Tory Burch Foundation
#EmbraceAmbition
When the Tory Burch Foundation launched a global movement to end the stigma around ambitious women, they selected Maresa Friedman as one of their featured voices. Her word: RESILIENT.
Maresa Friedman featured by @toryburchfoundation — #EmbraceAmbition global campaign
The Campaign
The Tory Burch Foundation's #EmbraceAmbition campaign was a global movement designed to challenge and dismantle the harmful double standard that penalizes women for being ambitious — the same trait celebrated in men.
The campaign invited women around the world to take a pledge, share their story, and declare the word that defined their ambition. It became one of the most widely shared women's empowerment campaigns of its era, generating over 1.4 million global actions and reaching audiences across every continent.
Maresa was selected as a featured UGC collaborator — her image, her word, and her voice amplified across the Foundation's global platform.
"I #EmbraceAmbition because I believe in being resilient. Ambition drives me. I learn from mistakes, push forward & teach this to others. We learn, we grow, we love, we thrive, we conquer — together."
— Maresa Friedman
Why This Matters
Alignment Over Vanity
Being selected for the #EmbraceAmbition campaign wasn't about visibility for its own sake. It was a natural extension of Maresa's work — helping leaders show up with clarity, conviction, and a brand that reflects who they actually are.
UGC as Authority Signal
User-generated content collaborations with organizations like the Tory Burch Foundation are among the most credible forms of third-party validation. They signal that your voice, your story, and your positioning have earned a seat at a global table.
The Double Standard in Leadership
The #EmbraceAmbition campaign addressed something Maresa has seen firsthand in every boardroom and strategy engagement: ambitious women are consistently held to a different standard. Naming that publicly — and standing in it — is part of the work.
Resilience as Strategy
Maresa chose the word RESILIENT deliberately. Resilience isn't about enduring hardship — it's about learning, adapting, and continuing to move forward with intention. That's not just a personal value. It's a strategic one.
The Campaign in Action
The #EmbraceAmbition campaign featured women from around the world, each defined by a single word that captured their ambition. Maresa's "RESILIENT" was featured alongside participants from every industry and every continent.
The Collaboration
Selection
Maresa was selected by the Tory Burch Foundation team as a featured UGC collaborator — one of a curated group of women whose stories, positioning, and voice aligned with the campaign's mission to redefine ambition.
Content Creation
Professional photography was produced for the campaign. Maresa's image was styled, shot, and branded with her chosen word — RESILIENT — and the #EmbraceAmbition mark, in the campaign's signature black-and-white with orange typography.
Global Amplification
The content was published across the Tory Burch Foundation's global platforms — website, social media, and campaign hub — reaching the Foundation's full audience and contributing to the 1.4 million global actions the campaign generated.
Lasting Credential
The collaboration established a permanent third-party credential: Maresa Friedman as a recognized voice in the conversation around women's ambition, leadership, and resilience — at a global, brand-level scale.
Ambition is not a dirty word. It's the engine. The question is whether you're willing to own it publicly — and build a brand that can carry it.
— Maresa Friedman
What This Signals for Your Brand
The Tory Burch Foundation doesn't select random voices. They select women whose positioning, story, and public presence are already aligned with the mission. Maresa's selection was a direct result of years of intentional brand architecture — building a public identity that is specific, credible, and unmistakably hers.
This is what personal brand strategy is actually for. Not to get more followers. Not to look impressive. To create the conditions for the right organizations, the right stages, and the right collaborations to find you — and recognize you as the right fit.
That's the work Maresa does with her clients. And it's the work she has done — and continues to do — for herself.
Downloads
Take This Case Study With You
PDF One-Pager
Case Study Summary
Single-page PDF with key stats, the campaign overview, and Maresa's role — ready to share or reference.
↓ Download One-PagerReady to Build a Brand That Gets Selected?
The brands that get chosen — for campaigns, for stages, for partnerships — are the ones that have done the positioning work. Let's build yours.