Local Threads

Local Threads Ep. 1 – Kelly Dempsey on Project Runway, Barterloo & Bold Beginnings
Episode Transcript

* NOTE: Edited for optimal readability *

In the debut episode of Local Threads, host Molly Amatangelo sits down with Kelly Dempsey, a Project Runway Season 14 finalist, Boston-native, self-taught designer, and founder of Barterloo—a peer-to-peer platform that lets you trade goods and services without cash.
We dive into Kelly’s journey from growing up in small-town Western Massachusetts to making waves on national TV to now launching a community-powered alternative economy. From thrift-flipping to creating a globally-minded platform, this episode is packed with hustle, heart, and high-frequency vibes.
If you care about slow fashion, grassroots community, and alternative economies, this one’s for you.

Timestamps
00:08 – Intro & Kelly’s background
01:07 – This or That Segment
05:39 – Growing up with thrifting and sewing
10:54 – Project Runway audition and behind-the-scenes
22:47 – The vision and values behind Barterloo
32:30 – How Kickstarter and community governance work
45:40 – Dolphin downloads, creative clarity & what’s next
49:45 – Final thoughts & how to support Barterloo

Keywords / Tags
kelly dempsey, barterloo, project runway, local threads podcast, boston creatives, sustainable fashion, barter economy, ethical design, new england artists, community platform, upcycling, creative economy, slow fashion movement, boston, new podcast, Molly Amatangelo, alternative economies, peer-to-peer barter system, kickstarter campaign, slow fashion, self-taught designer, entrepreneur, founders, affiliate program

Full Transcript

(00:08) Intro & Kelly’s Background

Molly - Host
Welcome to the premiere of Local Threads. I'm Molly, your host and Boston transplant. My first guest, you may know as Kelly from the Deli, season 14 Project Runway finalist, Boston's first native contestant, self-taught sewist and designer, Kelly Dempsey. In this episode, we dig into her journey from growing up in a small town to national television and now launching her latest project, Barterloo.

Barterloo is a new peer-to-peer trading platform where people can swap goods and services, no cash needed. It's all about building community, cutting waste, and getting creative with how we support each other. Kelly's story is bold, honest, and full of grit. Let's dive in.

Molly - Host
Welcome. Thank you for being here all the way from the north end.

Kelly - Guest
I'm like 10 minutes north of Boston, so I just say north of Boston, but I pretty much say Boston for people that aren't from here, because they don't know.

Molly - Host
I don't know, & I live here.

(01:07) This or That Segment

Molly - Host
Let's do a this or that.
So, are you a beach or a forest person? ⁓

Kelly - Guest
I like both. Can I pick both? Yeah. ⁓ Yeah. I would say mostly beach because I need the water.

Molly - Host
Do you swim in the water here? ⁓

Kelly - Guest
I swim anywhere.

Molly - Host
Anywhere?! It's so cold here!

Kelly - Guest
I know. It's a treat when I go somewhere warmer, but I'll take any water.

Molly - Host
I need to try it again. I went the first time I moved here, and it was June. Big mistake. ⁓

Summer or winter?

Kelly - Guest
Summer.

Molly - Host
Yeah, you must be living here because winter is like hibernation mode.

Kelly - Guest
I think about why I live here, because I need warmth all the time, but ⁓ it also makes you appreciate the warm weather when it comes.

Molly - Host
Definitely!
Metal or Hip hop?

Kelly - Guest
90s Hip-hop, it's got to go by the mood, though, I listen to everything.

Molly - Host
Are you ⁓ 90s or Y2K?

Kelly - Guest
90s for sure.

Molly - Host
Vacation or staycation?

Kelly - Guest
Vacation. I feel like, because I work in my studio all day, I need to go somewhere.

Molly - Host
I feel like a staycation. ⁓ Isn't that just the weekend? Like, we need to just get rid of the staycation because of COVID. I think that was like our generational staycation.

Kelly - Guest
Yeah. It's dead. It's over.

Molly - Host
Movie or TV series?

Kelly - Guest
I don't have cable. I get DVDs at the thrift store, and I love things that are funny, so DVDs, is that an option?

Molly - Host
Yeah, for sure. Honestly, I feel like people are getting more back to that because of the ⁓ licensing expiring from hosting platforms and digital media. So your favorite movie you bought on Amazon, guess what? That might not be there. So ⁓ thrift your DVDs, y'all.

Kelly - Guest
They are like a dollar. And my boyfriend's like, “we can just buy him new,” but I'm like, “that's no fun.” I'd rather hunt it out.

Molly - Host
Yeah. Nightlife or day trip?

Kelly - Guest
At this point in my life, I take day trips. Yeah. Get up early. Yeah. Get a juice. ⁓ Go somewhere cool.

Molly - Host
festival or small venue? ⁓

Kelly - Guest
I spent over a decade attending music festivals in an old Volkswagen van. ⁓

Molly - Host
God, that's amazing.

Kelly - Guest
I had a lot of fun at all those. I don't know if I would still do it now. I learned a lot, met a lot of cool people, but now, I don't know. But when I was in my early 20s, I had a ball.

Molly - Host
Yeah, we already have the medals, ⁓ the t-shirt. ⁓

We're moving on from this and that.

What's a fashion regret you loved at the time, but now, looking back, you cringe when you think about it?

Kelly - Guest
I would say before I learned about fast fashion, because I never had money growing up, so I would always buy stuff that was affordable, and I didn't actually know what I was buying then. ⁓ And I don't regret it because I didn't know it, but if I had to pick one, buying clothes from ⁓ people and things that are killing the planet & exploiting people.

Molly - Host
Yeah, exactly. It's kind of crazy once you realize what ⁓ is going on. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Once you know, yeah.

Molly - Host
What is the most iconic fashion film to you? And it doesn't have to be a movie about fashion, but something about that movie. It might be a hard one, but... ⁓

Kelly - Guest
A lot of the movies that I love are from the 90s. I loved the movie Buffy the Vampire Slayer growing up with, I forget what her name was, ⁓ but I just loved the style back then, just the 90s vibe. ⁓ She had a yellow jacket that I remember, and I actually thrifted one a while ago that looked like it, and I was really excited. I mean it's all different now, I feel like, anything from the 90s. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
The starter jackets, just the windbreakers, all the fun stuff. I had one forever. I ended up losing it through life, and then my boyfriend's brother actually found one on eBay. ⁓ So pretty much the same one that I had. And they didn't write anything in it yet. It's like, my name is. So it was meant for me.

Molly - Host
That's awesome. Yeah. ⁓ I missed when jackets had the zipper on the side. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
The zipper on the side needs to come back. It does. A little air vent.

Molly - Host
It does. Yeah. Or like, this is my winter weight. Let me get a little extra room.

If you had a soundtrack, what would be on it?

Kelly - Guest
I listen to a bunch of stuff. I go from one to the other, but it sounds so weird. I listen to a lot of frequencies because I'm into vibration and energy. So I'll go on YouTube ⁓ and search.
high vibration or alignment frequencies, I listen to a lot of sounds. If I'm not in that mode, I listen to '90s hip hop, old beats, or a lot of chill music. There's this band called The Surfaces. My mind's always chaotic, so it's good to have something like music balance that.

(05:39) Growing up with thrifting and sewing

Molly - Host
⁓ Yeah, I listen to lo-fi. Yeah all on YouTube. I love it.

So you grew up in Massachusetts, but not in Boston ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Yes, a small town in western Mass called Munson. If you ever saw Kingpin, I think the writers were from the next town over, because they named the guy Roy Munson. It's that bowling movie.

Molly - Host
Yeah, I remember watching that. I feel like movies used to be so much more fun. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
They were so much more fun. It's just not hitting the same.

Molly - Host
So, when did you start sewing? Were you in Western Mass at the time, or had you already moved to this area?

Kelly - Guest
So I was about 10 years old and ⁓ we lived in a really small town with no streetlights, like no corporate businesses. ⁓ And we didn't have a ton of money growing up. So my mom would give me a couple of dollars and I would go next door. There was a church that had a thrift store, called the Church Mouse. ⁓ And it was two buildings over and I...

Molly - Host
That name! ⁓ so cute!

Kelly - Guest
⁓ It was cute. It was literally my saving grace as a kid because I loved it and I was 10 years old, I would dig through bins, be all excited ⁓ and then I'd go to school and it being in a really small town, ⁓people would recognize their clothes. I used to get bullied really badly for that, and like being the food token girl in school. So my mom actually had a craft store in the front of our house with hours on the front. She used to take us to different yard sales. We called them tag sales. ⁓ yes. ⁓

Molly - Host
Yeah, I know. I noticed that. I was like, what is that?. I like it.

Kelly - Guest
I'm sticking with tag ⁓ sale. Yeah.
So I would watch her get silverware from the thrift store or like yard sales. Tag sales!. Look it! ⁓ And I would watch her repurpose stuff. She'd make wind chimes out of silverware, really cool stuff. And I was like, I don't need to be a victim of this situation. ⁓ So I started cutting up all my clothes that people knew, and I made new stuff. I Frankensteined it together. I was like 10 or 11, but I would go to school and people wouldn't recognize their clothes, and they were like, That's really cool. I sort of realized that, like, not all the time you're a victim in your situation. There are things you can do to figure it out. So I'm like, I'm not gonna be bullied over this. And that's sort of where the passion grew. It kind of was like an empowerment thing where it totally like sparked my creativity and just like pushing for things that you wanna do, not caring what other people think.

Molly - Host
That's so cool that you started doing that at 10. I honestly didn't even have a thrift store or anything near me. I don't even remember shopping that much at all.

Kelly - Guest
Thrifting wasn't cool then. It's so different now, people say, yeah, the thrift stores may have gone up a couple of dollars. It's still cheaper than buying something that was exploiting the planet and workers. But people complain about, you know, thrifting's like cool now. I wish it was cool then. Like, I feel good for the kids that grew up, growing up now in the situation I grew up in ⁓ because they're able to express themselves and not get picked on, you know, by just getting dressed and going somewhere they have to go to. You know what I mean?

Molly - Host
Yeah, and they're more like conscious, and I love that ⁓

Kelly - Guest
We had a store called Rave at a mall.. Do you remember that store? And now I'm like, that's definitely like fast fashion. But I didn't know because everything was like $2. So I was so excited. I could buy it.

Molly - Host
Yeah that is how they get you, (low cost) they suck you right in.

Kelly - Guest
Exactly. That's how they get you. ⁓

Molly - Host
When did you move to Boston?

Kelly - Guest
I moved to Boston when I was 17 or 18. I didn't have the easiest childhood. I definitely took an unbeaten path. And I was living, think, at my aunt's attic. And one of my friends was like, Do you want to come to this music festival, Bonnaroo, in Tennessee? And I was like,

Kelly - Guest
You know what, why not? Like I was working at Wendy's, or I worked at Ames. I don't even know if those are still around. ⁓ It was like a Walmart, or no, like a Kmart. ⁓ So I was like, you know, why not? And then I went to this festival with like a hundred thousand people there ⁓ and I actually met my now ex-boyfriend there, who was from the Boston area. So I ended up moving in pretty quickly. We I don't even think there were any cell phones yet. It was like email. ⁓ And I grew up a little bit north of Boston, not far from where I am now. But sometimes things don't work out, but then you realize it was necessary in your journey. You know what I mean? So it definitely got me out of the funk of the small town that I thought I was stuck in. ⁓

Molly - Host
It's really hard to even imagine going somewhere else. It seems impossible until you do it, and then you're like, yeah, I'm not going back.

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, exactly. And I think I was just ready for anything different as well. It was definitely a change living in a more money-affluent area than where I grew up. I drove a '92 Honda Accord with these rims I got at this car place, and they were definitely stolen, think, because ⁓ they were 24-inch rims on my $500 Honda. It looked like I was driving around a Matchbox car in this really rich town. ⁓Everyone's like, who is this? I'm like, it's me. I'm sorry. ⁓ Not sorry. The car lasted me like 12 years.

(10:54) – Project Runway audition and behind-the-scenes
Molly - Host
When did you decide to do Project Runway?

Kelly - Guest
I always wanted to do fashion, so I would work jobs that I was able to be flexible with, so I waitressed for like 15 years. ⁓ And I applied for Project Runway five or six years before I was on, ⁓ and ⁓ I would write to so many people on Craigslist doing New York fashion events, and I never had money or connections or anything, so I would send like 50 emails a day, and I would be like...Hey, I have these dresses I made, I really wanna show them, I don't know how to get into this. ⁓ And people would give me opportunities, so I would drive down to New York or take the bus, or my friend would drive me, I don't think I had a car then at that point. But we would sleep in her car in like parking garages, like after the events, just cause we didn't have money for a hotel. ⁓ And every time I'd go to New York, I'd be like, my God, this is my big break. And then nothing actually like quote unquote came of it. ⁓ But remember Tumblr?

Kelly - Guest
⁓ I put all the pictures ⁓ of all my shows that I thought were wasted, and ⁓ my big break didn't happen ⁓ on that Tumblr page. Then I was working at the deli after ⁓ waitressing because I had this weird anxiety thing when I was waitressing one day, my legs went numb. It was like a nerve thing, nothing serious. But every time I went back to that job, even though I've done that for 10 years, ⁓ I was getting really anxious, so I had to switch jobs. My anxiety was wild then.

Kelly - Guest
I did not apply for Project Runway that season. I worked at the deli for about two months, and then ⁓ I intuitively just started printing out before I would go to work at the deli, like handouts, so thick. And I would be reading how to make shirts, do a sleeve, and do this. And I told my boyfriend, You can ask him, I was like, What's wrong with me? Why am I so psychotically obsessively doing this when I've done this consistently, you know, it's like I intuitively knew I needed to learn more. A week later, I got an email out of the blue from Project Runway. I don't know if they scouted me because they do scout or if they had my thing from four or five years ago, but they were like, hey, do you want to apply? I was like, yeah, I do. And it made sense, you know, why I was doing that after it's all over. It's like, intuitively, something in me knew that I needed to be ready for this. Isn't that crazy? I probably would have gone home first if I hadn't listened to my intuition. I'm not saying that going home first is bad, but I went in as the only self-taught designer. I went to MassArt for one year but took state-regulated classes because my dad got sick, and I left. I only went because somebody told me I couldn't get in

Molly - Host
That's wild.

Kelly - Guest
So, I really wanted to prove that I could. ⁓ But I was sewing for 15 years before that. Even the teachers were like, Handle your family stuff. Just keep doing what you're doing. You're going to be fine. ⁓ being one of the ⁓ only self-taught designers, I'm glad I did psychotic obsessive reading right before I went in because everything was fresh.

Molly - Host
Exactly.

Molly - Host
Yeah, you wouldn't even like imagine something like that would happen.

Kelly - Guest
And then going down for the audition, my friend was driving me ⁓ and she got us a hotel for the night. She had a seizure within 10 minutes of driving from Boston to New York. ⁓ I had ⁓ my application, like my portfolio, whatever, like everything ready to go. ⁓ She's like, I'm not feeling so well, do you mind driving? I was like, yeah, it's fine. She had a seizure literally within 10 minutes. I don't know, she said it wasn't a seizure, but she said she gets them before.

Kelly - Guest
Either way, there was a hospital site on the highway, and I drove off so fast, and I ran into the hospital. She felt like hard as a rock, like I was terrified. I was screaming. ⁓ And then she ended up staying back because she just didn't feel good. She was okay. ⁓ So she's like, go pick up your mom. She's on the way. Like, I got the hotel for you guys. So I got there just in the lick of time, like to go in for my audition. It was just like madness getting there.I feel like it's always harder before ⁓ things happen. ⁓

Molly - Host
That's wild. Like that would have probably shook me to the point of not being able to do it, but it sounds like your friend was really supportive and wanted you to go. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
I lived with her for 10 years. I've never seen her do that. She's like, oh, that's normal. I just passed out. I was like, that's not normal..

Molly - Host
I bet that whole thing (Project Runway) was pretty intimidating, but you kicked its ass.

Kelly - Guest
It's super intimidating, but at the same time, I feel that when you have nothing to start with, you have nothing to lose. ⁓ And a lot of people that were there, ⁓ different designers, they have like PR telling them what to say, what to do. And then when the camera's off, I feel like they're just so chill and cool. And I'm like, how come you don't act like that in front of the camera? And they're like, well, I have to say this, because they have businesses and things. I was working at the deli, and I'm always like, whatever I think, I'll just do it. And I'm very like, last minute, but that's when I do my best work. ⁓ So I think not knowing what's happening there and not knowing our next steps, I like thrived in that environment when some people need a schedule, like schedules like freak me out.

Molly - Host
Same⁓ I hate them. What was the hardest part about Project Runway?

Kelly - Guest
The hardest part about it is that we had to take a 600-question psychiatric test before.They gave us a pamphlet, and you have to go to the doctor's office and have them open it and sit in the waiting room so you don't have like someone else answering your questions. So I went in 15 minutes before. I'm like, it's going to be like 10 questions. There was like 600 questions and they're so different. The multiple choice. So it's like, do you like the color green? Very much. Very not. Do you kill cats is like the next one. So you have to read them, you know?

Molly - Host
I would have been like, ⁓ :throws papers in the air::

Kelly- Guest
I think they do that because when you're there for, it could be up to three months, you don't have a phone, you can't go for walks by yourself, you can't watch TV, you can't read magazines, they want you to pull everything from here.::gestures to heart:: I think that was a hard part. My hardest part was not talking to my boyfriend, family, and friends. They let me talk to my boyfriend once ⁓ and that was like cameras right in your face, and ⁓ I was like, hi, okay, guess I'll talk to you later. ⁓

Molly - Host
Back then, it would be easy not to have a phone, but now...

Kelly- Guest
It's so different. ⁓ I was the last out of all my friends to get a phone and now, I say, though, it's like if I had a question, I'd walk to the library to get an answer, and people are like, phones are the devil or whatever. ⁓ it's like, it's how you use it. It's a tool. It can be for sure. But if you're using it to learn and grow, ⁓ it's endless. ⁓

Molly - Host
What was next after Project Runway?

Kelly - Guest
Project Runway opened a ton of doors. I learned a lot. ⁓ And I think going into it with the mindset I have is that if you think you know everything, that's when you stop learning. ⁓ And I'm over here, you're over there, like the judges, so they know something I don't know. So it's important to take the criticism, but keep being you. ⁓ Just refine in a certain way. ⁓ So after Project Runway, I was like, I'm gonna launch my fashion brand, I've always wanted to do this. ⁓ And as I learned more and more about production and getting into the industry,

Kelly - Guest
I realized I want nothing to do with any of that. And it kinda went full circle after trying to do a few things ethically, which I'm not really a production person. Well, I'm definitely not a production person. We're all different. We all need something unique that nobody else has. So I went back to thrift flipping and using my platform to show people that most of the...

Kelly - Guest
Items -over 86 % of items at a thrift store go to a landfill or are incinerated. It's not like thrift stores are more expensive because of all the resellers, that's just not true ⁓ because so much of it is still going to landfill. There is so much clothing on this planet right now. ⁓ People look at it as, that's trash, that's smelly. ⁓ So I like to inspire people or, you know, to look at something with a different perspective, you have to look at things in a different way. There's beauty all around us. It's not necessarily like...something we need to spend a ton of money on, you know?

Molly - Host
Exactly. And you were upcycling before it was cool too. So that's so cool that you started when you were 10, and then it evolved into going to Project Runway and then now into you do auctions on your website of things you flip from the thrift.

Kelly - Guest
It's sort of when you think at that age that it was ⁓ traumatizing for me because as a kid that's your whole world ⁓ but then as time goes by, you don't realize that that was a necessary point of my path to lead me back to where I'm going now. ⁓ it's like a full circle. Yeah. So it's like the things that are so difficult shape us and grow us to push past that, you know. If we allow it.

Molly - Host
Yeah - Canon moment.
So you started thrift flipping, and that's what you do on your salvaged aura site?

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, so I switched to auction style because people would, like I said, I'm not very good at the schedules. ⁓ So I would just launch stuff at random times. And many people that have been following me for a while are like, I didn't know. So now every Saturday I do an auction. ⁓ And I also put on some thrift finds that I also see when I'm sourcing materials. If I see something cool, I'll add it on there for the auction. So I'll put a couple items up a week that, ⁓ even if it's...items like I save bags, produce bags, like the cool color netting, whatever inspires me that could be trash, or that is trash and could be something else, is where my creativity ⁓ jumps in.

Molly - Host
I love the earrings that you posted recently of the repurposed CDs. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
⁓ This is a CD, :shows hand points to ring: That's one of the rings from the collection. I scraped the CDs, poured it in resin, and then had this set with a jeweler in New York to make the samples. We did an event at Bloomingdale's, we were gonna pop off. ⁓ I had somebody reach out from the Dick Clark production, which runs like the AMAs, all the music awards, they run a lot of music stuff. They had a ton of CDs in their inventory, and they were gonna be just thrown away. So it was like a side project. They hired a designer, and I worked with them. And then COVID hit. Bloomingdale's was interested in the collection, and we did a whole photo shoot, and then literally COVID happened, and it got dissolved. But you know, I was really bummed out because that was one year I dedicated fully to that. But like I said, I feel if a door shuts, it's because there's something better coming. You just gotta redirect it, you know?

Molly - Host
And on your website, you also do ⁓ upcycling courses and sewing courses and things like that. ⁓ Is that something you plan on still doing ⁓ moving forward?

Kelly - Guest
So I developed a beginner sewing course and I think it's great for people that aren't super studious. ⁓ So I'm very ⁓ informal, unconventionally taught. So I teach in a way that's very like, all right, you put this there, you know, instead of, ⁓ need this fancy thing to do this, So I created a good beginner sewing class for ⁓ anybody interested in sewing that has never done it before. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
I don't know how much I'm gonna do after that. I like teaching, but I'd do, if I'm gonna do something like that, I'd like to do like a workshop in person or something. ⁓ But I have the beginner course, which I promote here and there, and I think helps a lot of people. But besides that, ⁓ I'd probably stick to just in-person stuff.

(22:47) – The vision and values behind Barterloo
Molly - Host
Speaking of your next venture,. ⁓ You have recently announced Barterloo an online platform for essentially trading resources. ⁓ And I love that your motto, is you don't need to earn your currency, you are the currency..

Kelly - Guest
100%. I went to Mexico five years ago and I went to an old Mayan trading post called the Coba Ruins ⁓ and we learned all about how the Mayan civilization and for centuries people thrived off the barter system, not just them, everyone.

Molly - Host
Five years ago, what's that 2019? Yeah, I went to Koba too ⁓ in 2019.

Kelly - Guest
Actually, I was wearing a mask. It was during COVID.Did you see the observatory? ⁓

Molly - Host
I think we saw everything. I think I got too hot.

Kelly - Guest
I got in one of those little carts because it was so big.

Molly - Host
Yeah, ⁓ that's crazy. We might have been there at the same time.

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, I learned that the barter system was the currency. They would trade cacao for things from ⁓ the Spaniards, different potteries, etc. That was well before fiat money ever existed. And really, I feel like Barterloo is for me, and everybody isn't a new thing.

Kelly - Guest
Before we got stuck doing jobs we don't love. And we have to use our money for things that we have to buy, like bills and ⁓ stuff like that. So Barterloo ⁓ came also through because I never had a lot of money. So everything I made to create, to sell, went to my bills. ⁓ And I'm not able to support artists. ⁓ Artists can't support other artists, most of them at the beginning stages of that. ⁓ And...Barterloo is a way to trade what you have because we all have a skill, whether we know it or not. And I'm also offering secondhand goods as well, because there's so much of that. So if you don't necessarily teach a language or sew or paint or ⁓ do web design or a mechanic or anything, I eventually want it more than just artists. I want this to be a whole world global movement. We're gonna start global. I want farmers to be ⁓you know, on the platform and ⁓ all different types of resources, because we just work jobs we don't like. Then we give our money to these big corporations that do nothing to give anything back to us, ⁓ when that's not an equal energetic exchange. I feel like humans are just getting drained and drained and drained, ⁓ and we need an equal exchange back. So ⁓ I'm creating a platform where...
it's gonna be easy, you can say the things you're looking for, what you offer. And more than just like Craigslist, where people post barter posts, I want this to be a self-sustaining ecosystem. ⁓ So we're gonna have a community thread. So you can post barter posts on there. You can also be like, hey, I'm new to the platform. I make this stuff. I live in this area. ⁓ And we'll also have like a page with all the different hubs. So if you're a fiber artist or a painter in New England, you can join that. ⁓ So it's a way we can get closer with our community together ⁓ and globally as well, because there are people that have things in other countries that need, maybe they want to learn English, right? And you want something that they make. And ⁓ I just think
The system is starting to collapse, and I think people feel it in a way. Energetically, I feel people are looking for something deeper, something with more value, realizing you have value. Because if you have to work a job you don't like, there's something you have a passion in that you're not able to do. So if you can free up some of your money, you can spend some time doing more of what you love and getting the things you want. ⁓ And then using that money for things you have to buy, like bills and all that stuff. ⁓

Molly - Host
Yeah, I think it's great because there are so many talented people. It's such a good way of combining tech ⁓ and also ⁓ how things used to work. ⁓

(26:54) – How Kickstarter and community governance work

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, if you think about it, back then, when the barter system thrived so well, I needed to get my hair done for an event, and my friend needed a dress for a wedding she was going to, and they were both, like, about $400. So I'm like, I'll make you a dress, you do my hair. You know? And that was a few years ago, but instead of me having to spend that $400, I'm able to trade my craft for something that I need. And now, like you said...I don't want to use technology to replace humans. I want to rekindle it, rekindle the human connection. ⁓ Because, like I said with phones earlier, it can be either good or bad. Using it, but if we can use it to bring us together, that's where the real power is.⁓ And also, Barterloo is going to be community-governed. It's the first community-governed barter app because I feel like we don't have any say in the things that happen and the places we give our money. ⁓
And I want people to be empowered to know that they have a say in how that ecosystem shapes. You know what I mean? ⁓ So we're going to do a $5 a month subscription for each person. No money exchange on the app, no fees, no nothing like that. ⁓ But just $5 to keep it self-sustained, ⁓ people-powered. ⁓ I had a few investors reach out to me. ⁓ And I don't want to go that route because then I'm giving away some of the power to somebody, ⁓ one person saying something when I don't want that. ⁓ So that's why we're doing a Kickstarter next month because to have a community governed ⁓ it really needs to be community funded to have it start with the people, get those people on the platform at the beginning so it's successful from the start. You know what I mean? So if someone just invests not too many people are going to know about it. You know what I mean? ⁓

Molly - Host
And you know, they don't usually take a small chunk, right? So you are limited in what you can do and also the future of ⁓ Barterloo. So, ⁓ for those people who don't understand like community governance, can you explain?

Kelly - Host
Community governance is, if you were a member of Barterloo in three months, it's not going to go up to $10 a month or, we're not going to start putting ads on the platform or, we're going not to allow this or that or have different sort of rules - I want the people to vote. So, for instance, if there's a dispute, say, we did a trade, you traded me this recording session or whatever, and I made you a bag. You never followed through, or I didn't make the bag like I said I was going to. We'll have a whole dispute, like a jury on the platform. So let the people decide, like, were they right? Were they wrong? Does that person need to be banned? I think people feel with all the big platforms every time I look, something's different or it's like not working the way it's supposed to be working, and it's not benefiting in a certain way, but it's like, want everyone to know that like that's theirs as well. You know, it's a safe place where you can talk about things and get the things you want and give the things that people need, you know? We already have it all. ⁓ We don't need anything. ⁓ If we didn't think we needed the system, then they wouldn't be in control of all of us doing things that we don't want to do struggling, you know, and I just think about all the things I could have given to people and gotten myself instead of just struggling.

Molly - Host
Imagine the possibilities too, with the hubs. A market's no longer a market. And it's like the community comes together, and it's like, I have this, you want to trade? Oh my god, that would be so fun.

Kelly - Guest
So the thing is, is I did some research. There are a couple different barter apps that recently came out, but they're like more of a Craigslist style where you just say what you want, what you need. ⁓ But I think the biggest ⁓ thing missing is the community aspect of connecting with people and knowing who you're talking to. ⁓ And to do that, to create like ⁓ a high-level feed that refreshes every three seconds, ⁓ there is so much tech that goes in behind the scenes that I don't even understand. My business partner in Austria is the tech guy. He is amazing. I met him in Mexico on that trip with his fiancée and my friend, he's amazing at all that stuff. But what he's built, even the skeleton of it, he's like, this is only 1 % of what we need. That's why we need the funding, because there needs to be so much data in there. I don't even know all the tech stuff, but to create a fast feed, you know, that's going to benefit and you'll see the things you want to see.

Molly - Host
So when your Kickstarter happens, how does it work exactly? You'll launch the Kickstarter and then you obviously are requesting community funding. How long are you going to be ⁓ running the Kickstarter for? Your goal rather. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
⁓ So the Kickstarter is going to be 30 days. And we were going to do it May 1st, but we still have a ton of stuff we want to do before, because with all the research and stuff I've been learning with Kickstarter, the pre-funding is what determines if your Kickstarter is going to be successful or not. ⁓ We are partnering with Kick Booster, ⁓ which is ⁓ affiliated, I think, in some way with Kickstarter. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Anybody who gets somebody to donate to the Kickstarter, we're gonna be doing an affiliate program where that person will get 25 % of the donation to help bring people on because we need a lot of exposure on this. We're looking for 88,000 right now. My business partner said that's on the low end. He already has it all written out, but he has a decent amount of good team around him that he thinks he could do it for that. So that's the goal.

Molly - Host
and you said 30 days.

Kelly - Guest
30 days. ⁓ And the thing with Kickstarter is if you don't reach your goal, you get nothing. ⁓ And I still chose to do a Kickstarter because I'm like, listen, I'm going to gung-ho this out of the gate. ⁓ If it starts on fire, which I think it will, then it's meant to be. If it doesn't, then I'll figure out a different route. Either way, I'm doing it. I just, really being community governed, I think that's a big ⁓ thing to keep it community. ⁓

Molly - Host
I mean, there are so many talented people, like you said. When you do the Kickstarter, you have 30 days, to reach what you need - $88,000. That's not crazy. Yeah. I don't think it is.

Kelly - Guest
It's not crazy, I think the biggest challenge is, I think people think it's a great idea, but it's so distant than we're used to living day in, day out, that it seems so kind of foreign. So, I think the more I talk about it, the more I, you know, show different examples of people connecting opens up the possibilities of what it can be because really the possibilities are endless.

Molly - Host
. Yeah, I'd love to ⁓ trade vintage for a podcast editor for my videos. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
⁓ Right? That's what I'm saying. We're going to make sure, you know, there's going to be a verification process when you sign up.

Molly - Host
So are you going to have like community mods, like hub mods or? ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, and then I said my business partner was talking about there's certain keywords and things that all goes into the infrastructure, the platform. So that's gonna be a big thing is to keep it PG. You know what I mean? People can report a barter post profile. ⁓ So if something looks sketchy to you, you can report it and then that'll go through a system where we determine if it's ⁓ this or that and if it's. ⁓goes past a certain thing where it's not getting banned right away, goes to the community jurors.

Molly - Host
That's awesome. Well, obviously Reddit is a good example. It's working there, ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, and that's where a lot of the funding we need comes in as well, is to build the infrastructure for the safety of the platform. Like if you won't need a dog walker, you know, that person needs to be verified. And then also you'll be able to review people. If you did a barter post, you know, trade with me, you can review my platform or my post profile. ⁓ So, you know, you can find people credited, you know, as time moves on through the app ⁓ and, know, we're gonna have a leaderboard, like a, not a leaderboard, but like, spotlighting, people that are doing fair trades that are getting good responses back, people that are helping really build the community. ⁓

Molly - Host
So let's say I donate to the Kickstarter. What do I get out of it?

Kelly - Guest
We're going to have a few different tiers. ⁓ So we have a few different options, like a free year subscription. ⁓ So we're still working on all the tier system to get that out. But we have a few different things, like being part of our ⁓ quarterly ⁓ Zoom talk, where you could have cast your vote in what you think this and this is, ⁓ and stuff like that, even though we're not giving, you don't pay more to get more of a say on the platform, but more exposure of what's happening with what's going on and what to put out to the community to vote on.

Molly - Host
but you'll end up being first wave or how does that work?

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, and also you'll be part of the beta testing.. Yeah. ⁓ So the beta testing to see how everything's flowing, see what we need to change, see what we need to do, ⁓ and ⁓ be some of the first to have your barter post up on the site before it launches. ⁓

Molly - Host
That's what I'm trying to get on. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, you're in. You're in.

Molly - Host
Yeah, are you gonna have user numbers? All right, I'm in a beta right now. ⁓ And the reason I ask is because I'm so jealous. There's somebody that has like, you know, the single digit ⁓ numbers of like their user name. ⁓ And it's like, ⁓ man he elite

Kelly - Guest
Actually, yes. With the funding, you know, if you donate to the Kickstarter, you have first say at your username. Yes. So it's not like Kelly D994628.

Molly - Host
Yeah, that's important. That's a big deal. ⁓

Molly - Host
Do you have a launch date?

Kelly - Guest
We are planning for the fall.

Molly - Host
Nice.

Kelly-Guest
So I'm going to guess Octoberish.
We're saying September, but I'm saying more close to October. ⁓ So since my business partner built the whole skeleton of what we want it to look like, that's something that we don't need to go through with developers. We have a blueprint that we can give them. So having him is amazing. This is ours 50-50, because ⁓ funny story, before I met him in Mexico, a month, no, a year before, he was going to launch a platform called Coachify.

Molly - Host
⁓ Yeah, I read that on the website!

Kelly - Guest
⁓ Yeah, he had the idea like himself as well. He has the same values and know ethics as I do with what we think the world should be, you know, look like. So he's totally aligned with everything and he showed me the platform. He never launched it and I'm like that's so crazy. Like we both kind of had his was with coaching, know, you know an hour of this for an hour of that, which you can do on Barterloo now. So Barterloo is just an expanded version of that.

Molly - Host
Which it's ⁓ so great too, because sometimes you just need a mentor. Because some people are really good at solving problems, and some people are really good at executing. And I'm the first one. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
You're the solver. ⁓ I think I might be more of an executor. Yeah. And then hopefully I get there when I'm executing. Hopefully I solve it at some point. ⁓ Yeah.

Molly - Host
⁓ So anyway, you mentioned ⁓ affiliate program. What does that mean?

Kelly - Guest
So affiliate, even though it's not a money-based app, we still need to grow the platform and people need to live, right, ⁓ and survive right now. So to help grow the platform, instead of just bringing all these people on, we're giving an incentive ⁓ to everybody that donates, whoever brings them on. So you could be, anybody could be an affiliate, you could be an affiliate, no three people, you know, can use your link to sign up for the, donate to the Kickstarter. And then...you would get 25 % of whatever donations they put in.

Molly - Host
Wow, that's crazy. ⁓ Link in the show notes? ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, because. Yeah. ⁓ Because right, like it's not, I love design and fashion and all that, but I feel like everything I've ever done up to this point, I always feel like, okay, there's something else I should be doing. There's something bigger. ⁓that I should be doing, and I feel Barterloo is it. I feel like I can go up and bring everybody with me.

Molly - Host
Yeah, it's so ⁓ passion-driven, emotional driven, and heartfelt. ⁓ it's such a big thing that's missing in the community. Like, community doesn't exist really. And so that's a big reason why I wanted to do this podcast is to bring people together, get people to understand someone a little bit better than maybe a two minute Instagram reel ⁓ and understand the ins and outs of whatever they have going on. And, you know, it'd be so cool if like we all run into each other and we know each other a little bit better using the tech we have in a better way.

Kelly - Guest
That's what I'm saying, like with the hubs, ⁓ you know, could have hub for certain areas and anybody from that area, you can also, we're also gonna have a search feature, which is amazing. This is also gonna take a lot of work to put in, but ⁓ instead of just flipping through the feed, I hope I find something, we're gonna have a whole search page where you can search by location within five miles, within 10 miles or globally.

Molly - Host
That's perfect.

Kelly - Guest
⁓ So you can connect with people around you, you can friend people, know.
So it's gonna be very community-based with the fact that, you can start talking with people and, you know, also we have this thing called like, it's a Barterloo. ⁓ So if you like somebody's barter post ⁓ and ⁓ they happen to like something that you're bartering, it's like kind of like a match like Tinder. It pops up an instant window where you can just start talking right away. ⁓

Molly - Host
That's great. So you have to have that engagement in order to interact, which I like.

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, definitely. And that just keeps everybody like keeping the energy flowing and talking to different people. And a lot of the times you might not even know that your skill is something that people really need. a ⁓ lot of people don't even actually, I feel, pursue a lot of the stuff that they might want to learn or need because they might not have the money to do it. ⁓ But if they have something to offer back, that's a way that they can both build up. ⁓

Molly - Host
Yeah, it's really ⁓ the way of the future. There's a lot of people that are doing this, ⁓ what's called a commoning economics where you take away, well, like the people own the... ⁓
the resource and that's similar to what Barterloo was doing. ⁓ There are a bit of nuances but I'm not an expert on commoning economics by far but it is essentially where the people have the resource and ⁓ no one person owns it. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
⁓ And I think people are so drained I'm not saying everybody hates their job but you know a lot of people do and I think people are so drained after doing that all day and ⁓ You have two days off and you got to get work and stuff done that you don't have the time or energy to follow the things that light you up. I want to learn pottery or anything and it's sort of like this is a way that you can give you know something you have and get it back without feeling drained. You know what I mean? It's it's it's like an equal energetic exchange where it just flows and you feel also more fulfilled. Like if you're working a job and you're one of thousands of people punching in, you don't, you may not feel like you have value in a way that you do. We all have so much value and I feel like that's been suppressed for so long and I'm like shaking it out, it's coming out. ⁓ We're all getting our value, or finding our value again.

Molly - Host
Yeah, and also purpose. Like, can you imagine how many people will pursue the crafts that they've wanted to pursue and then that takes off for them? That's what I'm saying. know, just more happiness all around. mean, we're taught that our value is our percentage, you know, in our annual raises, you know, it's like, your value is five point five percent. ⁓ And by the way, we didn't get enough money this year. So you get no raise. But great job.

Kelly - Guest
Yeah, ⁓ it's like a Christmas vacation when ⁓ he works forever and he's like, you get the Jelly of the Year award. Yeah. Right?

Molly - Host
Sorry you can't get the pool that you wanted. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Exactly. But that's the thing is if we knew that we didn't need to rely on an outside system, you know, that would that wouldn't be good for the people with the systems. ⁓ But it would be so good for for us because we have more than we could ever ask for, even probably within one mile of this building. ⁓ There's so much value ⁓ that just just hides. It's just not it's like under a rock because we're not taught to look at life that way. ⁓ And that's ⁓ not the way to do it, I don't think.

44:54 – Dolphin downloads, creative clarity & what’s next

Molly - Host
Yeah. No. It's not. So I know that developing something like this ⁓ is difficult. What keeps you going?

Kelly - Guest
What keeps me going is that it's something bigger than me ⁓ and I have this platform for a reason. You know, I've gone through the things I've gone through for a reason. All the things that I thought, you know, were meant to be and didn't work. I knew I was learning lessons along the way to lead me to something else. Even when I was five years old, six years old in a small town, I'm like, I'm supposed to do something. I don't know what. ⁓ I didn't know what that meant or what that looked like. ⁓ And I did Project Runway. I was on Good Morning America. I created this beautiful jewelry line. I do all these ⁓ random things, and I still feel like I haven't done the thing I'm supposed to be doing yet. And I think after I just went to Mexico a couple months ago is when the idea really ⁓ actually, because I always had the idea, but I couldn't conceptualize what it looked like in my mind. It was just all floating pieces. ⁓ And this sounds so crazy and wild, but I'll tell you. ⁓ like I said, I'm really into energy and all that stuff. We did a...
a wild dolphin swim when we were in Mexico. That's one of my dreams. Because I do all this reading on dolphins. They're so high vibration, highly intelligent. They keep wisdom and knowledge. And dolphins are high vibration, and they just, everything is off vibration for them. So I always wanted to do that because I'm like, I want to go swim with dolphins and just like vibe with them. I don't know what's going to happen. ⁓ And my cousin won this trip two months ago and we weren't even going to go to Puerto Vallarta anytime soon. ⁓ And I always wanted to do wild dolphins. It was never near us ⁓ and I looked at the hotel we were staying at and the wild dolphin tour was literally across the street. I was like done. We're doing it the first day so me and my cousin actually meditated on like the thought of just just vibing with the dolphins and receiving knowledge and we swam around with them for like an hour. I didn't feel like anything different after I had four more days of my trip and ⁓ I got home at midnight and then I went to bed woke up at 8 in the morning. All those floating ideas that were in my brain about this barter app, the first second I opened my eyes just flooded with a concept. ⁓
I'm not giving Dolphins all the credit, but I feel like they really unlocked all those things I was trying to do, because I wasn't even thinking about it. ⁓ And I just woke up and I started the voice memo. I just started talking into my phone, because I couldn't keep up writing ⁓ of the download I had of like, it was just so clear. I don't know if it was ⁓ the mental clarity of the vacation as well, ⁓ but I really was like, this needs to happen when I got home.

Molly - Host
I have to go find a dolphin so I can organize my thoughts.. Honestly. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Go to Puerta Vallarta. She was lovely. I also learned on the dolphin tour that dolphins have fingers. Did you know that? No. They are like mittens. They got fingers under there.

Molly - Host
Did you touch it? Like, can you feel them?

Kelly - Guest
No, you can't touch the dolphins.

Molly - Host
⁓ too much energy. I guess. I'm excited to see ⁓ what happens. Just want to keep up with the Kickstarter. I know when the community really gets into ⁓ seeing a great idea come to fruition, ⁓ people just love to watch the Kickstarter grow ⁓ and contribute, obviously. So that's going to be exciting.

Kelly - Guest
Even just sharing, you know what I mean, is huge. ⁓ So ⁓ we're gonna have a whole media asset page with like logos and you know, can make it easy for people to share and get the word out. ⁓

Molly - Host
How soon can someone become an affiliate and start talking about it? ⁓

Kelly - Guest
We are going to have have ⁓ the media assets and everything up ready to share, probably three weeks before the Kickstarter. So I have, we have like a list thing going for anybody that signs up. Right now, the link in my bio, it's the top link, it says the Barterloo affiliate. You can sign up now to ⁓ become an affiliate. So once we launch the program prior to the Kickstarter, ⁓ you'll get all the information that you need and you can sign up and have your code that you can send to people to go to the Kickstarter.

(48:59) – Final thoughts & how to support Barterloo

Molly - Host
Nice. Well, I'll link all of your socials in the show notes. Thank you. Where they can find you, your link tree, and also to Barterloo. Is there anything that you want to ask the community to do? know, sign up, follow on Instagram. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
I would say sign up, even if you don't want to be an affiliate on that link, can check the box to be an affiliate, ⁓ or if you just want updates and then there's a box to link for both. ⁓ So even if you don't want to be an affiliate and you just want to stay up to it, you know, and see what's going on with it, you'll get all the latest updates and anything new that we have coming out you want to share. If you want to see Bartaloo grow, that would be super helpful for the community. ⁓

Molly - Host
Go follow Barterloo, sign up to get updates. It'll be in the show notes. Well, thank you so much. I cant wait to To see how it goes. ⁓

Kelly - Guest
Thank you. Thank you for having me. I'm so excited, and thanks for having me on.

Molly - Host
You're welcome.

Molly - Host
I hope you enjoyed this week's episode as much as I did. Check the show notes for all the details on where to find Kelly, her weekly auctions, and finally, how to stay in the know with Barterloo. Don't forget to subscribe to stay in the loop with local threads. I'll see you next time.