From Barstool Sports to Mule Media: Erika on Why Community Is the Next Big Thing for Women

For nearly a decade, Erika ran Barstool Sports through one of the most chaotic and lucrative stretches in digital media history. Now she's betting her next chapter on something quieter, harder to fake, and arguably more valuable than another viral show: community for women.

In a recent podcast conversation, Erika opened up about launching Mule Media, scaling Work Like a Girl as a free Slack community, turning around Food52, and why fearless creators still have the upper hand in a post-cancellation, AI-saturated internet.

"I come from the internet"

"I'm an internet person, so you know, I'm passionate about the internet. I always say that I come from the internet. I love content, I love the people who make content. I think a lot about monetization and how brands and people can be most sustainable."

Why community is her next big move

Her thesis on what comes next is simple. After years of feeds, algorithms, and parasocial relationships, people want something real.

"I think we are on the edge of a time when community is really going to matter."

That conviction is the foundation of Mule Media, which she built by combining Work Like a Girl with The Local Moms Network.

"We're covering and connecting with communities of women from when you're a senior in high school... to your kids a senior in high school and all the way through all the stages that women have."

Work Like a Girl: free, on Slack, no dress code

Work Like a Girl started as a trademark and a t-shirt idea while Erika was still at Barstool. It now lives on Slack and runs on a posture she calls non-performative.

"Come as you are, bring what you can, and you know, take what you need. Like so it's not performative, it's not like a big conference. I'm not looking to make money."

She drew a deliberate contrast with paid networks like Chief.

"I don't think companies are paying $10,000 or $5,000 for women to join these things... there should be community for women day in and day out, regardless if you have like a big fat paycheck."

The AI loneliness problem

Erika sees a direct line from the AI content boom to a real human cost.

"50% of all content on TikTok is AI. So just to give you a sense of like why you don't feel good when you're doom scrolling, like there's a reason people don't feel good."

That, she argues, is why community brands have an opening.

"Communities have meaning... meaning is going to become in really short supply."

The Barstool playbook: fearless, not perfect

Erika was unsentimental about what worked at Barstool.

"We would literally didn't know any better... There wasn't a roadmap, there wasn't an agenda."

The numbers backed up the philosophy.

"We grew that company from when I joined... like three million dollars in revenue and five million uniques and we had three hundred million dollars in revenue and two hundred and fifty million uniques by the time I left."

Her advice for women: stop optimizing for perfect.

"I think women sometimes get worried about perfection... the more fearless and experimental you can be, the greater."

On cancellation: it's not what it used to be

Asked about the fear of getting canceled, Erika was direct.

"I think we're almost in a post cancellation world a little bit... So long as you like have a little bit of frame of reference of like, what am I saying? Who is this gonna piss off? And what do I do I care? I think is a good, good frame of reference on that."

Advice for creators in 2026

Erika is bullish on creators and skeptical of the "launch a brand and get rich" pitch.

"It is a slog to build a consumer brand and it is a slog to get people to buy product, and it's a mega slog when you have thousands, if not millions, of other people doing the exact same thing."

The unicorns are real, but they're rare.

"Alex Earle is a queen... The question for her will be can she sustain it?"

The play she recommends: build IP that lives beyond your name, and learn more than one platform.

"The internet's a two-way medium... it's not just dropping the piece of content. It's the conversation that happens after the drop of the piece of content that's like really, really, really important."

The Food52 chapter she's still processing

After selling and re-buying Barstool in 2023, Erika took on Food52 as a turnaround.

"Sometimes there's companies that are just it's too far gone to bring back. The brand wasn't too far gone... But Food 52 had spent, you know, over 200 million dollars and was, you know, 25 million dollars in debt when I got there."

Her takeaway is less about the loss and more about what it bought her.

"I wouldn't have started Mule if I hadn't, you know, I wouldn't have done any of this had I not done that."

Where to find Erika

"You can find me mostly on Instagram. I'm @ Erika, which is E-R-I-K-A. You can find me on LinkedIn. I spend a lot of time on LinkedIn. You can find me on TikTok with Erika_ with an underscore after it. And you can find me on Slack in our work like a girl community."

If you've spent time recently feeling worse after scrolling, Erika's bet makes obvious sense. The next era of media won't be won by the loudest post or the slickest AI clip. It will be won by people who make us feel less alone. Work Like a Girl is one of the better arguments for that thesis right now. Worth watching, and probably worth joining.