Elite-level gymnast and Blue Valley alum Leanne Wong has taken on a retail venture: making and selling bows like the ones she wears in competitions, including most visibly at the Olympics.
In between practicing gymnastics and studying on the pre-med track at the University of Florida, Wong is banking on her athletic following with new Leanne Wong Bowtique.
The business — made possible by the NCAA’s new Name, Image and Likeness, or NIL, rules that allow student-athletes to profit off their own likeness and name — stemmed from fashion skills Wong said she picked up from her days at Blue Valley High.
Wong’s background in fashion goes back to her Blue Valley days
- In an interview with On3.com, Wong said she enrolled in two fashion-focused elective courses during her time at Blue Valley High.
- In one of those classes, Wong undertook a project designing her own outfit and physically creating one part of the outfit.
- This was when she made her first bow, a light pink one that she began wearing to each gymnastics practice.
- Today, her bows have gained a solid following, and she has sold more than 10,000 of them.
Wong now sells bows and gymnast attire
- The bows come in a range of colors and sizes, each with Wong’s bedazzled initials.
- The Leanne Wong Bowtique’s individual bows generally range from $15 to $25, and they come in a variety of solid colors, patterns and themes, such as floral and Fourth of July-themed bows.
- In addition to bows, Wong also designs and sells signature leotards.
Wong is an elite-level gymnast
- Wong earned the gold medal for the United States at the 2022 World Gymnastics Championships.
- She intends to compete in the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics and previously served as a 2021 Olympic alternate in Tokyo.
- Outside of gymnastics, Wong is studying to become a medical doctor and will graduate from the University of Florida in 2025.
Go deeper: Read more about Wong’s bow line and gymnastics background here.
