Southpaw Stitches is more than just another martial arts apparel brand. Founded by Queens resident and Muay Thai fighter, Jess Ng, it’s a culmination of hours tirelessly spent in the gym, countless walkouts into the ring and conversations with teammates, fellow female fighters and acquaintances she’s made along her journey that spans nearly two decades.
Founded in 2020, the brand was started by Ng and her business partner, Hannah Ryu, who sought to fill a need in the combat sports community for sports bras and undergarments that are comfortable yet durable, both in the midst of a high-octane battle in the ring and while training in the gym, as well as a range of T-shirts, shorts and other apparel. As the co-owner of Kings Combat gym in Elmhurst, a co-founder of The Fight Collective, and one of just three women on the USA Muay Thai board of directors, Southpaw Stitches has evolved to represent more than just a clothing brand; it has become a beacon for those seeking to be seen, supported, and connected to a community.
Ng’s Muay Thai journey began in 2008, when she was in college, as she sought an outlet to learn how to protect herself while traveling home late at night from classes and get a good workout. When her friend suggested trying a Muay Thai class, it was only a matter of time before she was training at the gym every day. After a visit to Thailand in 2010, where she and her friends spent most of their time training at a gym, she returned from her trip, intrigued by the idea of competing, but unsure if it was meant for her.
“When we went to Thailand, we stayed at a camp and trained Monday through Saturday, twice a day, and I loved it so much,” said Ng. “I just love that discipline and training until it hurts, and it was a breath of fresh air and this type of empowerment I’ve never felt before.”
When she returned, she came across a gym in Queens that was frequently on the fight scene and met her coach and mentor, Aziz Nabih, whom she said encouraged and supported her and gave women who trained at the gym the same level of training and coaching that he gave to the men who trained there, a trait that women in the combat sports community can sometimes struggle to find in an industry primarily dominated by men.
“I found this gym in Queens and remember seeing it on the local fight scene a lot, and they were always just killing it,” said Ng. “When I went there, it was the only time I met a Muay Thai instructor who gave me the same respect as the other men. He was one of the first trainers in New York to train women to compete in the early 90s, and he trained me with the same vigorous training and respect as the WBC champion, the National champion, and the Glory kickboxing champion, and he is still my mentor and coach today.”
From 2010 to 2021, Ng went on to compete in over thirty fights worldwide, including locations such as South America, Mexico City, Cancún and Malaysia. She competed on Team USA for the International Federation of Muay Thai Association and won the IFMA Pan American Championship in 2017. In the midst of a full-time fight career, Ng was a fashion designer for nearly 20 years, including over a decade with Calvin Klein underwear, designing undergarments.
“It helped me with public speaking in the corporate workspace,” said Ng. “I designed for Calvin Klein underwear, and it was harder to present to them than fighting at MSG. Having Muay Thai and competing under the bright lights and at a higher level as I moved up helped me to hold my own in a corporate space, and I wouldn’t have survived corporate America if it weren’t for Muay Thai.
As she competed, Ng noticed it would often take months to order customized shorts from Thailand, and the sizing and fit made it difficult for the 5-foot-tall, 95-pound fighter to find shorts that properly fit while she trained and competed. Her designer experience gave her a side hobby of creating customized fight shorts and cornerman jackets for herself and other fighters and coaches she knew. As word spread about the shorts and gear she created, she decided to leave Calvin Klein in 2018 after 11 years of working there to branch out on her own. She even traveled to Thailand in late 2019 to look at prototypes and create more Muay Thai shorts. Through her own experiences in the ring, as well as those of fellow female fighters she knew, there was also a need for sports bras and undergarments that were better-fitting, especially while competing, when a fighter’s focus needs to be on their opponent standing in front of them.
”I made some samples of undershorts without the seams and then fixed the gussets so it doesn’t ride up when we kick and knee, and I had a bunch of people try it either in fights or training,” said Ng. “I went into production and I made it as a secondary thing for Southpaw Stitches and it ended up being the best-selling product we did.”
Around 2022, the brand gained even more traction after becoming a sponsor of Warriors Cup, the leading Muay Thai fight promotion in the U.S. and the only U.S fight promotion to have a partnership with One Championship. Ng observed fighters and athletes from all over the world wearing the brand. With a large coalition of female fighters in the amateur and professional sector, in early 2025, Ng co-founded the Fight Collective, alongside fighter and professional photographer Gemma Fleming, and Watt Sriboonruang, fighter and founder of Rawsome Treats in Manhattan. The organization, which is in the process of becoming a 501 3C non-profit organization, provides youth scholarships to underserved youth from low income families in New York City with free memberships to Muay Thai and jiu jitsu memberships in July and August, as well as sports bras for girls and gloves from Super Rare, along with mentorship, seminars, and other events in gyms throughout the city.
“We’re not current fighters but we’re still in the game, and I can never divorce myself from the sport even now as the mom of a toddler,” said Ng. “In fighting, the goal is to be the world champion and then that’s just the end of the road, but that doesn’t have to be the only road. We want to use everything we have for women and children and people in underserved communities to feel welcomed and make sure there are gyms that we are affiliated with that create welcoming spaces because you cannot run a successful business without women and children as part of your business.”
Southpaw Stitches clothing and accessories are sold online, in-store at Sway Fight Shop in LIC, and at pop-up shops. Stay up to date with their latest events and initiatives at @southpaw_stitches.
