Mother Ventures is looking at moms as the ‘economic engine’

The first StrictlyVC of 2026 hits SF on April 30. Tickets are going fast. Register now. Buy one Disrupt pass, and get the second at 50% off. Ends May 8. Register now. TechCrunch Desktop Logo TechCrunch Mobile Logo LatestStartupsVentureAppleSecurityAIApps EventsPodcastsNewsletters SearchSubmit Site Search Toggle Mega Menu Toggle Topics Latest Mother Ventures is looking at moms as the ‘economic engine’ Marina Temkin 10:46 AM PDT · May 8, 2026 As families across the U.S. prepare to celebrate Mother’s Day this Sunday, Allison Stern is looking beyond the single day of appreciation. Stern just closed $10 million in commitments for her debut early-stage fund, Mother Ventures, which focuses exclusively on the mother as a consumer. “In the U.S., moms are responsible for 85% of household purchases and have $2.4 trillion in spending power,” Stern (pictured below) told TechCrunch. “The numbers say that moms are the buyers, and they really are a very unique economic engine.” Stern, a mother of two, is tapping into that spending clout by backing startups that reflect the needs of modern mothers. Since launching Mother Ventures two years ago, she has already deployed $4 million into 13 startups. Her portfolio includes Coral Care, which allows instant booking of pediatric specialists for children with developmental delays, and Tin Can, a popular Wi-Fi-enabled “landline” designed as a retro-style phone for kids. Before launching her own fund, she co-founded Tubular Labs, a social video analytics startup she helped grow to $25 million in annual recurring revenue prior to its 2023 acquisition by private equity and served as an operating partner at The Chernin Group (TCG), a consumer-focused growth equity firm. Part of TCG’s investment thesis included backing companies serving ‘overlooked unique audiences with spending power,’ such as Barstool Sports, which originally targeted Boston sports fans, she said. When Stern set out to launch her own fund, she identified mothers as a similarly underserved market with the potential to deliver superior returns. “I felt like motherhood is the ultimate niche that’s not really a niche,” she said, Techcrunch event This Week Only: Buy one pass, get the second at 50% off Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register before May 8 to bring a +1 at half the cost. This Week Only: Buy one pass, get the second at 50% off Your next round. Your next hire. Your next breakout opportunity. Find it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2026, where 10,000+ founders, investors, and tech leaders gather for three days of 250+ tactical sessions, powerful introductions, and market-defining innovation. Register before May 8 to bring a +1 at half the cost. San Francisco, CA | October 13-15, 2026 REGISTER NOW Stern convinced Tony James, the former president and COO of Blackstone and current board chair of Costco, to back Mother Ventures as an anchor LP. Other backers of the fund include Jessica Rolph, founder of the child development startup Lovevery, as well as female executives from Netflix, Rent the Runway, and Sesame Street, she said. She argues that Millennial and Gen Z mothers expect a different set of products from on-demand transportation services such as Zum, to ready-meal delivery from DoorDash, and fintech tools like Greenlight that allow parents to instantly fund a child’s debit card. “We want healthy things. We want subscription things. We want digital communities,” she said. However, Stern doesn’t want her fund to be perceived as one that invests only in parenting tech. “It’s a consumer fund, and we focus on the mom as the consumer allows us to be wider in our bets,” she said. When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn’t affect our editorial independence. Marina Temkin Reporter, Venture Marina Temkin is a venture capital and startups reporter at TechCrunch. Prior to joining TechCrunch, she wrote about VC for PitchBook and Venture Capital Journal. Earlier in her career, Marina was a financial analyst and earned a CFA charterholder designation. You can contact or verify outreach from Marina by emailing marina.temkin@techcrunch.com or via encrypted message at +1 347-683-3909 on Signal. May 27 Athens, Greece StrictlyVC Athens is up next. Hear unfiltered insights straight from Europe’s tech leaders and connect with the people shaping what’s ahead. Lock in your spot before it’s gone. 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