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B C B U S I N E S S . C A
J U LY/A U G U S T 2 0 2 5 P o o y a N a b e i
QUALITY TIME
Ashley Freeborn didn't like going to
karate as a kid.
The Smash + Tess CEO and co-founder
grew up going to the dojo with her
father, a black belt in Goju Ryu karate, at
least once a week for several years. "My
memories of karate were not the best,"
she says. "It was really hard... It was really
gruelling. It was long."
But while she was living in California
for seven years (she moved back to
B.C. last summer), Freeborn's father
kept talking to her about learning Krav
Maga with his new sensei and it got her
thinking. "When we moved home, back
to Tsawwassen where I grew up, I figured,
you know what? We should give martial
arts a try," she recalls.
ABOVE
THE BELT
In nearly 10 years of running
fashion brand Smash + Tess,
CEO and co-founder
Ashley Freeborn hasn't
had much of a vacation.
But martial arts classes
have helped her kick back
By Sandrine Jacquot
W E E K E N D W A R R I O R
