Press & Features
Linda Leary and the Alaska Story Behind Fishe
Some stories begin with a business plan. Fishe began with something much simpler: a woman on the water who knew the gear could be better.
That woman was Linda Leary, founder of Fishe, and her story is featured in the September 2026 issue of Alaska Business as part of the magazine’s “Off the Cuff” series.
It is a personal look at the woman behind Fishe—where she came from, what gave her the confidence to build a company of her own, what still makes her laugh, and why representing women in the outdoors continues to matter.
In This Story
A Different Kind of Founder Profile
The Alaska Business feature is not a long corporate profile. That is part of its charm. It gives readers a quick look at Linda’s professional path and then moves into the questions that reveal more of the person behind the company.
For Fishe, that makes the feature especially fitting. The brand has always been personal—shaped by Linda’s own fishing life, the women she met on the water, and the belief that functional outdoor gear should leave room for color, art, individuality, and confidence.
Read the full “Off the Cuff: Linda Leary” feature in Alaska Business.
The Woman Behind Fishe
Long before Fishe became the colorful Alaska-born outdoor brand it is today, Linda was building a career in an entirely different industry.
Her years in Alaska transportation, including her work with Carlile, gave her something that would become enormously important later: the confidence to take a chance on herself.
Then came fishing—not as a new interest, but as a return to something that had been part of Linda’s life since childhood.
From Maine Waters to Alaska
Linda grew up fishing in Maine, and when Alaska eventually became home, parts of the landscape felt familiar. The Kenai Peninsula, with its coastal and rural character, reminded her of the place where her own relationship with fishing began.
That connection between Maine and Alaska runs deeper through Linda’s story. You can read more about those early years in Growing Up Fishing: Linda Leary’s Story from Maine to Alaska.
But when Linda looked at the clothing available to women who wanted to spend serious time fishing, something did not feel familiar at all.
The gear was not being built around women.
Building What Women on the Water Were Missing
Linda started Fishe in 2015 after experiencing firsthand how poorly much of the available fishing apparel worked for women.
Rather than accepting that women simply had to make do with what already existed, she saw an opportunity to create something different: outdoor apparel and gear created with women actually in mind.
Fishe grew around the idea that technical function and personality did not have to compete. Color, art, fish-inspired prints, fit, movement, and real-world utility could all belong in the same piece of gear.
The company was born in Alaska, but the idea behind it reaches much further. Women should not have to disappear into outdoor gear designed around somebody else. They should be able to show up as themselves.
When Someone Says, “Thank You for Representing Women”
One of the most meaningful moments in the Alaska Business story is not about revenue, products, or a business milestone.
Linda remembers being approached by two women in Anchorage who thanked her for what she was doing and for representing women.
“Thank you for what you’re doing, and thank you for representing women.”
That gets remarkably close to the heart of why Fishe exists.
The colors matter. The fit matters. The functionality matters. But being seen matters, too.
Every woman who steps onto a river for the first time, takes the bow of the boat, learns to cast, books the trip, buys her own gear, or simply decides that she belongs there helps make the outdoor community a little bigger.
From Fishe to Women’s Flyfishing
Linda’s connection to fishing is not limited to apparel. She also operates Women’s Flyfishing, extending that same belief in getting more women onto the water beyond what they wear and into the experiences themselves.
There is a natural connection between the two. Great gear can make a day outside more comfortable and functional. Confidence also comes from experience—from making the cast, learning the water, traveling somewhere new, fishing beside other women, and realizing you know more than you thought you did.
The best outdoor communities create room for people to participate, learn, and eventually lead.
Explore more of that history in FisheWear + Women’s Flyfishing: A Legacy of Education and Community.
A Very Alaska Kind of Founder
The Alaska Business interview also reveals something that can sometimes disappear behind a company logo: Linda is Linda.
She has rappelled down a tall Anchorage building for a nonprofit fundraiser. Her bucket-list trip is the Seychelles. If she could domesticate a wild animal, she would choose a raccoon. Ginger is a favorite local restaurant. She sees networking as one of her strengths—and saying yes to too many commitments as one of her weaknesses.
And somewhere in the middle of running businesses, fishing, traveling, and everything else, there is a parka project that has followed her for decades.
Those details are exactly why we loved the Alaska Business feature. A founder story does not always have to sound like a founder story.
Sometimes the better way to understand somebody is to ask what she is reading, where she wants to travel, what scares her, what makes her laugh, and what unfinished project has been patiently waiting for her to come back to it.
Meet Linda beyond the business in the full Alaska Business interview.
Alaska Is More Than Where Fishe Is Based
Fishe being an Alaska company is not simply a line on an About page. Alaska has shaped the brand from the beginning.
It is where clothing and gear get put into real-world context: changing weather, cold water, long days, boats, rivers, travel, and the kind of outdoor life where something either works or it does not.
It has also given Fishe a community. Being included in an Alaska publication like Alaska Business feels particularly meaningful because this is home—the place where the idea grew into a business and where Linda still meets women who understand what the brand is trying to do.
And while Fishe has customers and community far beyond Alaska, there will always be a little Alaska running through everything we make.
A Business Story That Started on the Water
There is an easy way to tell the Fishe story: Linda could not find the fishing clothes she wanted, so she started a company.
That is true. But it is only part of it.
The more interesting story is what happened afterward. An idea became a product. Products became a brand. A brand became a community. And somewhere along the way, women began walking up to Linda in Anchorage and thanking her for representing them.
Fishe was never built around asking women to fit more comfortably into the outdoor industry’s old idea of who an angler should be. It was built around making more room.
More room for color. More room for personality. More room for beginners. More room for experienced anglers. More room for women who fish every week and women who are still trying to work up the nerve to go for the first time.
And definitely more room for a few fish prints.
Read the Original Alaska Business Feature
We are grateful to Alaska Business for turning the questions around and giving readers a chance to get to know Linda outside the usual founder interview.
There are plenty of details we have not spoiled here—and that is intentional. Go meet the woman behind Fishe and read the complete conversation in the magazine.
Conclusion
Ten years after Fishe began, the mission still feels remarkably close to the problem that started it.
A woman went fishing. The clothing was not made for her. So she decided to do something about it.
What followed has taken Linda from Alaska rivers to entrepreneurship, from building products to building community, and from quietly solving her own frustration to becoming someone women stop to thank for representing them.
That is a pretty wonderful distance to travel from one day on the water.
And we are nowhere near finished.
Fish on.
FAQ
Who is Linda Leary?
Linda Leary is the founder of Fishe, an Alaska-born outdoor apparel and gear brand created after her own experiences with fishing clothing that did not adequately serve women. She also operates Women’s Flyfishing.
What is Fishe?
Fishe is an Alaska-born fishing and outdoor brand created for women, combining functional outdoor design with bold fish-inspired art and a strong connection to life on the water.
Why did Linda Leary start Fishe?
Linda started Fishe after experiencing firsthand how poorly much of the available fishing apparel worked for women and seeing an opportunity to create gear with women actually in mind.
Where is Fishe based?
Fishe is an Alaska-born brand, and Alaska’s fishing culture, weather, water, and outdoor community have shaped the company from the beginning.
What did Alaska Business feature about Linda Leary?
The September 2026 Alaska Business “Off the Cuff” feature gives readers a personal look at Linda, her career, the confidence behind starting Fishe, her connection to fishing, and lighter details about life beyond the business.
Does Linda Leary also work with Women’s Flyfishing?
Yes. In addition to Fishe, Linda operates Women’s Flyfishing, extending the mission of helping more women feel confident and capable on the water.
What cause did Linda mention in the Alaska Business interview?
In the Alaska Business interview, Linda named Covenant House Alaska when asked which charity or cause she is passionate about.
Where can I read the full Alaska Business feature?
You can read the complete “Off the Cuff: Linda Leary” feature in the September 2026 digital issue of Alaska Business.
Related Reading
Fishe Featured by IW Features
Read another recent profile tracing Linda’s path through fishing, entrepreneurship, and conservation.
Why Outside Magazine Featured FisheWear
See how another national feature captured Fishe’s place in women’s fishing and outdoor culture.
FisheWear Featured in Alaska Business Magazine
Look back at an earlier Alaska Business feature and how the Fishe story was taking shape in 2017.
