Today we’d like to introduce you to Audrey Maw.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
4 Blondes Mahjong started with four friends and neighbors in San Antonio who quickly became obsessed with American Mahjong. What began as casual game nights around a table turned into something much bigger as more people wanted to learn and join in. We realized Mahjong was about so much more than tiles — it was creating connection, community, laughter, and friendships.
As demand grew, we began teaching lessons, hosting events, leagues, tournaments, and private parties across Texas and eventually expanded into multiple states including Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Along the way, our family became deeply involved, and what started as four blondes around a Mahjong table turned into a growing team of instructors and community leaders.
Today, 4 Blondes Mahjong has taught thousands of players through beginner lessons, strategy series, retreats, tournaments, corporate events, and community partnerships. While we have grown tremendously, our mission has stayed the same: to create welcoming spaces where people can connect, learn, laugh, and feel like there is always a seat for them at our Mahjong table.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely has not been a completely smooth road, and honestly, that is part of what makes the journey so meaningful. While I did have a professional background before starting 4 Blondes Mahjong, including over 10 years in financial services at Fidelity Investments building a business from the ground up in an entirely new industry was still a huge learning experience. What started as four friends around a Mahjong table quickly turned into something much larger than we ever anticipated, and I suddenly found myself building and scaling a rapidly growing business in real time.
In the beginning, everything was manual. I was personally handling registrations, coordinating events, managing communication, answering customer questions, and trying to keep up with demand while simultaneously creating the systems behind the scenes. As our classes began selling out and our community expanded into multiple states, it became clear very quickly that what worked for a small local group would not sustain the level of growth we were experiencing. That pushed us to evolve. We built a website, with the help of Launchpad Creative, this streamlined operations, expanded our event team, and created better systems to support the demand while still maintaining the warmth and community feeling people connected with in the first place.
One of the newer challenges we are navigating now is how quickly the Mahjong space has grown. We are seeing many new businesses and instructors entering the industry, often inspired by the excitement and momentum surrounding Mahjong right now. We genuinely love seeing Mahjong continue to grow and wish new businesses success because more people discovering Mahjong is ultimately a positive thing for the community as a whole. At the same time, it has challenged us to continue evolving and setting ourselves apart through the experiences we create, the professionalism we bring, and the strong community we have built over the years.
That growth has pushed us into leadership roles within the Mahjong industry. We are now helping create large scale experiences that go far beyond lessons, including our upcoming Boston Mahjong Getaway, a Mahjong Cruise, and the Mahjong Leadership Retreat in Fredericksburg, Texas, where instructors and community leaders from across the country will come together to collaborate, connect, and grow the Mahjong community together. Being one of the founders behind experiences like these has shown how much 4 Blondes Mahjong has evolved from a neighborhood game night into a nationally recognized Mahjong brand helping shape parts of the larger Mahjong community.
Every stage of growth has brought different challenges, but we have learned to adapt, stay creative, and continue building something that feels authentic to who we are. At the end of the day, the heart of 4 Blondes Mahjong is still the same as when we started, bringing people together one tile at a time.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
At 4 Blondes Mahjong, I wear a lot of hats and jokingly call myself the HBIC, the Head Blonde In Charge. While people often see the fun side of our events and community on social media, behind the scenes I am the one running the business operations, marketing, partnerships, event strategy, growth planning, customer experience, and overall vision for the company. I built the systems, the brand, and the operational side of the business while also helping grow a community that now spans multiple states.
We specialize in creating elevated, welcoming, and community driven American Mahjong experiences. That includes beginner lessons, advanced strategy series, leagues, tournaments, retreats, corporate events, private parties, and large scale Mahjong experiences. We are known for making Mahjong approachable and social while still creating polished, high quality events that people genuinely want to come back to again and again.
I think what sets us apart is that we have never focused on simply teaching a game. We focus on creating connection and experiences. People come to 4 Blondes Mahjong events to learn Mahjong, but they stay because of the friendships, laughter, confidence, and sense of community they find around the table. We have built a brand that feels welcoming to everyone from complete beginners to experienced players.
I am especially proud of how quickly we have grown and evolved. What started as four friends playing Mahjong together has grown into a nationally recognized brand hosting events across multiple states and creating experiences far beyond weekly lessons. We are now helping lead and shape parts of the Mahjong industry through projects like the Boston Mahjong Getaway, an upcoming Mahjong Cruise, and the Mahjong Leadership Retreat in Fredericksburg, Texas, which brings together Mahjong instructors and community leaders from around the country.
I am also incredibly proud that we have been able to grow while staying authentic to who we are. Even as the Mahjong industry continues to expand rapidly, we have stayed focused on professionalism, creativity, and building real relationships within our community. At the end of the day, our goal has always been simple: create spaces where people feel welcome, connected, and excited to pull up a chair at the Mahjong table.
What’s next?
Our plans for the future are really centered around continuing to grow the Mahjong community in meaningful ways while staying true to what made 4 Blondes Mahjong special from the beginning: connection, friendships, and bringing people together one tile at a time.
One area we are especially excited about is continuing to expand our fundraising and charitable partnerships. We have several upcoming events focused on supporting incredible organizations like Kinetic Kids and Transformation House. We love creating events where people are not only having fun learning and playing Mahjong, but also helping raise money and awareness for organizations doing meaningful work in their communities.
We are also continuing to grow nationally through our new ambassador program, which allows us to bring the 4 Blondes Mahjong experience into more communities while still maintaining the heart of our brand. We recently expanded into Arizona and Indiana, and we are excited to continue building relationships with people who share our vision for creating welcoming Mahjong communities.
Massachusetts has also become a huge part of our growth. 4 Blondes Mahjong in Massachusetts is run by my daughters, Alizabeth Maw and Brieana Maw, and seeing the next generation helping grow the company and community has been incredibly rewarding.
We are always evolving and love collaborating with other Mahjong leaders and creators in the industry. Community over competition has always been important to us, and we truly believe Mahjong grows stronger when people work together. We have some exciting upcoming local partnerships and collaborations in the works, including projects with Amanda Reed from Serving Up Mahjong and Misty Stout from Hill Country Mahjong.
One project we are incredibly proud of is the Mahjong Leadership Retreat, which was created alongside an amazing group of powerhouse women in the Mahjong industry including Dawn Hach, Lisa Waishes-cornwell , Taylor Hutcheson, and Marci Sneen. Together, we are focused on growing not only the retreat itself, but eventually expanding into conferences, collaborative educational experiences, and larger leadership opportunities within the Mahjong industry. It is incredibly exciting to work alongside such inspiring women who are all passionate about growing the Mahjong community, supporting one another, and making a real impact through connection and shared experiences.
At the core of all of it, our biggest goal remains the same. We want to continue building spaces where people feel welcome, connected, and included. Mahjong is so much more than a game to us. It creates friendships, community, laughter, and human connection around the table. That is why we always say there is a seat for everyone at our Mahjong table.
Pricing:
- Mahjong 101 $65 pp
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.4blondesmahjong.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/4_blondes_mahjong
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/18cyEAq6F1/
