Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Julia Collins has spent much of her life chasing big goals, first to prove herself and then to save the planet.
The path took her from restaurant kitchens in New York City to Silicon Valley boardrooms, where she became the first Black woman to co-found a unicorn and raised more than $450 million in venture capital. But it also came with heartbreak, burnout, a co-founder fallout, and years spent trying to fit into a version of success that never quite felt like her own.
Today, Julia is building companies focused on the future of food and the future of the planet. But getting there required unlearning some of the biggest lessons she thought she knew about ambition, achievement, and self-worth.
In this conversation, Julia sits down with Emma to talk about what was really happening behind the headlines, the pressure to fit in, the cost of tying your identity to your success, and the belief she carried for years that the more she suffered, the more successful she would become.
Julia shares:
- Why showing up as herself changed everything — and what it cost her to try fitting in first
- What she learned raising hundreds of millions of dollars
- How she navigated a co-founder fallout and life-changing exit
- The financial habits that shaped her relationship with money
- The lesson that took her the longest to unlearn about success and sacrifice
What's a belief about success you've been carrying that might be costing you more than it's giving you? Drop it in the comments, and subscribe so you don't miss what's next - youtube.com/@EmmaGrede?sub_confirmation=1
#entrepreneurship #womeninbusiness #businesssuccess #FemaleFounder #FoodTech #Entrepreneur #RaisingCapital #Patagonia #Sustainability #PlanetForward #BlackWomenInBusiness #StartupStory #EmmaGrede #AspirePodcast #venture capital #entrepreneurmindset # raising capital
#startup fundraising # Julia Collins, # business growth. # unicorn startup
0:00 Introduction
2:36 Cosplay for founders
4:26 Why suffering isn't success
6:35 First Black woman to co-found a unicorn
9:24 Proving your value to Danny Meyer
13:58 Saving $100K before college
21:50 Building Zume
24:08 Raising $10M in 36 hours
25:51 Ad Break
29:49 Glory and heartbreak
32:27 The $450M raise was too much
35:12 Knowing her rights and exiting
40:38 A diverse cap table
46:17 Moonshot to Planet Forward
47:59 Ad Break
52:27 Selling to Patagonia
59:13 More is not more
1:01:07 Ad Break
1:02:16 Get good at money first
1:12:10 Planet House
1:14:26 Rapid Fire
_____
Emma's book START WITH YOURSELF is out now, grab your copy at emmagrede.com or wherever books are sold.
_____
ABOUT ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
Build the life of your dreams and learn from the world's most successful people.
Emma Grede, one of America's richest self-made women, wants you to make the most of your life. On 'Aspire with Emma Grede', learn through thought-provoking conversations with some of the most successful and smartest minds on the planet, including goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, investor, philanthropist and former chair of Starbucks, Mellody Hobson, podcast host Jay Shetty, billionaire entrepreneur and Shark Tank star Mark Cuban, rapper and cultural icon Cardi B, fashion mogul Kimora Lee Simmons, actress and entrepreneur Issa Rae, bestselling author and motivational powerhouse Mel Robbins, and public luminaries like Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Charlamagne Tha God, Jessica Alba, former First Lady Michelle Obama, and Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos. Each episode will unpack their habits, philosophy, and strategies, covering career advice, well-being, psychology, and, of course, how to win in business. The show offers personal stories, data-driven advice, real-world strategies, and the experience you need to turn your dreams into reality.
LISTEN TO ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
link.pscrb.fm/f0281/Aspire_YT
_______
ABOUT EMMA GREDE
Emma Grede is a founding partner and chief product officer of SKIMS and CEO of Good American. She also made history as the first Black woman to serve as an investor on Shark Tank. Learn more at: emmagrede.com
Learn how Julia Collins raised $10 million in just 1.5 days. See the strategy behind building a unicorn startup from scratch.
Julia Collins has spent much of her life chasing big goals, first to prove herself and then to save the planet.
The path took her from restaurant kitchens in New York City to Silicon Valley boardrooms, where she became the first Black woman to co-found a unicorn and raised more than $450 million in venture capital. But it also came with heartbreak, burnout, a co-founder fallout, and years spent trying to fit into a version of success that never quite felt like her own.
Today, Julia is building companies focused on the future of food and the future of the planet. But getting there required unlearning some of the biggest lessons she thought she knew about ambition, achievement, and self-worth.
In this conversation, Julia sits down with Emma to talk about what was really happening behind the headlines, the pressure to fit in, the cost of tying your identity to your success, and the belief she carried for years that the more she suffered, the more successful she would become.
Julia shares:
- Why showing up as herself changed everything — and what it cost her to try fitting in first
- What she learned raising hundreds of millions of dollars
- How she navigated a co-founder fallout and life-changing exit
- The financial habits that shaped her relationship with money
- The lesson that took her the longest to unlearn about success and sacrifice
What's a belief about success you've been carrying that might be costing you more than it's giving you? Drop it in the comments, and subscribe so you don't miss what's next - youtube.com/@EmmaGrede?sub_confirmation=1
#entrepreneurship #womeninbusiness #businesssuccess #FemaleFounder #FoodTech #Entrepreneur #RaisingCapital #Patagonia #Sustainability #PlanetForward #BlackWomenInBusiness #StartupStory #EmmaGrede #AspirePodcast #venture capital #entrepreneurmindset # raising capital
#startup fundraising # Julia Collins, # business growth. # unicorn startup
0:00 Introduction
2:36 Cosplay for founders
4:26 Why suffering isn't success
6:35 First Black woman to co-found a unicorn
9:24 Proving your value to Danny Meyer
13:58 Saving $100K before college
21:50 Building Zume
24:08 Raising $10M in 36 hours
25:51 Ad Break
29:49 Glory and heartbreak
32:27 The $450M raise was too much
35:12 Knowing her rights and exiting
40:38 A diverse cap table
46:17 Moonshot to Planet Forward
47:59 Ad Break
52:27 Selling to Patagonia
59:13 More is not more
1:01:07 Ad Break
1:02:16 Get good at money first
1:12:10 Planet House
1:14:26 Rapid Fire
_____
Emma's book START WITH YOURSELF is out now, grab your copy at emmagrede.com or wherever books are sold.
_____
ABOUT ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
Build the life of your dreams and learn from the world's most successful people.
Emma Grede, one of America's richest self-made women, wants you to make the most of your life. On 'Aspire with Emma Grede', learn through thought-provoking conversations with some of the most successful and smartest minds on the planet, including goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow, investor, philanthropist and former chair of Starbucks, Mellody Hobson, podcast host Jay Shetty, billionaire entrepreneur and Shark Tank star Mark Cuban, rapper and cultural icon Cardi B, fashion mogul Kimora Lee Simmons, actress and entrepreneur Issa Rae, bestselling author and motivational powerhouse Mel Robbins, and public luminaries like Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, Charlamagne Tha God, Jessica Alba, former First Lady Michelle Obama, and Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos. Each episode will unpack their habits, philosophy, and strategies, covering career advice, well-being, psychology, and, of course, how to win in business. The show offers personal stories, data-driven advice, real-world strategies, and the experience you need to turn your dreams into reality.
LISTEN TO ASPIRE WITH EMMA GREDE
link.pscrb.fm/f0281/Aspire_YT
_______
ABOUT EMMA GREDE
Emma Grede is a founding partner and chief product officer of SKIMS and CEO of Good American. She also made history as the first Black woman to serve as an investor on Shark Tank. Learn more at: emmagrede.com
Learn how Julia Collins raised $10 million in just 1.5 days. See the strategy behind building a unicorn startup from scratch.
