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Early-stage venture fund has tapped , the former founder of a company it backed eight years ago, to serve as general partner of the Utah-based firm. She will 鈥渟pearhead鈥� its Bay Area 鈥渆fforts,鈥� according to the firm.

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Stern founded San Francisco-based , a direct-to-consumer brand aimed at helping millennials shop for special occasions, in 2011. She ended up her company to. in 2016. After serving on the executive team there for just over a year, Stern took some time off to reflect before becoming a peer mentor to other founders. But she soon realized that was just not enough.

鈥淎fter being a CEO for eight years with every minute accounted for and squeezing in 鈥榓dvice calls鈥� with other founders on a 45 minute ride to and from the airport, I was eager to give more of my time the way others had for me,鈥� she told 附近上门 News. 鈥淭his quickly turned into more, as I got absorbed in the startup ecosystem in a new way: as an angel investor and advisor to early stage startups. I was experimenting with the role of coach, not player, and it was a big shift for me after 15 years as an operator.鈥�

At Peterson, Stern will focus on investing in companies in the consumer and enterprise sectors. She鈥檒l also give Utah-based Peterson an on-the-ground presence 鈥� its first 鈥� in San Francisco. Stern believes her perspective as a former founder will help her be a better investor as she is able to be more empathetic and humble.

鈥淎t some base level because I鈥檝e been there, I can make founders feel seen, heard and supported, which on a road that can sometimes feel very lonely, is very important,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 have seen and experienced a lot of the bumps, twists and turns that happen at different stages from finding product-market fit, to navigating a large enterprise – this doesn鈥檛 mean I know the answers but it does mean hopefully that I can ask some really good questions to help founders get to their answer to a challenge or big decision.鈥�

, general partner at Peterson Ventures, agrees, saying Stern鈥檚 ability to connect to founders on a personal level and 鈥渙bsession with building products, brands and experiences with the end consumer in mind鈥� made her a good fit for the firm.

鈥淎s a former CEO, Ilana has seen firsthand how we work, and she knows what it鈥檚 like to go from startup to exit,鈥� he said.

Capell added that Stern鈥檚 appointment 鈥渨as a long time in the making, sort of a 10-year interview.鈥� Stern was a student of (the firm鈥檚 founder) at Stanford University鈥檚 Graduate School of Business and then the firm was an early investor in Weddington Way.

Peterson learned Stern was exploring venture after the firm got reference calls from some Bay Area funds she was talking to.

鈥淲hen we talked to her and learned that she was serious about making the move from founder to VC, we jumped on it and Ilana reciprocated,鈥� he added. In Stern, he said, the firm 鈥渉ad a foundation of mutual trust and respect built over years going through the ups and downs of the startup journey together.鈥�

Background

As an individual investor and advisor, Stern backed a number of companies that she said span the next generation of consumer brands and tech as well as the next generation of B2B businesses that will power them, something she described as 鈥渃ommerce infrastructure.鈥�

Those companies include , , , The Guild, , and

Salt Lake City-based Peterson Ventures鈥� portfolio consists of almost 100 companies and has over $130 million in assets under management. It focuses exclusively on early-stage investing into consumer and enterprise startups, typically investing $750,000 to $1.5 million while also reserving follow-on capital to support future growth.

Consumer portfolio investments include brands such as, and .聽 Enterprise investments include SaaS platforms like Lucid and , which the firm believes 鈥渁re disrupting the future of work with web-based collaboration tools.鈥�

Peterson Ventures is part of the, an independent investment management firm that has over $650 million in assets under management.

, founder & CEO at Peterson Ventures portfolio company , believes Peterson Ventures is unique in that it was founded by a business school professor, not by the 鈥渢ypical鈥� venture capitalist.

鈥淛oel Peterson has taught and coached entrepreneurs as a Stanford professor for decades, and that spirit of learning and mentoring is deeply rooted in the culture and mission of his venture firm,鈥� he said. 鈥淕iven that spirit, it鈥檚 not surprising that Ilana, their newest partner, is one of Joels鈥檚 former students, a former CEO backed by Joel, and someone who is equally passionate about sharing her success with the next generation of entrepreneurs.鈥�

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