Key Takeaways
- • Marklo, an AI marketing startup founded by Stella & Dot founder Jessica Herrin, raised $5 million in seed funding led by Forerunner Ventures, with participation from Freestyle Capital and angel investors including former Klaviyo and current Shopify leaders.
- • The Burlingame, California-based company is pre-revenue but has more than 100 brands in a pilot, including Away, Clare V., Monica + Andy, Maya Brenner and Latico Leathers, according to Herrin.
- • Marklo aggregates sales, inventory and marketing data from Shopify, Klaviyo, Attentive, Meta and Google to recommend which products brands should promote and to draft campaign plans, with humans approving all proposed work.
- • Marklo plans a monthly subscription fee plus usage-based charges, and is opening its software to the public ahead of the holiday shopping season after a free trial period.
- • The raise reflects investor concentration in AI-driven sales and marketing: sector funding reached $7.5 billion across 830 rounds through mid-September 2026, on pace to finish below 2025's $11.1 billion.
Summary
Jessica Herrin, who built Stella & Dot into a business that sold more than $2 billion in products through independent sellers, has raised $5 million in seed funding for Marklo, an AI marketing startup she launched in 2025, according to Crunchbase News, which reported the round exclusively. Forerunner led the round, joined by Freestyle Capital and angel investors including former Klaviyo and current Shopify leaders. The company, based in Burlingame, California, has an 11-person team that includes engineers who previously worked at Shopify and Google.
Marklo helps consumer brands plan campaigns using their sales, inventory and past marketing data. The software collects information from Shopify and services such as Klaviyo, Attentive, Meta and Google, places past launches and promotions on a calendar, and identifies which promotions drove sales. It suggests products to promote next, factoring in competitor promotions, social media trends and current inventory, and uses AI to draft campaign plans and organize tasks. Humans review and approve proposed work, and the company says it does not use customer data to train AI models. Reports can be delivered through Slack or email.
The company remains pre-revenue, but according to Herrin more than 100 brands are using its software in a pilot, including Away, Clare V., Monica + Andy, Maya Brenner and Latico Leathers. Latico Leathers reportedly used the software to plan a month of marketing in one day, a process that previously took most of a week across meetings, spreadsheets and five tools. Marklo plans to charge a monthly subscription with usage-based fees and is currently free to install and try. The company plans to use the new capital to hire engineers, develop the product and expand customer support.
Herrin's move follows the decline of Stella & Dot during COVID-19, when business dropped 80% almost overnight as in-home gatherings stopped. Rather than rebuild the model, she sold the businesses and brands separately and later bought back the Stella & Dot brand to test Marklo through a different channel. Herrin also returned to venture funding for Marklo, after building Stella & Dot largely on about $2 million in capital and a focus on profitability.
Kirsten Green, founder and managing partner of Forerunner Ventures, said Herrin's experience building Stella & Dot was central to the investment, describing her as "the customer that she's building for right now at every stage." Crunchbase News also reported that startups in sales, marketing and customer relationship management raised $7.5 billion across 830 rounds globally through mid-September 2026, with most going to AI-related companies, and that deal volume could fall for a fourth straight year.
Marklo helps consumer brands plan campaigns using their sales, inventory and past marketing data. The software collects information from Shopify and services such as Klaviyo, Attentive, Meta and Google, places past launches and promotions on a calendar, and identifies which promotions drove sales. It suggests products to promote next, factoring in competitor promotions, social media trends and current inventory, and uses AI to draft campaign plans and organize tasks. Humans review and approve proposed work, and the company says it does not use customer data to train AI models. Reports can be delivered through Slack or email.
The company remains pre-revenue, but according to Herrin more than 100 brands are using its software in a pilot, including Away, Clare V., Monica + Andy, Maya Brenner and Latico Leathers. Latico Leathers reportedly used the software to plan a month of marketing in one day, a process that previously took most of a week across meetings, spreadsheets and five tools. Marklo plans to charge a monthly subscription with usage-based fees and is currently free to install and try. The company plans to use the new capital to hire engineers, develop the product and expand customer support.
Herrin's move follows the decline of Stella & Dot during COVID-19, when business dropped 80% almost overnight as in-home gatherings stopped. Rather than rebuild the model, she sold the businesses and brands separately and later bought back the Stella & Dot brand to test Marklo through a different channel. Herrin also returned to venture funding for Marklo, after building Stella & Dot largely on about $2 million in capital and a focus on profitability.
Kirsten Green, founder and managing partner of Forerunner Ventures, said Herrin's experience building Stella & Dot was central to the investment, describing her as "the customer that she's building for right now at every stage." Crunchbase News also reported that startups in sales, marketing and customer relationship management raised $7.5 billion across 830 rounds globally through mid-September 2026, with most going to AI-related companies, and that deal volume could fall for a fourth straight year.
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