in Montreal. My mid to late twenties were spent in Toronto before I was drawn to Calgary at the age of 30. During my time in TO, I worked on film sets tutoring child actors. I met Dustin Hoffman while filming Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium. A very cool movie moment, true, but my biggest claim to fame came when I almost shared an elevator ride with Matt Damon. These details have absolutely nothing to do with this bio but who cares? How many people can say they were prevented from sharing an elevator ride with a mega movie star by said star’s bodyguard? This girl can, that’s who.

After working in film, I nannied for some of the most high-profile families in Canada. I could tell you their secrets but then I’d have to admit that I knew any secrets at all. A proper nanny never tells. It was during this period of my life, between film and pomp and circumstance, that I developed my love of style. One thing that film wardrobes and affluent families have in common is great clothes! I can recall a time before one family vacation when I was asked to photograph each article of clothing to be packed for their 8 year old for insurance purposes. I was then instructed to painstakingly pack each item separately as though I were wrapping a piece of art. Custom Dior, Burberry, Gucci. At first, I couldn’t keep track of the exotic-sounding names. Within a few years, however, I had become well versed in child clothing designer brands. Sure, this sounds like I’ve given up a family secret but I can assure you the brand names have been changed to protect their identities.

Fast forward to 2010 when I became pregnant with my first child. While shopping for maternity clothes, I found myself less-than-impressed with the options offered by traditional stores. It was then that I turned to high-end boutiques. Inspired by what I found on those shopping trips, and fueled by one faithful insomnia-filled night, I decided to start a maternity store. A Facebook page was made, designer clothing pilgrimages began, and a high-end maternity consignment shop was born. I successfully launched Another Baby’s Breath in 2011.

When my first son, Max, was born, I found I didn’t care for the well-meaning but nonetheless uninspired cutsie onesies I was given as gifts. Reading the little sayings like, “Mama’s Boy” or “Little Dude” was enough to make me want to scream, Louis Vuitton! I found that their fabric was poor and their longevity left much to be desired. I believe any time you invest in clothing for your child you should expect that investment to last longer than 3 months. And so, my search for high-end brands I knew so well began.

My first brilliant thrift store find was an IKKS vest for $4. I knew it retailed for $80 - score! I then had the clever idea to search for high-end consigners. Between the thrift store discoveries and designer acquisitions which originally came from 2 dedicated consigners, a second business came to life. I launched Another Child’s Breath as a Facebook Business Page on March 13, 2012. Over seven years later, I have had over 200 consigners, hundreds of faithful customers, and laid my eyes on some of the most gorgeous clothes imaginable. Incidentally, I have featured that magnificent IKKS vest on my company’s Page since the very beginning.

Did I mention while launching two companies I also worked full-time as an elementary school teacher and had a second son? Kyle joined our family in 2013. I now had two sons to act as my kids' fashion muses.

I love dressing children in beautiful, high quality clothes for less while feeling good about the fact that I’m doing my part to reverse the “fast fashion” tread. When you buy consignment, you reduce clothing waste. When you buy quality, you are telling the fashion industry that you value well made clothes. Through my years of experience I have learned you can dress your kids like a million bucks without spending a million bucks. Heck, you don’t even need to spend 50 bucks!

During this infamous year of 2020, I decided to expand my online retail shop to a more customer-friendly version. I also decided to switch up my name. Allow me to introduce you to Another Breath Consignment, or ABC for you acronym-types. I look forward to helping you dress your children in a way that reflects how much they mean to you.

Alyssa