Today we’d like to introduce you to Monique Adams.
Hi Monique, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I am currently the Owner and Head Coach of The Los Angeles Legends women’s football team. We are the Los Angeles franchise of the Women’s National Football Conference (WNFC) and we are preparing for our 2nd season in 2023. In addition to being the owner of a women’s sports team, I am a General Contractor and the owner of AI Renovations.
My journey to team ownership, unbeknownst to me, would begin with an introduction to women’s tackle by a former classmate. She saw me in athletic gear and asked if I played, but at the time I was the Head Coach for a softball program. Once the softball season was over, I decided to check it out and was instantly hooked. I played for over ten years and after my playing years were over due to a neglected knee injury, I became the general manager for the team I was playing with. After 2 seasons working behind the scenes with the Bobcats, I decided that I wanted to bring a new brand, culture, and level of women’s tackle football, and with that I founded the Los Angeles Legends.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road to get to this point has not been easy, by any measure. No longer a GM but now an owner, I stood face to face with the many challenges most teams face in women’s football- lack of funding, lack of available facilities, lack of community support, and the list goes on. This is a pay to play sport, and one of my goals when starting a team was to do my best to offset the cost many of our women incur, but fundraising, especially with so much going on in the world, has been a big challenge.
Team travel and accommodations for a roster of 45, field rentals for games and practices, operational costs, and insurance are our largest costs, and we are currently looking for team sponsors to assist with making sure our women have a great season without so much of the financial burden. We are hoping to connect with local businesses where we can grow a mutually beneficial, long-lasting relationship, and as a black woman entrepreneur, I am especially excited about partnering with other Los Angeles women-owned businesses.
In addition to fundraising, recruiting for both coaches and athletes has been quite the adventure, but as awareness in the team grow so does the interest. I mean, when people think football, they do not think women, and if they think women, they think about lingerie, and we are not that. We are full tackle, NCAA rules, 11 on 11 football, and we play for the love of the game.
We are currently having OTA’s on Saturdays and we are seeing new faces weekly so it’s exciting. All interested coaches and athletes can inquire or register on our website, we would love to have them come out.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Outside of Football, I am a General Contractor. I specialize in residential and commercial construction. I specialize in contracting quality results for renovations in offices, kitchens, bathrooms, and building ADU’s (Accessory Dwelling Units). As a woman-owned small business, I am set apart from the competition by having less overhead which allows me to have better pricing for services. And on top of all of that, let’s keep it real by recognizing that some projects just require a woman’s touch, lol. But seriously, I love what I do and am excited for growth and expansion.
My ability to connect with my customers, create their dream space, and remain true to my commitment to quality and service have been my bread and butter as all of my business has been from repeat customers and word-of-mouth referrals for the past 7 years. I’ve been blessed.
What’s next?
For the future of the team, I plan on growing it to its capacity, but I can’t do it alone! L.A. is a BIG CITY and deserves to have a BIG TEAM, with BIG RINGS and all the things, and I recognize that partnerships are the only way I can make this a reality. I am currently building a pipeline with a flag football team for girls to introduce them to the game, but at the end of the day I, Moe Adams, a black woman entrepreneur, I am officially putting the call out there for community support. Let’s grow this thing!
For the future of my business, I plan to scale my construction company up by taking on larger contracts. I want to offer out a construction training program to the community under my nonprofit Concrete Change to assist with job placement for women in construction, in addition to hiring them through my own company post-training and being able to offer employment for women who want to relocate to Los Angeles to play football with the Legends.
I am passionate about two industries not typically reserved for women, football and construction, and I am proud to be a representative of women being able to do whatever they put their minds to. In the future, and the present actually, my platforms were created to empower girls and women in Los Angeles, and I am just getting started.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.lalegendsfootball.com
- Instagram: @lalegendsfootball
- Other: www.airenovations.com
Image Credits
Photo credit: Amari Hollis #thexpbrand
