As families across the United States gear up to celebrate Mother's Day this weekend, Allison Stern is focusing on more than just a single day of recognition. Recently, she secured $10 million in commitments for her inaugural early-stage fund, Mother Ventures, which is dedicated to the mother as a pivotal consumer.
Stern highlighted that in the U.S., mothers account for a staggering 85% of household purchases, wielding a remarkable $2.4 trillion in spending power. "The statistics indicate that moms are the primary buyers, and they truly represent a unique economic engine," she shared with TechCrunch.
As a mother of two, Stern is leveraging this significant purchasing influence by investing in startups that cater to the evolving needs of contemporary mothers. Since the inception of Mother Ventures two years ago, she has allocated $4 million across 13 startups. Her diverse portfolio includes Coral Care, a service facilitating instant bookings with pediatric specialists for children facing developmental challenges, and Tin Can, a popular Wi-Fi-enabled retro-style phone designed for kids.
Before establishing her own fund, Stern co-founded Tubular Labs, a social video analytics company that achieved $25 million in annual recurring revenue before its acquisition in 2023. Additionally, she served as an operating partner at The Chernin Group (TCG), a firm focused on growth equity in consumer markets.
At TCG, part of the investment strategy involved supporting companies that cater to "overlooked unique audiences with spending power," such as Barstool Sports, which initially targeted sports fans in Boston, she explained.
In her quest to launch her fund, Stern recognized mothers as an underserved market with the potential for exceptional returns. "I believe motherhood is the ultimate niche that isn't really a niche," she remarked.
She successfully persuaded Tony James, the former president and COO of Blackstone and current board chair of Costco, to become an anchor limited partner for Mother Ventures. Other notable backers include Jessica Rolph, founder of the child development startup Lovevery, along with female executives from renowned companies like Netflix, Rent the Runway, and Sesame Street.
Stern pointed out that Millennial and Gen Z mothers have distinct expectations for products and services, ranging from on-demand transportation like Zum to meal delivery services such as DoorDash, as well as fintech solutions like Greenlight that enable parents to fund their child's debit card instantly.
"We seek healthy options, subscription services, and digital communities," she emphasized.
However, Stern is keen to clarify that her fund is not exclusively focused on parenting technology. "It's a consumer fund, and concentrating on mothers as consumers allows us to diversify our investments," she noted.
