Self-Made: Refinery 29 Co-Founder Piera Gelardi on Building Bootstrapped Startup Wild Things World (Part 1)

Female Startup Club

Hello and welcome back to the show! It’s Doone here, your host and hype girl.

Today, we’re kicking off our three-part mini-series all about bootstrapping—those early, scrappy days where you’re building a dream with sheer grit, determination, and maybe a little duct tape.

For this first episode, I’m chatting with the amazing Piera Gelardi, who you might know as the co-founder of Refinery29. But today, we’re diving into her latest creative venture, Wild Things World—a bootstrapped startup dedicated to bringing more play and joy into our everyday lives. And let me tell you, it is a total cracker of an episode.

Piera radiates good vibes, and in our chat, she shares what she’s learned from her 15 years at Refinery29, why bootstrapping her new business has brought her back to her roots, and her framework for tapping into your creative self—because we all have that magic spark just waiting to be unlocked.

Wild Things World is all about celebrating the power of play. Did you know that play reduces stress, boosts creativity, and even helps us live longer? Yeah, it’s that good. So if you’ve been feeling stuck, uninspired, or just plain blah, this episode is the perfect dose of creative energy.

Alrighty, let’s dive in. This is Piera for Female Startup Club.

LINKS WE MENTION:

Piera Luisa Instagram

Refinery29 Website

Wild Things World Website

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