Cosmos

Welcome back to the show. My fellow extraordinary Americans have Jules Weldon and Stacey Pierce for today’s guests. They’re the co-founders of Ome Gear, an outdoor gear company. They also have a coaching and consulting business called Salty RIM. They’re the co. Hosts two podcasts, GSD, Entrepreneur, and Do It in Nature. 

They have also recently published a children’s book called Rescued by Rico. 

And I’ve also given a TEDx talk. They’re extorting Americans with an entrepreneurial spirit, and I’m glad to have them on the show. Guys, are you there?

Jules

We are!

Cosmos

Hi. Hey. Thank you so much for taking the time to do the show with me. I’m really glad that you guys are over here. So, Jules and Stacy, can you tell a little more about your background, like how you met, your story, and how you all got started with Omega gear? And just in general.

Jules

Yeah, for sure. Do you want to start? Why don’t you start well?

Stacey

Space, and obviously, this is Jules and how we met. Well, first, I will give you a little bit of my background; my background is in occupational therapy. I have been an A therapist since the late 90s, and then I got into the entrepreneurial world when I had My own restaurant and catering business. I kind of caught that bug. I was not raised in an entrepreneurial family, but I used to sell rocks to my neighbors. I would paint them and sell them. So, I guess maybe, as a child, I was an entrepreneur trying to make money—a little hustler, buddy, not.

Jules

A budding entrepreneur 

Stacey

And then, as my background and occupational therapy grew, I got recruited to start other businesses like a home care business and technology for older people. I designed and built a daycare that focused on dementia care. So, I just Love the entrepreneurial space and being and starting new things. I’ve been on the ground floor. 9 or 10 startups now. 

So, then I met Jules. And when we met, it was love at first sight in all the good ways, especially in that we spoke the same language. We had the same heartbeat for the entrepreneurial world. And so yeah, we met over ten years ago, and we’ve started now—we’ve started four or five businesses ourselves.

Jules

Yeah. And so, I’m Jules, and I grew up in Pennsylvania, in a little town outside of Philadelphia called Westchester. Many of my family still live there, but I moved to Charleston, SC; that’s home for me now. And I grew up in an entrepreneurial family.

So, my mom started a bakery business, and my brother has since taken my youngest brother over. And it’s one of the top wedding cake and party cake bakeries in the US, and they do a crazy number of pastries. And I mean, they’re just my sister who works there. It’s certainly become quite the business.

But I moved to Charlotte after graduating college and worked in a church and youth ministry for ten years. Then, I left that and traveled the world to 11 developing countries for a year. I went with three other women, and we raised money for the trip and returned with money from the trip, so it was a pretty amazing experience of volunteering wherever somebody needed extra hands. 

So that was a life-changing experience. Then, I returned to the US and got involved in business management consulting, ultimately working for one of the top four consulting firms, Price Waterhouse. Paper. But you know, I enjoyed it and learned a ton, but I got tired of working 80 hours a week for somebody else.

And so, I remembered an idea that my mom and dad devised. It was a kind of transformer, a lounger that became like a doll if you flipped it up for the beach. And they had tried to take it to market 12 years prior but couldn’t figure out how. This was before Google.

So, in 2010, I picked it back up and said, hey, Dad, what would you think about me trying to take your product to market? Through tears, he said that would be a dream come true. Talk about, you know, the American dream.

So, I picked it up, redesigned it, worked with one of my colleagues from PwC, and partnered with the manufacturer in the US because we thought we wanted to do it just like people wanted it. They wanted it made in the US. 

But it turned out to be a challenging adventure, so I ended up walking away from that in 2014 and working at the Shrimp Docks in Charleston, North Carolina, 

Stacy

South Carolina. 

Jules

Sorry, Charleston, SC. That’s why I keep her around. She keeps me. It keeps me honest. But yeah, I did that for nine months and made very little per hour, but it needed to be. And really good salt of the earth kind of people. And so once nine months came around, Stace was tired of me coming home smelling like shrimp, and she liked it and used up all the recipes she could think of. Of course, shrimp. We did that when we started our coaching consulting business called Salty RIM.

And so, we did that. But then we were like, man, nobody has taken this idea of a transformer concept. And so, we picked it back up in 2017. Ish. I ended up completely redesigning it and taking it to market, and like 2018, ISH started shipping in 2019, and it’s been the hardest thing we’ve ever done. But it’s been the most incredible and rewarding.

Stacey

We did not start shipping until 2021.

Jules

2021 because of COVID. That right? Yeah. We started shipping in 2021, so it’s all still relatively new, but we’ve had some great success and are pretty excited about what the future holds. 2021.

Cosmos

I mean, that’s amazing. Like there was a process that of how you guys got that I want to ask more about it cause but what came to my mind is that you know, like there’s like a who am I read like when I was younger like about the road less taken thing, and the person was the Robert Frost. As they say, entrepreneurship is like the road less taken.

Because it’s just harder to do, and I’m always interested in knowing the thought process. Of course, how are you guys going from corporate America to doing your own thing? It’s like a risk. It’s like a lot of risky ventures.

So, could you tell me the thought process of assessing risk when doing like a company and how you are going about it? Doing that, like launching a product, all of that stuff.

Jules

Cosmos, I love that question, and it’s massive because risk is a part of our everyday lives. We try to make it a calculated risk, but sometimes it feels like jumping over the cliff’s edge, praying that the parachute opens. We’re sewing the parachute with our hands with needle and thread as we’re going down. The amount of risk we’ve taken has been massive, especially on OEM gear, and we went all in. I mean, we sold our house. 

Because we had products come over from China, we had to manufacture in China because it was way too expensive to manufacture in the US. We had a product come over and couldn’t pay for it. We had paid for half of it, and they shipped it on the promise that we would pay. And we couldn’t pay for it.

And so, on Christmas 20/21/2021, we looked at each other, and I just said, how much do you believe in this company? And through tears, she said it with all her heart. Then I looked back at her and said, “I think we need to sell our house.”

And so, we sold our house and took the equity. We invested it in buying our product and paying for it so that we could get it out of the warehouse that they had hidden it in and weren’t going to release it to us until we paid them. Gosh, risk for us; I don’t think you ever get familiar with risk so that it’s comfortable. At least we haven’t. But I think the more that we do it, we have our faith, which is truly, really, really important to us.

And so, I think we’ve been called to build something really big. And as a result, you don’t get to do that unless you take massive risks. And so, we know it is part of our journey, but it doesn’t make it less scary.

Stacey

No, I’m super conservative when it comes to risk. I don’t. You know, I will not jump out of an airplane. I had never had that. I never wanted to do it. I’m not much of a risk-taker, but my motto is one of my favorite mottos. “The biggest risks in life are the ones not taken.”

And I think, you know, there’s a difference in jumping out of an airplane and expecting that parachute to open as your flight, you know, falling through the sky, and then taking the risk of leaving your corporate job and knowing that you, the only person you have to count on, are yourself and your ability to make it happen. And us leaving our corporate jobs happened at different times. I was still in my corporate job until 2018.

So, Jules and I had started our consulting firm, and she didn’t even know I was going in and turned in my notice. But I got I was exhausted. I would work at my corporate job from 7:00 to 3:00 and then leave. Then, we would visit and meet with our clients, and then we had a podcast.

So, I wasn’t unwinding the day until 9:00 or 10:00 at night, and so on. You know, we just Made it. We asked, if we did, how many clients we needed that could bring in my salary plus her salary, and we calculated that. The moment we hit that client with the number of clients we needed, I went in the next morning and put in my notice, and she didn’t even know about it. I called and said, by the way, I just put in my notice. She’s like, what?

And I was like, I have to jump off the ship. You know, we can’t. You know, you’re never prepared. You’re never going to feel like you have enough to do it – Money to do it. And so, we needed to jump off, knowing that we had a fairly successful consulting firm, and I knew we could make it. And so, yeah, that was a big risk, but we had to take this one. And I mean, when I say we’ve had, we’ve had when I say four or five businesses. They’re like we’ve We had a little palette art business once called Photo Love Palette Art, you know?

And so, we knew that we could work. Together, because you know you’re trying to. We’ve written a book, a children’s book, and we’ve created things. Remember when we had this? We worked with This consulting firm, and I knew we could work together, so it was not a hard risk for me. I knew as long as I was with her, and she was with me. She told me we can make it through it, continue, and build these opportunities for ourselves.

Cosmos

one of the things that I’ve noticed is that if you have a partnership like what you guys are symbolizing, it’s the ultimate partnership, where you are each other’s spouse. Then you’re also in partnership and business, and ultimately, most people want something like that, you know, they want somebody they can go with, and they fight the world together, which I noticed.

Stacey

Amazing. Thank you. Yeah.

Jules

You. I’m glad you noticed that. I would give up everything else to keep her, and we work. I mean, we work side by side every day, all day, and there’s no day where I wish it were different and we don’t. It doesn’t get lost on us. We met when we were older; she was 41, and I was 42. Too, and I think because maybe that’s part of the reason, but every day we’re grateful for each other, and we just really complement each other, which is We just don’t ever take that for granted, so thank you for saying that.

Cosmos

Yeah. And it’s not easy to, like, take massive risks. You know, that’s part of the entrepreneurial spirit to take risks. But if, let’s say, you wanted to advise somebody who’s in corporate America and they wanted to start a business like, you know, OMB Gear, where they had this Idea. 

But they’re too afraid of the financial thing. They have a family or spouse and responsibilities but want to do that. How would you go about advising them?

Stacey

That’s funny. You asked if we’re writing a book on that. Right now, Books are written. It’s being it’s being it’s in the edit at the editors, but that is a great question. But we never want to advise people not to do it. But you must know it’s harder than you think, takes longer, and costs more money—just our concept alone, just to get our prototype built and get it, the conception was $354,000. 

And so, you know, it’s not. And now that we have a complex product, not all products are like that and cost that much. And we’ve learned a tonne since we started. But I mean it; I think that is. That’s the biggest thing: It is harder than it appears to some because we often don’t hear about the hardships until after they’re successful, which takes time. 

It takes more time and it takes more money. We do add to that.

Jules

I would say that three things are non-negotiable. If you’re going to take a product to market now, if you’re going to start a service company, that’s different because you don’t have to have all the capital that you need. If you have a, you know, if you had a product like we do service companies, it’s your grid.

You know you go out. You find your customers and your clients, but product companies are different, and I think they require these three things. Number one is a. A broad network of people you can lean into who can refer you, point you in the right direction, and come around you and be your biggest cheerleaders; it’s brutal. The world of entrepreneurship is absolutely brutal. The second thing is that you have to have it. Financial resources, so if you know people who do, who are willing to believe in you and put their money into you, you know where you are. Because for us, like you said, it costs longer.

It costs more than you will ever think to start a business, and it really can. We’ve watched it Rip families apart because finances and communication are two of the biggest things that rip relationships apart, and thankfully, our kind. Our challenges have just drawn us closer, but starting a business can put so much stress on someone that, while life is short and you should follow your dreams, you should also know what you’re getting into. Someone unwilling to train should never say I will run a marathon because it’s so strenuous on your body. You need to be able to practice, prepare, and plan for that.

And so it’s the same thing with entrepreneurship. And the third thing is that you must have a spirit of grit and resilience. If you don’t, if you give up on things easy, or if you always prefer to take the easy route, if you sort of know those things about yourself, then you need to go through some pretty intense workout of your physical and mental well-being. Get yourself to the point of grit and resilience, or just stay in the corporate job and collect a steady paycheck. And that’s not a bad thing. You know, that might be what? You know what your priority is and what you’re made for, and you can have an impact on that corporation, and that’s a really good thing. Being an entrepreneur is a different thing, and it will stretch you in ways it stretched us in ways we didn’t think we were stretchable, but thankfully, we’re still.

Stacey

But if you are a solo entrepreneur and you feel like, I mean, you can do it if you can do it by your corporate job and getting or having the financial means to do it. We would never tell someone not to do it, but if I did, I would. Advise them to bring along some coaches or people who have been in it before. to guide them along the way. And so, they’re not stepping in the potholes, you know, along the way so people can hear what we say.

So we have people come; you know, we’ll hire people; hire us so we can fill in those potholes for them. We can make the right connections, and we can make the right introductions to manufacturers. Manufacturing reps because we’ve lived in this world for so long. And so we have that rolodex of people. And so it’s easier, and you’ll make fewer mistakes if you can find the right people to connect with to help them along the way.

Jules

Then it’ll cost less because You won’t make those, but we’ve made them. We’ve made hundreds of thousands of dollars of mistakes. I’m on the wrong marketing firm and manufacturer, so it’s been painful. But. But yeah, I mean leaning.

Cosmos

That is, that is pretty intense, actually, like.

Jules

It is.

Cosmos

Yeah. I don’t know if, like the audience realized, but that is a huge thing. When that happens, it can be emotionally intense, you know.

Jules

Yeah. We are crushing, crushing. You thought you could trust this person or whatever. So, for us now, we have a vetted network of people, and we don’t go outside unless they refer somebody you know. And so now we’ve been through it enough, and all the mistakes were really honest by these people. They promised that they could do these things, and we got in. Not knowing what we didn’t know, now we know. So that’s good; we’ve learned.

Stacey

For sure, it would have been. It would have been better to go to the Empire State Building and throw those hundreds of thousands of dollars off the top because somebody would have found that money and used it better, but we, you know, we didn’t know, we didn’t know. And now we do. And so now we can move on from that. But yeah, those could have been some, and they were big learning hurdles for us.

Jules

I love talking about this. I loved your questions because a lot of times, what we found is that people are willing to tell their story after they’re wildly successful, and what Stacy and I have committed to is telling our story along the way and telling the hardships of what we’ve experienced that have almost crushed us. 

So that people are approachable, or we try to be approachable to help people avoid our mistakes and tell them—the story along the way. So, no questions are off-limits. We want to be transparent and vulnerable in growing our business to help others.

Cosmos

No, extraordinary America is about getting people down this path because we were talking. I was talking about this with another guest. And we kind of likened the corporate world to the blue pill and the matrix. 

Like, you’re stuck in this cog on the wheel. And then, and then everything is fine; everything is safe. And all that, you don’t live out your calling; you’re not living out your dream.

You’re not being your true, authentic self. You’re. In another person’s world, and then your plug is on, pulled. Like when you decide you want to go for it, and then you wake up, and then basically, we see this reality, and then a lot of people that start with a star journey are like.

I want the machine to plug you back into the corporate world, and then there’s I was talking to this guest the other day in a previous interview, and then he talked about, like, you know, like cipher meeting the agent and the Matrix, and he was like, you know, ignorance is bliss. He just goes back, and he does. That, but I don’t know if it is. Is it just us, or do you think it feels like the matrix analogy is true in this regard?

Jules

But for some people, yes. For other people, no. I would honestly say that it would be my very, very, very last decision to go back into corporate America like that. Every other option would have to be expanded. I did this to choose to go back in and work for somebody else or a big corporation. That’s not to say that my journey is anybody else’s, but I would rather take the risk and go all in on our own thing, fail, learn, pick back up, and do it again. Until we hit that wildly successful mark, it is very much like the matrix for a lot of

Stacey

people for sure, but this is also coming from two people—we don’t have children, and we have a dog. We have a dog. We have two dogs so that we can take that risk. And so, it would be different.

Jules

We can take that risk, yeah.

Stacey

For a father trying to feed, you know, a wife from three kids, and you know, whatever, it is a little bit different. And so, comparing us in our journey with someone else is like comparing apples to oranges. If someone can do it all day, I say go for it daily. Just know the risks involved, how much money it costs, and the time it takes. It’s just not that you’re, you know, it is one; it’s like going to Nashville and going into a bar and knowing that that person will be the next country. 

There are, I mean, very few people that make it in the entrepreneurial world and survive it, but there’s a lot; very few people just want to do it. I mean, even start it. They have an idea, or we’ve had we’ve heard 100 times or more. When people see our product, they’re like, oh, I came up with something like that. a long time ago. You know, but you are. You hear that?

Oh, I had that idea of working in my kitchen. When you see another product, I’ve said it myself. I’ll say I’ve seen products like this. Wait a minute. I had that idea, but I never did anything. With it, someone else did. But, as you know, all that to say is I never tell. Anyone not willing to take the risk? Just. Know what’s involved in the risk. Yeah, for sure.

Cosmos

So, there’s another question that I wanted to ask because I think you guys could answer this pretty well. So, you know, like when you’re in the trenches of entrepreneurship and going through all this. Financial hardship, a lot of times, you would have friends and family who would be dismissive, and like, this is the thing that a lot of people that want to do business like they would give that as an excuse, like, Oh, I am my friends and family. Then they’re going to judge me, and they’re going to say that. It’s not going to work, and this and that.

How would you emotionally process that while you’re doing this hard thing to launch your product while simultaneously having all these people who are not supportive? I don’t know if you guys have gone through this in your life and how you would emotionally deal with them because that’s one of the major drawbacks of people Taking this path, you know.

Stacey

As far as our family is concerned, we are very fortunate because this does her. This was Jules and Jules’s parents, the initial concepts of the two and one that they came up with, and then my family; they all have been so supportive of everything we’ve done. They’ve bought products; they’ve shared them. With their friends and our extended families,

and so that we’ve never, we’ve never experienced. Since the friend side has been a bit different, we have some friends that completely support us, but then we have friends that don’t understand why we’re still. Doing it or not? They don’t. Still, they’re not entrepreneurs, so they’ll never understand it until we tell them the hardships we’re having, and they’re like, well, why don’t you? You just go back to the corporate world.

So they just don’t. They don’t get it. And that’s OK. You know, there’s nothing against our friends, and some of them, like me, don’t. I don’t need your product.

So you know I’m not going. To buy it. Which is fine. Too, but we’ve had some friends come in and just say, Why don’t you all return to the corporate world? You know, because it’s So hard, and, you know, it’s just. We just take it with a grain of salt and keep going. We don’t allow it to interfere with us; it’s not a roadblock for us. We don’t. Our line of sights is ahead, and they’re Right here. So we just keep looking forward. But our families are fantastic. Would you agree with that?

Jules

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I would. I mean, there’s been a couple of times our families have thought so. Crazy. Oh, absolutely. But overall, they’re super supportive. Never question why, if we should be doing this, they just, I don’t know where. I don’t know where perseverance and sticking to activeness come from, but they’ve all been incredibly supportive.

Stacey

I think one. The biggest. When we had to sell our house, and we had nowhere. Because they were like, what will you do now that you said you sold your house and spent the money on getting your product? I think people were scared. I think they were fearful for us at that point. And then we were like, “We’re just going to hit the road and the RV and start selling our product one product at a time.”

And I think it took them. It took people a while to get used to that idea because many people wouldn’t do that. They wouldn’t sell their home to save their company. And so I think that that was kind of just. A moment of, like, a little moment of fear for us, like what have you all done kind of thing, but I think overall they just keep seeing us keep moving forward, so they’re just on the sidelines and pushing behind us. Just they’re like we’re like running through the parade, and they’re like cheering us on all the way.

Cosmos

A lot of the things that I noticed when I interviewed a lot of people were that they went through the same things, like their perseverance and determination. And they also go through a situation where, like, you know, like friends and family, they’ll have issues. 

But, it’s pretty good that your friends, And many of your friends and family, support this.

You know, because A lot of people don’t even know. Have that when they’re starting and when they become successful. Then they’re like, we were there for you all along. It’s. It’s kind of like that. Yeah, we all. We all knew, you know, but like and then. It’s it. When I was young, there was a story of the hen who went to all of their friends to ask for help or bake this thing. 

And then finally, all the friends said no. And then finally, like, she created the product or whatever. And then they’re like, hey, we want to eat this. And like, no, you’re not there during my failures and the things, but you only want to be there at the finish line. 

And so yeah, that’s one of the things that I’ve noticed with all the people I’ve interviewed, and it’s good that you guys didn’t face that one that much because it is emotionally strenuous, you know.

Jules

It is what it is for.

Cosmos

Sure. So, guys, one question I want to ask is, uh, how does a partnership work? Like where you guys are with each other, like for a business, and just like whole life, because many people like to keep their business and home life separate. But you guys are. They are interconnected in that regard. So how does that work? Are there times when things are difficult, or is it all like, how do I do it? You make something like that work.

Jules

The word that comes to mind is that we’re intentional and so intentional on every front. So, like, I have my lane and my lanes in our company, and she has her lanes in our company that she’s responsible for, and we do try to do a really good job of not interfering in each other’s lanes. Overall manufacturing, new product development, anything to do with production, that kind of thing. She’s the point person. She’s the—you know, she’s the. Too, I’m over pretty much anything else. 

So, like in marketing, sales, and overall company strategy, now she weighs in on that big time, and I don’t do it alone. No way, but ultimately, I’m accountable for that.

And so, in business, we’ve gotten clear on what our roles are. Now we’ve had, it’s been, I mean, there have been times where it’s been a challenge to get clarity there because I feel like I need to do something.

She feels she needs to do that, too, or vice versa. But we’ve worked through everything and are now clear on our roles. And then personally. We are very intentional about a few things, and we’re not perfect at them, but we are very intentional about date nights, where we put the phone away and just concentrate on each other. We try not to talk about business. We just try to be present in our relationship and then go on gratitude walks.

And so we try to be very intentional about living lives of gratitude, whether we’re grateful for each other and tell each other why or not. We talk about the things we’re grateful for, sort of externally. We just try to be intentional about prioritizing our relationship over anything else. And we’re not, again, we’re not always perfect with that, but it’s very, very important to us.

Cosmos

Because it’s really like, I don’t know if you guys realize it’s really hard to make something of this work in today’s world, but you guys have, like, you guys do the gratitude walks and everything. I can see how it’s working because when you’re grateful for the little things and appreciate the other person, that leads to long-term relationships. Uh, partnership. You know. 

So that’s pretty good. You know American identity. The right is about the pursuit of happiness. So my question to you guys would be, How do you pursue happiness? What does happiness look like to you guys?

Jules

I can lay my head on my pillow every night and know I gave everything I was supposed to. Give that day. Whether it’s to our relationship with the customers we interact with, our team members, or family members, I expend. Everything I can give to others and fulfill my purpose on this Earth is true happiness. And again, I certainly don’t always do it perfectly, but that’s the goal. And that’s happiness for me.

Stacey

I could do that, but I want to add to that because there are some days. I don’t have much to give, and I am tired. And so, you know, some days I just get out of bed, make the bed, brush my teeth, and make lunch. You know, those are, you know, those are what I have to give. And making dinner or whatever. But because this journey is so hard, you know. But I agree with Jules as long as I can lay in my head on the bed at night, knowing that I didn’t waste a day that I would, even if I could just give. That little bit was 100% of the little bit I could give.

And so I don’t ever want people to beat themselves up because they feel like they. And I never want to beat myself up because I don’t feel on the computer for 8 hours daily. That’s not. That’s not mine. That’s not where I get my happiness. I’m a creator and a creative. 

And so I get my happiness from creating, drawing, inventing new products, or whatever. And so, you know, it’s. That looks different, but I think the same concept of laying our heads on the pillow at night, knowing we gave all we could that day, is a pursuit of happiness for both of us.

Cosmos

No, it’s true, right? Like many people, they’re trying to find happiness through rampant consumerism and materialism. But for you guys and entrepreneurs, it’s the journey and the process of creating something that is ultimately fulfilling, and ultimately, it’s all about fulfillment. It’s about going after our calling; ultimately, that’s the message to the audience. 

Suppose you go for your calling. And what you’re meant to do instead of going out with somebody else’s dream is that you are likelier to be Happy even if Money can be Filled with ups and downs; that’s the essence of entrepreneurship, at least for me.

Jules

I agree 100%. I agree with you.

Cosmos

Yeah. And so guys, can you tell me in the audience a little bit more about, like, your OEM, your company, or ME Gear? And its flagship product, all that, and the premise. Of how it all got started.

Stacey

Yep, only gear stands for oceans, plus mountains equal earth or outdoors. It made it easy. And our initial product is called Wonder. And as Jules mentioned before about her parents coming up with the initial concept back in 1998 of a 2IN1 transformer product, ours is now an A5 in one; it’s a cart. That holds up to 150 pounds of gear. It will also carry kayaks, paddle boards, surfboards, and other awkward things. Then, it transforms into a high camping chair, a load to the ground, a beach chair, a camping cot, and a lounge chair.

And so it’s all in one, and it folds up small. It weighs about 30 lbs. The wheels are a game changer. The wheels are actually kind of squishy, but they roll on deep sand. They’re not hard plastic. They’re not, and they do not require air, so they’ll never have airless tires. 

So they will go wherever you want, anywhere in the outdoors, especially the beaches and the soft sand. So that’s our flagship product. We have a litany of other products coming out that we’re working on, and our whole mission is to try to make them all. Multiple uses, and what we mean by that, is that they can do multiple things. And so we’re getting rid of people’s stuff in the garage.

So, if you can remove a cart and a couple of chairs from your garage and use one unit, we want to do that. So, all of our products are transformable. The way we have, and then we have accessories to accompany them.

Cosmos

Awesome. Yeah. So, besides the OME gear, are there any projects you guys do that you want the audience to get? A glimpse into

Jules

Yeah, we’re starting a nonprofit called Bold Sky Foundation. And with that organization, we will be investing in female product entrepreneurs and inventors because there are lots of statistics on that. That just shows how much more difficult it is for females to take a product to market than men. And so, for example, in funding alone, only 1.6% of funding goes to women. 

And so the numbers are just really staggering. Stacy and I have also because of the road that we’ve been on. We are challenging yet also rewarding. And with the network we’ve built, we wanted to create a not-for-profit organization where we invest back into female product entrepreneurs. And so we’re hosting an event in San Diego—from April 26th through the 28th- specifically a summit for women product entrepreneurs and inventors. There’s an. So that’s one thing: if anybody’s interested, they could contact us directly. It’s easy: email info@omegear.com, and we’ll give them the link and all of that. But that’s one project we’re spending a lot of time planning. We will have Incredible speakers, experts, and all of that.

So it will help move the needle forward. So that’s one thing. And we have a bunch of other things, and we’re going to be relaunching our podcasts and, like Stacy said, working on a book, and we’ve always thought they’re like our children; all these different projects are like our children that we focus our time on.

Cosmos

No, that is, that is. Awesome. Yeah, we need more female entrepreneurs in this world. And the process of getting through entrepreneurship is already hard. So yeah, that is a pretty good thing for you guys to do. 

So, how can the audience connect with you guys personally? And just get there. Know more about you as well. You work like I do. I know you mentioned an email. Me gear, where are you? All have a website as well as other information.

Jules

Yeah. So, our website is some gear, GEr.com. So go to that, and then the email connected to that comes right to stay. Tonight, the information at OE comes to us. We read every one of them and responded to every one of them. So. But the other thing is to connect with me on LinkedIn. I am particularly active. Some links, and often, we’ll write the post together; she’ll give input, but I’m active on LinkedIn, and that’s just Jules Weldon. If you look for me on LinkedIn, I would love to connect with any of your listeners, and you know they can message me there or wherever. So we try to make ourselves pretty accessible.

Cosmos

That is awesome. I’m grateful that you guys took the time to come here and share your wisdom about entrepreneurship, risks, and all of that so that the audience can know a lot about it. And, yeah, entrepreneurship is hard. But, you know, with a certain spirit, you guys can, and we can go to the other side. And then, on the other side, there is freedom and happiness. So I’m grateful for that. You’re here to inspire others to do the same.

Stacey

Yeah. Thank you.

Jules

Awesome. Thank you, Cosmos. We appreciate the opportunity.

Cosmos

Yeah, I would like you guys to come back later and tell me how the process and everything went.

Jules

I know I love it.

Cosmos

Also, I would like to conclude this episode by letting my fellow strong Americans know that, hey, look, there’s an extra ring. We must awaken it and unleash it until next time. Bye for now.