200,000 downloads. A tagline that finally made people “get it.” And a few hard lessons along the way.

In this episode of The Burnouts, co-founders Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni unpack the marketing experiments that helped Phia find traction—from trial reels and creator guides to AI-generated scripts and TikTok reach campaigns. They share what worked, what didn’t, and what they’re still learning about building a brand from scratch.

They also talk about the power of a clear metaphor (“Google Flights for fashion”), the pressure of launching on the same day as a major podcast appearance, and why community has been their most valuable asset.

Also: how Kris Jenner got involved...

📲 Download the Phia app to start saving money: www.phia.com

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CHAPTERS

0:00 - Intro

2:00 - Launching Phia the same day as Call Her Daddy

6:20 - Trial Reels: our low-cost growth engine

8:45 - Our best-performing hook

11:15 - TikTok flops, LinkedIn wins, and why Substack matters

13:10 - The hack to community-building

15:00 - How we use AI to write scripts that work

17:30 - The SEO agency mistake we won’t make again

19:10 - The "special sauce" in a marketing hire

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Subscribe to The Burnouts for exclusive conversations with today’s top founders and culture-shaping entrepreneurs. Hosted by former Stanford roommates turned startup co-founders, Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni, this isn’t just another founder podcast—it’s untold conversations and the unfiltered reality of what it takes to build your dream career in your 20s.

Guests include Paris Hilton, Chelsea Handler, Kris Jenner, Karlie Kloss, and more visionaries defining the brands—and blueprints—of our time. Whether you’re dreaming big or building now, these are the conversations that will show you how it’s done (and what no one else tells you).

🔔 Subscribe now to get the blueprint for building your dream career

Olympic gold, Ivy League brains, supermodel looks—and still figuring it out.

In this episode of The Burnouts, Olympic gold medalist, model, and Stanford student Eileen Gu joins Phoebe and Sophia for an unfiltered conversation about ambition, identity, and what happens after you’ve seemingly “made it.”

Eileen opens up about her post-Olympic burnout, learning to sit with stillness after injury, and the pressure of being young, female, and hyper-visible on the world stage. From negotiating brand deals at 13 to being grilled about geopolitics at 18, she reflects on the emotional toll of public scrutiny—and the freedom of learning to define success on her own terms.

She also shares how fashion gave her a new language for femininity, what solo travel taught her about self-worth, and why she’ll never apologize for being “the nerd who does everyone’s homework.” 

Also: the difference between a high-quality man and a fragile ego. 

🕯️✨ USE CODE "BURNOUTS15" FOR 15% OFF YOUR ORDER ON OUR LIMITED-EDITION PHLUR X THE BURNOUTS CANDLE ✨🕯️ 

CHAPTERS

0:00 - Intro

2:10 - Post-Olympic depression is real

4:45 - How she accidentally went pro

6:55 - Negotiating for yourself, even if you're scared

10:40 - Walking Victoria’s Secret and staying true to your values

13:15 - Becoming a cultural bridge—not picking a side

17:35 - Why smart women scare fragile men

26:00 - Glorifying suffering is not a flex

28:55 - Nerd alert: physics made her a better skier

35:40 - Injury, identity, and learning to rest

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📲 Download the Phia app to start saving money: www.phia.com

Subscribe to The Burnouts for bold, raw interviews with the thinkers, athletes, and founders redefining ambition. Hosted by Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni—former Stanford roommates turned startup co-founders—each episode dives into the unpolished truths of building a life and career that matters. This isn’t another founder podcast. It’s what building something in your 20s actually sounds like—unfiltered, in-progress, and a little bit chaotic.

What if your side hustle made you a millionaire—and taught millions of women how to become one too?

In this episode of The Burnouts, Vivian Tu (@Your.RichBFF) joins Phoebe and Sophia to unpack the story behind her Wall Street-to-TikTok glow-up, the money myths that hold women back, and how she’s rewriting financial literacy for a new generation.

Vivian opens up about surviving workplace racism, being your office’s unofficial 401(k) whisperer, and building a media empire that started with one viral video—and became a New York Times bestselling book, a chart-topping podcast, and a full-time career.

She also shares the real talk behind her relationship: who paid more rent, how German cockroaches accidentally fast-tracked her move-in, and why every couple should go on “dessert walks.”

Also: the genius trick to automating your savings without even thinking about it.

❤️✨ USE CODE "BURNOUTS15" FOR 15% OFF YOUR ORDER ON THE LIMITED-EDITION PHLUR X THE BURNOUTS CANDLE  ✨❤️

🔍 CHAPTERS

1:02 - Why dating gets harder when women get more successful 

4:55 - How to actually budget (no spreadsheets, no shame) 

8:00 - What to do with your first paycheck

13:50 - Getting pushed out of Wall Street—and finding a new path

18:20 - When to quit your job for your side hustle

30:55 - Talking about money in relationships (without making it weird)

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📖 Read Rich AF

📲 Download the Phia app to start saving money

Subscribe to The Burnouts for exclusive interviews with the thinkers, founders, and creatives shaping culture and business today. As former Stanford roommates turned startup co-founders, Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni bring rare access and real curiosity to every guest—cutting through the noise to get to what actually matters. It’s not just another founder podcast. This is what building in your 20s really looks like—unscripted, in-progress, and surprisingly honest.

❤️✨ USE CODE "BURNOUTS15" FOR 15% OFF YOUR ORDER ON THE LIMITED-EDITION PHLUR X THE BURNOUTS CANDLE  ✨❤️

What if heartbreak was the beginning of your empire?

In this episode of The Burnouts, entrepreneur and creative director Chriselle Lim sits down with Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni to unpack how she went from TikTok’s “rich mom” to co-owning Phlur, a $100M+ fragrance brand.

From the ashes of burnout and divorce, Chriselle rebuilt her life—and helped reshape how fragrance is built, branded, and sold. She shares the story behind Missing Person (the perfume with a 250K waitlist that changed everything) and how reinvention became her real superpower. 

Also: the bamboo tree metaphor that will stick with you forever.

📲 Download the Phia app to start saving → www.join.phia.com

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📲 Download the Phia app to start saving money while you shop today.

About The Burnouts

As former Stanford roommates turned startup founders, Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni are building more than a business—they’re building a bold new conversation. The Burnouts dives into the chaos of creation, covering everything from personal reinvention and product meltdowns to friendship, finances, and fear. With top guests like Kris Jenner, Danielle Guizio, and Whitney Wolfe Herd, this is your behind-the-scenes playbook for building on your own terms.

What if your first investment was a $400 tax refund and a tape measure? In this episode of The Burnouts, fashion founder Danielle Guizio sits down with Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni to talk about turning side hustles into global brands, learning leadership the hard way, and why your iPhone might be your most powerful marketing tool.

Danielle opens up about recovering from surgery, walking garbage bags of orders to USPS, and getting duped on TikTok. She shares the strategy behind her $2M Black Friday breakthrough, why she still fits every sample herself, and how she built a viral fashion empire with no design experience, no car, and no connections—just a deep belief that she could figure it out.

Also: negotiating in Chinatown at 13, selling out with zero ads, and what she really looks for in a résumé (hint: it’s not your school).

Chapters

1:10 - $400, no car, and a dream

5:45 - Getting duped and going viral anyway

10:12 - Negotiation school and hiring red flags

13:48 - Why she still works the retail floor

16:00 - Instagram as your magazine

21:35 - How she got Kylie Jenner and Dua Lipa in her clothes

24:18 - What she actually looks for in a hire

28:55 - Advice for every girl with a side hustle

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Subscribe for more raw, unfiltered convos with iconic leaders, founders, and disruptors who are building what’s next (and burning down what’s not).

📲 Download the Phia app to start saving money at www.join.phia.com

About The Burnouts

What if the next billion-dollar startup isn’t built by 1,000 employees—but by 30, powered by AI? In this episode of The Burnouts, Bumble founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd sits down with Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni to talk about building lean, trusting your gut, burning out, and why she believes AI will totally reshape how companies scale.

Whitney opens up about hiring mistakes that nearly broke Bumble, the myth of hustle culture, why listening to “grown-ups in suits” set her back, and how legacy tech is holding companies hostage. She shares her evolved vision for Bumble, her personal burnout recovery, and why she now swears by smaller teams, smarter tech, and protecting your energy like it’s cash.

Also: surprise-and-delight growth hacks, ego death, and what she really thinks about ROI-driven marketing.

Chapters

1:02 - She built Bumble. But at what cost?

5:11 - Why hiring “adults in suits” backfired

8:42 - Scaling smart: fewer people, better results

13:08 - AI, apps, and the future of building

16:30 - Burnout, ego death, and coming back stronger

22:14 - Bumble’s early growth hacks (inflatable bees, anyone?)

27:49 - Friendship-first is the next dating revolution

30:45 - Mentorship, motherhood & knowing when to say no

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Subscribe for more raw, unfiltered convos with iconic women and disruptors who are building what’s next—and burning down what’s not.

Download the Phia app to start saving money at www.join.phia.com

About The Burnouts

What do you do when the world tells you to tone it down? If you’re Chelsea Handler, you turn up the volume—on confidence, career, and comedy. In this unapologetic and hilarious episode of The Burnouts, Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni sit down with the legendary comedian and bestselling author who’s built an empire on not giving a f***. They talk through confidence myths, investor pitch chaos, stand-up breakthroughs, and why Chelsea bought her ex 35 trees. Also: why burnout might actually be your breakthrough.

Chapters

0:00 - Intro

1:22 - were you always this confident?

6:14 - how to say no (and mean it)

11:02 - kids, career, and confidence clashes

15:00 - real estate, financial freedom & female power

21:06 - mushrooms with your landscaper & other business lessons

25:45 - dating while dominating

30:12 - women, work, and not shrinking yourself

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LinkedIn: /the-burnouts

Subscribe for more bold convos with iconic women, founders, and disruptors who are burning down old systems and building what’s next.

Download the Phia app to start saving money at join.phia.com

About the Burnouts

As former Stanford roommates and now business partners, Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni share their experience as startup founders and the chaos of building something new—covering everything from pitching VCs to maintaining friendships, decoding financial literacy, and finding power in female-driven storytelling. With candid conversations and top guests (like Kris Jenners and Sara Blakely), The Burnouts is your go-to for smart, hilarious, and sometimes chaotic advice on how to build your career on your own terms.

In this episode of The Burnouts, Sophia Kianni and Phoebe Gates sit down with entrepreneurial icon and Spanx founder Sara Blakely to talk mindset, manifestation, and the messy truth of building something from scratch. Whether you're navigating your first job, launching a startup, or still waiting for a sign from the universe—this one’s for you.

We go deep on everything from building confidence as a woman in business, to manifesting million-dollar ideas (literally), to knowing when to quit, pivot, or fire the “genius” that’s ruining your team dynamic. Sara shares stories she’s never told before—like the exact mindset hack that led to Spanx, the real reason she sold her company, and the crazy specific sign she asked the universe for.

🔖 CHAPTERS

0:00 – Why we called Sara before we even had a product

2:10 – Sara’s Secret Weapon Since She Was 16

14:00 – Signs from the universe (including one from Oprah)

18:30 – Hiring Wrong, Firing Fast, and Learning the Hard Way

29:00 – Why High Heels Haven’t Changed in 300 Years (Until Now)

36:45 – Sara is paying people to buy her shoes?!?

38:00 – Sara’s Wildest Hustle Stories

About the Burnouts

As former Stanford roommates and now business partners, Phoebe Gates and Sophia Kianni share their experience as startup founders and the complexities of being young professionals—from financial literacy, social impact, and navigating networking (ever been hit on through LinkedIn?). With exclusive access to top experts, they offer an inside look at their chaotic lives alongside career insights from their network of thought leaders. Watch The Burnouts pursue their dreams while trying to keep their lives from going up in flames. Will they burn out? We’ll find out.

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Find better fashion deals while you shop. Download Phia HERE and follow Phia on Instagram!

CHAPTERS

00:00 – Launch day is HERE 

01:12 – The Zoom roast that got our CPO hired

05:40 – Pivoting the product after tough feedback

10:00 – From Instagram design to full-time UX

15:25 – Interning, accounting, and off-boarding your ex

20:45 – Quitting jobs, joining podcasts, and saying yes fast

24:00 – Real friends give real feedback

26:10 – What’s next for Phia

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Feeling lost in the chaos of the economy right now? Same. Between inflation, tariffs, and TikTok panic, it feels like we’re all one iced coffee away from a full-blown recession spiral.

In this episode of The Burnouts, Sophia Kianni and Phoebe Gates call in financial dominatrix Haley Sacks — aka @MrsDowJones — for a much-needed crash course in surviving your first economic downturn. We talk Roth IRAs, recession anxiety, index funds, investing FOMO, and why press-on nails might just be the ultimate economic indicator.

Whether you’re getting your first paycheck, trying to start investing, or just wondering WTF to do with your money, this episode is for you.

💸 It’s funny. It’s practical. And it might just change your financial future.

🔖 CHAPTERS

0:00 – Our first economic freakout

2:15 – Should we actually be scared?

5:20 – The only money moves that matter right now

9:45 – Haley’s worst investment ever

13:00 – Roth IRAs, index funds & investing without crying

17:20 – Budgeting when your paycheck hits

21:10 – Renting, home buying, and financial hot takes

📚 RESOURCES 

Free Emergency Fund Planner

Investment Returns Calculator

3 Index Funds We Love

Free Customized Money Plan

Money Book 2.0

Investing 101

& more HERE!

Mrs. Dow Jones Instagram & Newsletter

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