STACKED: Money, Investing & Business for Women | The Brickell Babes

Welcome to Episode 004 of STACKED — the show about becoming your own best asset.

Today Emily sits down with Julia O’Mara, co-founder and COO of Pickle, the peer-to-peer fashion rental marketplace that is Airbnb for your closet.

At 23, Julia left a senior product manager role at Blackstone to build a platform that lets women make passive income renting out pieces they already own. She bootstrapped for 2.5 years on $200,000, personally delivered the first 1,500 orders across New York City, ran out of money three times, and raised $12 million in seed funding before closing a Series A in March.

Julia has been named to Forbes 30 Under 30 and the Inc. Female Founders List.

This episode is your complete closet-to-cash playbook

This episode is brought to you by The Brickell Babes, Miami’s largest network of ambitious women. Join for lifetime connections, real recommendations, curated events, exclusive perks, and a community of women who actually show up for one another. Learn more about membership. ⁠http://www.thebrickellbabes.com/membe...⁠

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WHAT WE COVER:

— How COVID revealed that Julia was more passionate about her colleagues than her actual work, and how a conversation with her co-founder changed everything.

—The first app flopped. But inside the failure was the data that became Pickle. Julia explains how to read the signal inside the mess.

—The nano influencer hack, the green balloons in SoHo, Brian's apartment as a warehouse, and delivering 1,500 orders on the NYC subway.

—The 10 to 20% of retail framework. A $400 dress rents for $50 to $80. Both sides win.

—The Pickle Protection Policy, reviews, lender controls, and the condition reporting feature that changes the game.

—How to download the app, upload your first items using AI autofill, and start earning this week.

TIMESTAMPS:

00:30 — Introducing Julia O’Mara and Pickle

02:30 — Julia's background and twin sister

04:00 — Engineering at Penn and the entrepreneurship minor

06:30 — Joining Blackstone out of college

08:00 — COVID and the realization that prompted the leap

09:30 — Meeting co-founder Brian and the first conversation about Pickle

11:00 — Pickle Poll: the first app and why it failed

14:00 — The pivot signal: comments in the polling app

16:00 — Leaving Blackstone and launching the rental MVP

18:00 — Bootstrapping $200K for 2.5 years

20:00 — Getting the first lenders: friends' wardrobes and green balloons in SoHo

23:00 — Brian's apartment as the Pickle warehouse

25:00 — Delivering 1,500 orders across NYC on the subway

27:00 — How 85 to 90% organic growth happened

29:00 — The viral moment that unlocked the seed round

31:00 — Raising $8 million in seed funding

33:00 — Pricing strategy: 10 to 20% of retail

35:00 — Geographic expansion: NY to LA to Miami

37:00 — Growth fellowship program and next cities

39:00 — Trust and safety: Pickle Protection Policy

43:00 — Closing the Series A in March

44:00 — Julia's COO role and weekly metrics ritual

46:00 — Wellness as a founder: movement, water, something green

48:00 — Closet to Cash: 3 steps to start this week

51:00 — Top lenders making thousands a month

53:00 — 1 in 4 women in NYC has downloaded Pickle

54:00 — Lightning round

56:00 — Where to find Julia and download Pickle

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DISCLAIMER

This is educational content, not financial advice. Consult a qualified professional before making business or financial decisions.

Welcome back to STACKED, the show about becoming your own best asset.

Today, Emily sits down with Cory Klippsten, founder and CEO of Swan Bitcoin — the wealth platform that has purchased $4.5 billion in Bitcoin for families and businesses building long-term wealth.

Before Swan, Cory spent 15 years at Google, McKinsey, Microsoft, and Morgan Stanley, and earned his MBA from the University of Chicago.

He is one of the most respected and feared voices in the Bitcoin space: the man who publicly called out the Luna Ponzi, warned about Celsius weeks before it collapsed, and nicknamed Sam Bankman-Fried "Scambankster Fraud" months before FTX went to zero.

This episode is your clean, beginner-friendly Bitcoin playbook.

No hype. No fluff. Just the truth about what Bitcoin is, how to actually own it, how to protect it, and how to think about it as a long-term wealth strategy.

This episode is brought to you by The Brickell Babes, Miami’s largest network of ambitious women. Join for lifetime connections, real recommendations, curated events, exclusive perks, and a community of women who actually show up for one another. Learn more about membership. ⁠http://www.thebrickellbabes.com/membe...⁠

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Follow The Brickell Babes: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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KEY TOPICS COVERED

— Swan Bitcoin: what it is, who it's built for, and the difference between real vs. paper Bitcoin.
— Cory's origin story and why it took 11 months to get truly convicted.
— Bitcoin vs. crypto: why they're fundamentally different.

— Swan's operating principle, content-led acquisition, and AI integration.

— Why Bitcoin is a monetary revolution — not a product — and why AI makes it more valuable.

— Cory's fraud calls: Luna, Celsius, FTX, and the Alameda balance sheet.

— Swan products: brokerage, IRAs, Swan Safe, Swan Vault, Swan Generations, Swan Trinity, and multisig explained.

— Regulation, cap gains, and the lightning round.

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 — Welcome to STACKED

02:45 — What Swan Bitcoin does and who it's built for

04:45 — Real Bitcoin vs. paper Bitcoin

06:00 — Cory's origin story: leaving Google in 2013

09:00 — Why it took 11 months to get truly convicted

10:30 — The moment Cory knew he wanted to build Swan

13:00 — Content-led acquisition and education for wealthy clients

17:00 — The Bitcoin ETF as the Netscape moment — why we're in 1995

19:00 — How institutional ownership is changing price dynamics

22:30 — Emily's Bitcoin origin story: $500 to get her Instagram back

29:00 — AI at Swan: agents, swarms, what changed in the last 2 months

34:00 — Why deflationary economics make scarce assets more valuable

36:00 — Bitcoin as monetary revolution, not product — why adoption takes decades

42:00 — The Triffin dilemma and the hidden cost of dollar reserve status

43:00 — Cory's reputation as Bitcoin's no-BS guy

49:00 — SBF and FTX: calling him a liar before the full story broke

56:00 — Swan products: brokerage, IRAs, tax loss harvesting, limit orders

57:00 — Rolling an old 401k into a Bitcoin IRA through Swan

58:00 — Swan Safe, Swan Vault, and multisig explained

01:01:00 — Swan Trinity: the Rolls-Royce of custody for families and family offices

01:05:00 — Working with trust companies, estate attorneys, and Bitcoin-savvy RIAs

01:06:00 — Swan's New York expansion

01:09:00 — Regulation and Bitcoin: why clarity has only been positive

01:11:00 — The cap gains tax problem and tax-free Bitcoin spending

01:14:00 — Where to find Cory and Swan Bitcoin

Disclaimer:

This podcast is educational content, not financial advice. Do your own research. Consult a qualified financial professional before making investment decisions.

Welcome back to STACKED — the show about becoming your own best asset.

In this episode, Emily sits down with Ella Davar, registered dietitian, longevity expert, and founder of the Gut Brain Method. Ella is a former Wall Street professional who left to earn her Registered Dietician degree from NYU.

She is a top nutritionist in Miami and the author of five books including The Foodie Diet. Ella is president of the Global Longevity Association, and has led programs at top wellness destinations in Palm Beach, Switzerland, Miami, and the White House.

EP 002 is a 101 on the gut-brain connection, personalized nutrition, and the small levers that actually move energy, focus, and mood for busy women — without turning your life into a lab project.

This episode is brought to you by The Brickell Babes, Miami’s largest network of ambitious women. Join for lifetime connections, real recommendations, curated events, exclusive perks, and a community of women who actually show up for one another. Learn more about membership. ⁠http://www.thebrickellbabes.com/membe...⁠

Connect with Ella Davar

Instagram: @ella.davar @Gut.Brain.Method @global.longevity.association

Website: Use code FIRST for 10% off everything on

Ella's site: ⁠gutbrainmethod.com⁠

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Follow The Brickell Babes:⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠

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⁠⁠TikTok:⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/thebrickellbabes/⁠⁠⁠

KEY TOPICS COVERED

• Ella's origin story: from Wall Street wealth management to registered dietitian and gut health expert

• The personal health crises that built her expertise: burnout, bloating, skin issues, and a self-diagnosed parasite infection

• Breathwork for digestion: 3 deep breaths before meals to shift into rest and digest mode

• Why fight-or-flight mode shuts down digestion — and what chronic stress does to enzymatic function

• Longevity non-negotiables: sleep, nutrition, and exercise — and why most people still do not have these figured out

• Top antioxidants: dark leafy greens, sulforaphane, berries, plant-based proteins, and the restaurant berry hack

• The oat milk truth and the milk ranking: cow's milk, A2, goat and sheep, organic soy, cashew, macadamia

• Lactose intolerance vs. milk protein intolerance — they are completely different things

• Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM): what it is, how it works, and what it shows in 14 to 28 days

• The gut-estrogen connection: beta-glucuronidase, estrogen detoxification, and PMS

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Welcome to STACKED

01:08 Introducing Ella Davar and the Gut Brain Method

02:35 How Emily and Ella met at the 2023 Brickell Babes conference

03:00 Ella's origin story: Wall Street to registered dietitian

09:30 Why social media gut health advice is usually not for you

10:30 The 5 aspects of optimal gut health

11:40 Emily's celiac story: the doctors who missed it

16:00 The gut-brain axis: neurons, enteric nervous system, vagus nerve

22:00 The Gut Brain Method: the 2-session one-on-one program

26:00 The 9-week certification program

28:00 Books, membership, and how the longevity dinners started

36:00 Sleep queen: Oura Ring and no alarm clocks

38:30 Top antioxidants: greens, berries, plant-based proteins

48:30 Modern diagnostics vs. ancient practices

51:00 Continuous glucose monitoring and why Emily ditched oat milk

55:00 Milk ranking: cow's, A2, goat, sheep, organic soy, cashew, macadamia

58:00 Lactose intolerance vs. milk protein intolerance

01:06:00 Feminine vs. masculine energy: human being vs. human doing

01:11:30 Lightning round: this or that

01:21:00 Where to find Ella and the Gut Brain Method

DISCLAIMER

This podcast is educational content, not financial advice. Do your own research; know your time horizon and risk tolerance.

Welcome to Episode 1 of STACKED — the show about becoming your own best asset.

I'm Emily Dempsey, and this is the full origin story of how this podcast came to be. 

How a girl from Chicago who grew up around finance,  and wanted nothing to do with it — ended up buying fashion at Bergdorf Goodman, building South Florida's largest women's network from a Facebook group, and spending two years making herself an expert in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and digital assets. This episode is the foundation. Everything on STACKED builds from here. Let’s get stacked. 

This episode is brought to you by The Brickell Babes, Miami’s largest network of ambitious women. Join for lifetime connections, real recommendations, curated events, exclusive perks, and a community of women who actually show up for one another. Learn more about membership. ⁠http://www.thebrickellbabes.com/membe...⁠

Connect with us:

Subscribe to the STACKED newsletter — weekly headlines on Bitcoin, digital assets, business, and wellness, delivered every Sunday and Wednesday. Subscribe at ⁠www.stackedassets.co ⁠

Follow Us:

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@stacked-assets⁠

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/stackedassets/⁠

TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@stacked.assets⁠

Follow Emily Dempsey:

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/emilydempsey⁠

X: ⁠⁠https://x.com/EmilyDempsey⁠⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-j-dempsey/⁠

Follow The Brickell Babes: ⁠⁠⁠

Become A Member: ⁠www.thebrickellbabes.com⁠⁠/membership⁠

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/thebrickellbabes/⁠

TikTok: ⁠⁠https://www.tiktok.com/thebrickellbabes/⁠⁠

KEY TOPICS COVERED

— What being a fashion buyer actually teaches you about business: margins, distribution, markdowns, and managing profitability end to end

— How The Brickell Babes went from a Facebook post to 70,000 members and a real company — and what building trust at scale actually requires

— Why Bitcoin mining is really an energy and leverage business, and what Emily learned from 50+ site visits in under 12 months

— Why nobody in this space has a formal degree and why that means you can start learning today

— The thesis behind STACKED: knowledge compounds, wealth is built not found, and the body is part of the portfolio

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00:00 — Welcome to STACKED

00:00:44 — No jargon, no hype — here’s the format

00:01:25 — My dream of becoming a buyer for the biggest department stores in the world

00:02:04 — Getting an economics degree with a minor in business to appease my parents

00:02:36 — My first job out of college at Bergdorf Goodman

00:03:50 — The pandemic, 10 years in New York, and feeling the itch for something different

00:04:36 — How I started Brickell Babes as a Facebook group

00:05:04 — Fast forward: 70,000 women and over 600K monthly impressions

00:06:06 — Why there is no class, no degree, and no shortcut when it comes to Bitcoin

00:07:25 — Why mining is all about energy, leverage, and pricing economics

00:08:04 — Being on a plane every week — Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and conferences

00:10:09 — Why I walked away from corporate to pursue entrepreneurship

00:11:37 — Why I only work with long-term aligned partners

00:12:44 — Hosting 200+ events, starting a book club, and giving back through Lotus House

00:14:13 — Why there were no resources out there for women like me

00:15:09 — Why mining is where money meets energy and infrastructure

00:17:00 — What I learned evaluating 100+ mining sites: on-grid vs off-grid

00:18:49 — My thesis: knowledge compounds and wealth is built, not found

00:20:39 — I don’t care if you buy Bitcoin — I care if you understand it

00:21:15 — The three pillars of STACKED

DISCLAIMER

This podcast is educational content, not financial advice. Do your own research; know your time horizon and risk tolerance.

What does it take to build a life that's actually yours?

Welcome to Stacked with Emily Dempsey — the podcast at the intersection of Bitcoin, wealth-building, entrepreneurship, and living well.

Emily went from luxury fashion buyer at Bergdorf Goodman to Bitcoin miner, founder, and financial strategist.

Now she's your filter — taking expert-level conversations on digital assets, business, and longevity and making them relevant to your real life.

No jargon. No shilling. No fluff. Just clarity on money, power, and what's coming next.

New episodes every week. Subscribe so you never miss a drop.

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not financial advice.

Emily Dempsey is the host of STACKED — the podcast for the woman buying Botox and Bitcoin. She is the founder of The Brickell Babes, Miami's largest women's network with 70,000+ members, and one of the most active voices at the intersection of women, wealth, and the future of money.

Connect with us:

Subscribe to the STACKED newsletter — weekly headlines on Bitcoin, digital assets, business, and wellness, delivered every Sunday and Wednesday. Subscribe at www.stackedassets.co

Follow Us:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@stacked-assets

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stackedassets/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@stacked.assets

Follow Emily Dempsey:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilydempsey

X: ⁠https://x.com/EmilyDempsey⁠

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-j-dempsey/

Follow The Brickell Babes: ⁠

Become A Member: www.thebrickellbabes.com⁠⁠/membership

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebrickellbabes/

TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/thebrickellbabes/⁠