Former UDC athlete, assistant coach Robin Williams’ bowties sold in T.J. Maxx, Marshall’s

Robin “Robbie” Williams has always had a competitive spirit, which drove her to succeed as a student-athlete and assistant coach at UDC, and later as an entrepreneur. It was that “can do” attitude that launched Williams into business after making her own bowtie for a former teammate and best friend’s bowtie-themed bridal shower.

Williams launched Bowtie Behavior in 2014 after being flooded with requests for bowties after the bridal shower, which led to creations for holidays, weddings, Pride month, birthdays and more.

Her bowties are now being carried in TJ Maxx and Marshall’s in 15 stores across New York City as a test market. In addition, Williams recently met with a buyer from Target for consideration of having the bowties sold there.

“My ideas are based on what I’m inspired to do,” Williams said. “I’m a proponent of genderless clothing. It all boils down to knowing how to style it. I like to describe bow ties as a genderless accessory. It’s always fun finding ways to incorporate it into my style.”

Williams proudly adds that all the bowties are handmade with high-quality fabrics. She does have help from a local seamstress for custom orders, such as weddings and photo shoots.

While most of her customers are male, she offers a large variety of options and colors. Williams said she wants to expand her reach, as most of her customers are currently from DC, Maryland, Virginia, California, New York and Texas.

While she admits that marketing a business is challenging, her hard work is paying off, not only with sales but also with media buzz from wide range or outlets, including CBS Mornings, USA Today, HuffPost, Today, Black Enterprise, BuzzFeed, Blavity, Yahoo Finance, Dapper Q and more.

She credits her family’s entrepreneurial spirit for giving her the strength to push through uncharted business territory.

“My role model is my granddad, who lived in New York and came from Jamaica when he was in his early 20’s and got interested in real estate when no one wanted to live in Harlem,” Williams said. “By the time he passed away, he owned about 10 properties that he was able to pass down.”

When she isn’t designing and making bowties, Williams is using her acquired skills as a self-employed digital strategist and communications specialist. Williams helps companies with their online marketing, branding and social media under the company named Armstrong Strategies, named for her granddad.

Williams is a native of Bronx, N.Y., and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from UDC (’08) and a Master of Arts in Sports Management from Georgetown University (’13). She is the youngest in a family of eight siblings.

Williams’ road to UDC came after only a semester at Howard University following her mother’s wishes. She never gave up on her dream of playing college basketball. One of her friends from New York played on UDC’s women’s basketball team and arranged a tryout with the coach to get her on the team. Her solid skills made it an easy decision.

Williams was a three-year starter and two-year captain on the women’s basketball team. She finished her basketball career with 647 points and 223 rebounds and led the team to a 21-8 overall record and Independent Schools National Women’s Basketball Tournament championship in 2007-08. Williams was the 2008 Reslyn W. Henley Memorial Award recipient – the most prestigious award given to a UDC student-athlete in recognition of outstanding character, leadership and service.

Williams graduated from UDC with a 3.5 GPA. In addition to her success on the basketball court, she fondly recalled her time on the women’s tennis team, her work on the campus newspaper, becoming Miss Sophomore and competing in the Miss UDC competition.

“It was a great experience,” she said. “It was one of the best decisions I made. I met two of my best friends at UDC and made so many connections. I basically grew up at UDC, coming in as a teenager and coming back for my ‘adult’ job. Being an athlete, I was able to meet athletes from all over the world. We would have never met had I not gone there.”

As an American of Jamaican descent, Williams was chosen to play for the Jamaican Women’s National Basketball team in summer 2011.

Williams returned to UDC in 2010 as an assistant women’s basketball coach and later became the assistant athletic director from 2014-2015, then worked toward her master’s degree. She has also worked as a writer and editor at SOULE: Seekers of Unity, Love & Equality – a digital publication for news, opinions, life and culture for the LGBTQIA people of color.

All her work experiences are tapped as she grows her business, Bowtie Behavior. She keeps her goals in front of her with her motto taped to her computer, “Preparation + opportunity = success.”

For more information on Bowtie Behavior, visit www.bowtiebehavior.com.