BusinessGayest & Greatest

Gayest & Greatest: Shopping and Services

Lea Bogle’s Premier Wireless keeps the community connected.

Lea Bogle needed a part-time job 35 years ago, long before cell phones were even invented. The job she got was with a pager company. Remember pagers? Bogle liked the job, and when she lost it (due to what she describes as a #MeToo moment) she decided she liked the business but not the boss. Her solution: to be her own boss.

Premier Wireless was born to provide wireless communication for businesses, schools, and governments. As it celebrates its 25th anniversary this year, the mobile-phone company has grown to include stores in both Houston and Dallas. 

“I came out when I was 29,” says the 56-year-old Bogle. “It was very hard, and I didn’t realize for a long time that I was only out to an inner circle of friends and not in my business. I’ve got a lot of clients that are rural and some conservative government agencies, so I was hiding what I was in business.”

What really changed all that for Bogle was the National LGBT Chamber of Commerce. 

“I learned how important it is to support each other,” she says. “And now I’m certified as an ‘LGBT Business Enterprise.’ I’m certifiably gay!”

Bogle says it’s important for her now to do business with and support like-minded businesses.

“I do cheat with Chik-fil-A. I mean, it’s just giving them a $1.92 for their diet ice tea—and they did feed all those people down in Orlando,” she says, referring to the company’s response to the Pulse Nightclub massacre. 

Bogle says work is her primary activity, although she does like to travel, golf, and meditate. She has two grown daughters, a very fat cat, and a little poodle named Cookie that she describes as the light of her life. Currently single, she wouldn’t mind finding someone who could match her energy level and who wants to be active in the community.  

Among her volunteer interests is the Dalton DeHart Photographic Foundation. She sits on the board of the nonprofit archive that chronicles Houston’s LGBTQ community through a massive database of photos.

“I’ve known Dalton forever,” she says. “Who doesn’t? So when he asked me to be on the board, of course I said yes. Being able to preserve our history and capture those important moments through his lens is crucial for our community.” 

—Marene Gustin

Best Astrologer

Lilly Roddy
Finalists: Kevin Casey, Bill O’Rourke

Best Copy/Print Shop

Copy.com
Finalist: AlphaGraphics of Sugar Land

Best Grocery Store

H-E-B Grocery
Finalists: Kroger, Whole Foods

Best Jewelry Store

Silverlust
Finalists: Select Jewelers, Tenenbaum Jewelers, Zadok Jewelers

Best Liquor Store

Spec’s Wines, Spirits & Finer Foods
Finalist: Total Wine & More

Best Place to Buy Cellular Phones

Premier Wireless
Finalists: AT&T, T-Mobile

Best Place to Buy Erotic Playthings

Houston Eagle
Finalists: Katz | Mystiq – Kirby, Montrose Forge

Best Place to Buy Eyewear

Eye Gallery
Finalists: Eye Contact, EyeBar Houston, Eye to Eye,  Montrose Eye Care, Spectacles

Best Specialty Food Store

H-E-B Grocery/Central Market
Finalists: Phoenicia Specialty Foods, Spec’s Wines, Spirits & Finer Foods

Best Women’s Clothing Store

Saks Fifth Avenue
Finalists: Macy’s, Nordstrom 

Best Men’s Clothing Store

Macy’s
Finalists: Guyz N Style, Nordstrom

Comments

Marene Gustin

Marene Gustin has written about Texas culture, food, fashion, the arts, and Lone Star politics and crime for television, magazines, the web and newspapers nationwide, and worked in Houston politics for six years. Her freelance work has appeared in the Austin Chronicle, Austin-American Statesman, Houston Chronicle, Houston Press, Texas Monthly, Dance International, Dance Magazine, the Advocate, Prime Living, InTown magazine, OutSmart magazine and web sites CultureMap Houston and Austin, Eater Houston and Gayot.com, among others.
Check Also
Close
Back to top button