You may know Arden Cho as Kira Yukimura on MTV’s Teen Wolf, but we know Cho as a quadruple threat. She sings, dances, acts, and now, she designs watches. When she’s not playing Kira, she is keeping time. Leonard and Church is Cho’s new watch line that is already a big hit. Cho is much more than the “Thunder Kitsune” she portrays on the show (a supernatural species that can consume a large amount of electricity), though you’ll have to wait until the summer to see her in action. She gave us some scoop on where her character is headed in the upcoming season and what she wants people to know about Leonard and Church.
Arden Cho is a very busy woman, and she likes it that way. In fact, she says that she loves having a lot of things to work on. She insists that keeping busy helps her learn and grow as a person and an artist. When she isn’t kicking butt on TV, she’s making big moves in the world of watch design. For Cho, acting was not always a part of the plan. In college, she majored in psychology, then fell in love with acting during one of her theater classes.
“I fell in love with the whole process and with everything about it. I think it’s one of the most interesting forms of art, where you can get all of these different people together and create one piece of art,” she said.
After college, Cho moved out to LA and started auditioning for different roles while she took different classes. When she first appeared on MTV’s Teen Wolf in its third season, she introduced audiences to an easy-going, strong-willed, but fun-loving character who fans of the show have grown to love. Kira, in many ways, is a unique individual and that’s what Cho loves the most about her. She promises that there will be important decisions for Kira and other characters to make in the upcoming season.
“She is definitely getting stronger and has some big choices to make,” Cho explains. “She’s going to be growing up, and I think that that will be exciting for fans to see, not only just Kira growing up, but everybody.”
Cho says the conflict is what she loves most about the show, and how it will allow the characters to then mature and grow.
In her latest career journey, Cho has been channeling her love for accessories into her new watch line, Leonard and Church. Leonard and Church prides itself on having quality, handmade, yet inexpensive watches. And because watches retail both in-store and online at rather expensive prices, Cho and two of her partners, Christopher Chon and Jeffrey Leung, decided to create a line that proves quality accessories don’t have to break the bank. They know that not everyone can afford the high-end watches that can run anywhere from $500-$1,000, so they offer the same quality without the “middle man” for as little as $100.
“Leonard and Church really started out as a passion project because I love watches,” Cho explains. “I have always loved watches. They are one of my favorite accessories. I feel like everybody needs a watch and not enough people wear watches.” According to Cho, the initial designs were inspired by the New York fashion world and the corporate world, and the designs were a mixture of the two. The company is still developing the line and coming up with new designs, which has always been a group effort. There is a group of three of the five partners who “spearhead” the design process.
The unisex designs are youthful and professional and are made to “mix and match” with your significant other, friends, or family. The company has watches for college students, recent college grads, working professionals, or fashionistas.
“It is a very tedious process,” Cho elaborates about the design production. “We go back and forth because there are so many aspects to the design, from the details on the watch to the colors and the different types of straps. There are so many points to the process.”
Leonard and Church has a new collection coming out for the summer and eventually, the company hopes to venture out into other leather-based designs, such as backpacks, wallets, and maybe even dog collars. Cho would love to try leather dog collars because of her dog, Chewie, who adorably barked her way into our interview. But for now, Leonard and Church and Cho will continue to give fashionably late a brand new meaning.
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Arden Cho Interview: Photographed by Vince Trupsin
