Guest Lecture: Emily Oberg
+ Emily Oberg’s game plan for OnlyFans, and how to save Le Dive’s Canal Street dining.
Good morning everyone. I spent the weekend in the Hudson Valley meeting some baby goats, eating Jane’s ice cream, and discussing wedding outfits in a house full of 2025 brides.
There’s going to be a high of 64°F in New York today, which can only mean one thing.
Today’s letter includes Lena Dunham’s new newsletter, Emily Oberg’s game plan for OnlyFans, how to (possibly) save Le Dive’s Canal Street dining, and why one of Puck’s journalists is leaving for YouTube (and Substack).
Guest Lecture: Emily Oberg
This interview is part of a Feed Me feature called Guest Lecture. In this series, I introduce you all to an expert who I’m curious about, and give paid readers an opportunity to ask them anything they want.
This week Emily Oberg, founder of Sporty and Rich and newly-launched Sensual Sport, answers your questions about her plans for marketing a brand on OnlyFans, why interviewing people on the Supreme line was a dream job, and her plans to get into the film business.
“Do you miss interviewing people on the Supreme line?” - Josh
I miss it all the time! I look back at that time as some of the best years of my life. I had the coolest job any 20-year-old could ask for. I met some of my best friends, and we had the creative freedom to do and try pretty much whatever we wanted. We had so much fun and everyday I woke up being so excited to go to work. It was such a special time in media and video in particular, and we were at the forefront of it. I learned so much and I went into a depression when I left. I didn’t necessarily want to leave, but I knew it wasn’t what I wanted to pursue long term, and I knew I needed to figure out what that was.
It was almost like breaking up with someone you still love but know you don’t have a future with. You love them and you want to stay, but you know that staying is ultimately not what’s serving your higher self.
“How do you decide what categories you want to move into? What’s the ratio of analytics to intuition?” - Gideon
It’s really not about analytics or data at all. To be honest I didn’t do any research into the analytics and business side of the sexual wellness industry, it was just something I became interested in and was curious about. I’ve never done things to simply make money and I don’t approach what I do from a business standpoint in the beginning. It starts with what I truly love and am passionate about, and then you make the numbers work from there. I follow my instincts and my gut and heart more than anything else. I think this is the only way to be successful and maintain your sense of self and authenticity. I don’t think there’s any other categories I’m interested in for now. I’d love to make a TV series next, create and direct it. I have an idea for one so maybe that’s something I’ll pursue in the future.
“In your Substack intro, you said ‘Eventually though, I realized that print was dead and I had bigger aspirations for myself than peddling a magazine that I basically lost money making.’ Where do you find your reading material these days? Which publications (or people) are doing it right?” - Lindsay
To be honest, I don’t look at anything new when I’m doing research or searching for references. I used to love Gentlewoman, but I find everything is so trendy and not at all timeless anymore. Everyone’s too busy keeping up with the current zeitgeist, whereas I have no interest in partaking in it. I’m only inspired by the past and I truly feel I was born in the wrong era. Nothing new excites me, but rediscovering things from the past does. I look at old magazines and books and usually find them on eBay, Etsy or Amazon.
“OnlyFans is where the lifestyle campaigns are going to live. I’ve already tried posting the photos on Instagram, and they’ve been deleted and flagged and the page is already shadowbanned"… not everything we do is going to be softcore porn.”
“If Sensual Sport were a movie, what’s the opening scene? Who’s directing? Who’s starring?” - Katrina
I love this question because I’d love to make a movie someday. I’m directing it obviously, it would star Monica Bellucci circa 1991 or Marine Vacth. The opening scene would be a girl in her bed with baby blue sheets, in a beach house in Formentara. She’d be pleasuring herself, but you’d only see close ups of her face, mouth, neck, hands and thighs. The song playing is “Look” by Sébastien Tellier.