A year ago, Jenny Nguyen used her life savings to open a sports bar that only showed women’s sports on television. So far, it’s been an absolute hit.
The bar – aptly named The Sports Bra – has been wildly successful since it opened last April, bringing in $944,000 in revenue in the eight months it was open in 2022.
“It turns out, it’s pretty universal — that feeling of being a women’s sports fan and going into a public place, like a sports bar, and having a difficult time finding a place to show a [women’s] game, especially when there are other men’s sports playing,” Nguyen stold NBC News.
Nguyen admits that she wasn’t 100 percent sure the idea would work given how much attention and money men’s sports generate, but she decided to take the risk because she personally liked the idea.
“Me, personally, I thought the idea was brilliant and that [it was] what the world needs,” Nguyen says. “But I had no idea that the world would want it. I just wanted to give it a shot.”
The risk paid off. Nguyen said that there is regularly a line out the door, and several women’s sports icons have made an appearance, including WNBA superstars Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi. Ginny Gilder, co-owner of the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, has even waited in line to get into the bar.
Now, Nguyen wants to help other bars expand upon the concept in her city and in other cities across the country.
I would love to have as many people experience the feeling people experience when they walk through these doors,” she said. “It feels very selfish to keep it to this one building that holds 40 people at a time.”
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