News

For Vlada and Michal Bortnik, founders of Palo Alto, California-based Marco Polo, a video messaging company, the constant presence of work in their lives undergirds their success. The Bortniks met in Seattle when both worked for Microsoft and both played soccer on the fields at the software giant’s campus. Inc.

“Discovering liquid shampoo is 80% water on average shocked me. Were we really packaging and shipping mostly bottled water around and calling it shampoo?!” Shoutout LA connected with Kailey Bradt, founder of Susteau, and shared the conversation. Shoutout LA

ShearShare closed on $2.3 million of seed funding in February that it will use on “supercharging sales and partnerships, amplifying self-service for our mobile platform and introducing new educational tools plus proprietary analysis for small business owners,” co-founder and chief operating officer Courtney Caldwell said. Buffalo Inno

Claire Coder, CEO of Aunt Flow, was featured as one of 29 women who are leading the modern menstrual movement. Girlboss

Finding new ways for e-commerce to connect with consumers is driving Kelly Nyland, Co-Founder and CEO of Whym, to help brands and retailers sell more products via SMS and messaging. Whym has raised $4.3M to build a conversational marketing platform that allows a direct relationship between buyers and sellers using messaging as the medium. Tank Talks

Congratulations to Courtroom5’s CEO Sonja Ebron for winning a 2022 Women in Business award from the Triangle Business Journal! Triangle Business Journal

This week the Indiegogo Creators Fund has been announced by Clearco formerly Clearbanc, the world’s largest e-commerce investor with over £1.4B invested in over 6,500 businesses worldwide and crowdfunding platform Indiegogo. The $10 Million Indiegogo Creators Fund has been created by the companies to accelerate growth of crowdfunding campaigns. Geeky Gadgets

Organic infant formula company Bobbie is taking a hint from its staggering revenue results in 2021 to get out in front of its product pipeline. TechCrunch

Carbon Collective, a San Francisco-based investment advisor, is launching a 401(k) service to give workers at small companies a way to fund climate solutions via their retirement savings. Axios

SmithRx filled a $20 million Series B funding round led by leading Silicon Valley firm Venrock with support from Founders Fund, bringing the PBM startup’s valuation to $100 million, Venrock partner Bryan Roberts tells Axios exclusively. Axios

There’s a misconception that young people don’t need or want to talk about issues like fertility or family planning. By 2025, younger generations are going to make up a majority of our workforce and research confirms that employees consider changing jobs for better benefits. Tammy Sun, founder of Carrot, a global fertility and health care benefits provider shares the importance of accessible fertility benefits for all employees. Harvard Business Review

The pandemic changed how women work and live. As a company founded and led by moms, Bobbie set out to do things differently, and the pandemic reinforced cofounder Sarah Hardy’s ambition to reinvent support systems. Bizwomen

Carrot Fertility and Attn: Grace were featured in Fast Company’s 2022 list of The World’s Most Innovative Companies. Fast Company

Marco Polo co-founder and CEO Vlada Bortnik watches her home country under siege, both filled with fear and inspired by the strength of her people. Inc.

Social media platforms failed to tackle abuse. So Tracy Chou stepped in. TIME

Incredible Health CEO Dr. Iman Abuzeid on her childhood in Riyadh, immigrating to the U.S., and how her Sudanese grandfathers inspired her to become an entrepreneur. The Information

We were stuck inside for so long over the past two years that now when we go anywhere, we want it to be an experience. AnyRoad, an eight-year-old San Francisco-based company, wants to help brands make sure we have them, while also building stronger relationships with customers. TechCrunch

Epoch, the leading employee experience platform, today announces the close of $3.6 million in seed funding. Epoch

Two Black women share their journey to launch a toxic-free, plastic-free hair company for Black folks in a special guest edition of The Frontline. Atmos

A look at Runner, the investor’s newest bet (that she’s building herself). TechCrunch