Springbank Collective, a syndicate originally established in 2019, has recently announced the closing of a $35M fund to serve the long-overlooked needs of women and working families. With a notable lineup of investors, including Union Square Ventures, Foundry Group, Bank of America, AIG, Investinor, Stardust Equity, and JP Morgan, Springbank is set to make an impact on underserved sectors.
Springbank‘s investment strategy revolves around tackling historically undervalued areas, recognizing that they are not merely “women’s issues,” but crucial components of our society and economy. The fund will focus on remote work, caregiving, women’s health, and family financial wellness, aiming to bring about transformative change in these domains.
In a recent blog post announcing the successful closing of the fund Springbank Founding Partners Courtney Leimkuhler, Elana Berkowitz, and Jen Koss share: “We believe in the same way that the world is coming to terms with the real costs of having built an economy addicted to artificially cheap fossil fuels, we’re fast approaching a reckoning that our economy is addicted to the artificially cheap labor of women and caregivers. We call this the trillion dollar opportunity hiding in plain sight and break it into three thematic categories: Career, Care, and Consumer.”
The Career theme targets the enhancement of women’s workforce participation, particularly in sectors like nursing and education where women are predominant. Springbank argues that equating women’s labor force participation with men’s could bring an additional seven million workers into the U.S. workforce.
The second focus, Care, underscores the overlooked $640 billion care economy. With working-age women nine times more likely to be out of the workforce due to caregiving, Springbank sees a significant opportunity to improve women’s labor force participation through better care infrastructure.
The final theme, Consumer, emphasizes the increasing control women have over U.S. household financial assets, expected to triple by 2030. Springbank sees a golden opportunity to promote healthier and sustainable household spending in vital areas such as food and healthcare.
By addressing these underserved sectors, Springbank aims to unlock considerable economic potential, signaling a shift in traditional investment focus. Springbank Collective has invested in 32 companies so far. Portfolio companies include Wellthy, Guaranteed, Little Otter, and Summer Health.
