Guillaume attended primary school in the parish of St. Athanasius before leaving to work as a factory worker in Montreal.

It is believed that Bresse learned of the shoemaking trade whilst living in Massachusetts after emigrating there with large numbers of other Canadians.

After moving twice more, he spent $11,304 on a brick and stone factory which was to house his mechanized shoe manufacturing operation.

His $165,000 per year revenue aided him in riding out the economic depression of the 1870s, and by 1889 Bresse controlled between $300,000 and $400,000 worth of assets.

The construction of a $12,000 leather dressing factory in Quebec City was made possible by Bresse's financing.