WHAT Podcast: Meet the Co-Founders of The Relish

On this episode of the WHAT podcast Tara talks with Ashley Wellington-Fahey and Lisa Raphael, co-founders of The Relish, a social video platform where fans go to talk sports. How did The Relish come about? What is it like working at the intersection of sports, technology and venture capitalism? What is next for The Relish?

Hear about the highs and lows from speaking at Steph Curry and Andre Iguodala’s Tech Summit (where they met CJ McCollum) to being asked if they were interns in the parking garage. These women are working on pulling off something big: democratizing sports for the next generation of fans.

Download the episode

4:15 Ashley Wellington-Fahey intro, early experience as a fan that has stuck with her was a 1995 Mariners playoff game with her mom

5:30 Lisa Raphael intro, grew up in the church of Syracuse sports

7:45 Ashley: favorite basketball teams are the Sonics, Warriors, Blazers

9:15 Lisa: was a college sports fan first, tends to follow players

11:00 Ashley: An inspiration behind The Relish was thinking about the female fan as a nuanced audience.

13:30 Sports media companies tend to cater to a specific male fan base, so why not cater to the female fans and other fans who are not part of the main demographic?

15:15 One of the goals is to build a brand that female fans care about.

16:00 Lisa: Doing a documentary about a baseball team Lisa was asking different questions than the athletes had been asked before. Met Ashley and believed in the mission. Couldn’t believe The Relish didn’t exist yet.

18:45 Met so many talented women who want to work with them. Believe they were not the only ones who thought the sports media landscape needs to change. They are taking a different approach to growing the next generation of sports media by democratizing it.

20:00 New app they are releasing is a social video platform for fans who want to become broadcasters.

22:00 What people will find when they follow The Relish: stories about athletes (male and female), female broadcasters and fan perspectives. They cover both men’s and women’s sports because women are fans of both and in order to balance out the topics.

24:30 Also tackle topics such as social justice, feminism and relationships in various formats like mini documentaries, videos and talk shows.

25:45 What is your big goal for The Relish? Ashley: that fans have options. They can find and hear from people that resonate with them. Fans are nuanced and The Relish is a place where they think about those nuances especially for underserved fans.

26:45 Big goals for Lisa: Launch the careers of the next generation of sportscasters. People come to the app to get information from people they relate to. Change the sports industry as we know it by turning the camera on underserved fans and talk about what they want to talk about.

29:30 Challenges: Ashley: Challenging working at the epicenter of sports, tech and venture capital.

34:00 Lisa: Working in the field with an all female teams mean that they often have to prove to people they are really belong there.

41:15 Evolution of their partnership and working together.

44:15 Lisa: benefits of having a partner to share the mission, share the belief. And because one person isn’t going to be great at everything.

46:45 Favorites Ashley:Getting invited to Andre Iguodala and Steph Curry’s tech summit. CJ was there and they are still in touch. They also met Meghan Klingenberg at the Superbowl and she became an advisor to their business.

51:00 Favorites: Lisa: Inspired by women who have been moved by The Relish to do their own thing. It is very cool to provide a platform that empowers people who are not a part of the sports conversation right now.

55:15 Who is a woman who inspires you?

55:30 Ashley: The community of fans who are part of The Relish.

56:15 Lisa: The women who are already doing the work: Jemelle Hill, WNBA Players, Women’s Hockey teams and other women who are fighting for wage parity

58:00 Follow The Relish on all the platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter) and visit therelish.com.

Get Social

Follow Blazer’s Edge on Twitter @blazersedge, WHAT Pod @HoopsAndTalks, Tara @tcbbiggs, and Kendyl @kendylbennett16.

Women’s Hops And Talks (W.H.A.T.)

Join the Women’s Hops And Talks Facebook group to talk about Trail Blazers with others who identify as women who love basketball.

Music used in the episode: “Happy Alley” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License