Katie Stanton is on a quest for a more inclusive entrepreneurial landscape

Katie Jacobs Stanton is the founder of Moxxie Ventures and a hero for women in entrepreneurship, but one thing people may not know is that she can play the bass and knows every word to “The Message” by Grandmaster Flash. 

In a country where women are still far from being treated equally in the business world to men, Stanton’s story can be one of inspiration for female students at CU boulder interested in a future in business. 

Moxxie, founded in 2019, is an early-stage investment company that invests in technology solutions for modern-day problems. Stanton and her team are dedicated to investing in companies they see drive and potential in, no matter what background the founder is from. The company is changing the way that women and people of color are funded and represented as entrepreneurs in the tech industry. 

Women have historically held significantly less equity in companies compared to men. In a study Stanton did with Carta, she found that women only hold 9% of the total available equity in the country.  

“Not even double digits. That’s insane,” Stanton said. “There’s just so much disparity in the industry, so we all have to do what we can to help improve it.” 

At CU Boulder, The Leeds School of Business has a small female representation, averaging out at 26% female, and 74% male in the 2023 graduating class according to Leed’s class profile. 

Leeds sophomore Aubrey Mantey said seeing female examples like Stanton is important to keep her motivated.

“It is not super common to see women in CEO positions due to the extreme gender inequality in most business workplaces,” Mantey said. “Knowing this, has helped me focus on my studies by empowering me in such a male-driven epicenter. Seeing women in business positions has also allowed me to continue on my path of a finance career, especially in such a heavily male-influenced class.”

Stanton wasn’t always on track to fall into the business career that she is in now. As a child, she wanted to be a pilot, and she took several jobs in her 20s in investment banking that weren’t a good fit.

Stanton is from a small town in New York called Peekskill and grew up with a single mom. Struggling for money in her childhood made her gain responsibility quicker than most. 

“I would basically take care of my little brother and get him ready for school every day, clean the house, and do all these things,” said Stanton. “I think one of the lessons I learned there is just the importance of hard work. Also seeing what it’s like to not be financially stable, and never want to struggle again.” 

Stanton attended Rhodes College, a small liberal arts school in Tennessee. She spent two separate semesters abroad in Paris and Israel, learning more about the world and what she needed to do to make a change. She started internships in nonprofit work, then realized there was a way she could make a bigger impact.  

“I took a soulless horrible job working as an investment banker because I knew that money mattered, and I knew that any of these non-profit organizations need backers or donors and I really needed to understand how financial markets work,” she said. “But also, I needed to pay off my student loans.” 

Although Stanton learned valuable information about the financial industry, she knew it wasn’t a long-term job for her. Sitting on a plane for a work trip, the passenger sitting next to her asked what she did for a living, and as Stanton described her job she realized it was time for a change. 

The next day she started searching for a new job.

“There were these moments like this where I realized I needed to be a lot more proactive about what my career would be,” said Stanton, “And you just have to go after it and be very persistent.”

After a few years in the tech industry and other prominent jobs, Stanton knew once again that she could be doing more in her industry. After experiencing firsthand what it was like to be a woman in the finance and tech industry, she started a seed-level venture capitalist company called Moxxie. 

“There’s a lot of sexism, racism, and also ageism in the business. I remember when I was starting Moxxie, this guy who I thought was my friend said, ‘well, you should consider your age. Are you too old for this?’ What are you talking about? You would never tell a guy that,” Stanton recalled. 

At CU Boulder, The Leeds School of Business has a weak female representation, averaging out at 26% female, 74% male in the 2023 graduating class according to the school’s class profile. 

Stanton thinks one way that the industry can overcome this bias is through funding a diverse set of founders and giving minority groups more representation in the industry. 

“I think it starts with just getting funded. There is a lot of bias against female founders that are completely unjustified,” Stanton added. “And it’s a vicious kind of cycle because the bias often happens when investors ask things like ‘ Where do you live? Where did you go to college? Where did you grow up?’ So that’s already going to narrow down to a certain cohort of people.” 

For the female students at CU, Stanton recommends surrounding yourself with other students with similar interests and ambitions, as well as trying as much as you can to earn respect from your male peers from a young age. 

Stanton’s coworker of 15 years and former Twitter executive Alex Roetter spoke on her intelligence to Moxxie’s team. 

“Katie has built not only an amazing career as an operator and executive but now, as the founder of a leading seed-stage venture capital firm,” Roetter said. “Not only that, she’s forthright, always optimizing for the big picture, extremely intelligent, hard-working, and she lifts everyone around her up and helps them to be their best. Any team is better if Katie is a part of it.” 

With such a successful and busy work life, Stanton takes time off every so often to relax and rewind. She spends her time getting as much work done as possible and then travels on longer breaks to rejuvenate. 

Stanton’s daughter and college student in marketing, Caleigh Stanton, spoke to me about how her mother constantly showed up for her whenever she could. When Caleigh Stanton was eight years old, her mom let her sell her girl scout cookies in the Twitter office, selling out all of her cookies to top executives with her mom right by her side.

“While most eight-year-old girl scouts were selling cookies with cash, I was using an iPad and the Square app. I can definitely say I sold the most girl scout cookies in my troop that year because of my mom,” said Caleigh Stanton. 

Caleigh Stanton also mentioned how her mom has constantly shown up for marginalized communities, for example starting GoFundMe campaigns for the Haiti crisis, survivors of sexual assault, and even sending tablets to hospitals during COVID-19 so loved ones could talk to those affected by the virus.

“These are just a few amazing things she has done to help those struggling in their communities, and I am so inspired to make a change in the world, just like her,” Caleigh Stanton said.

Katie Stanton said her biggest advice for female business students at CU early into their careers is to try to work for people that align with your personal values. She also recommends making sure that the product or service you are selling is something you can stand behind. And lastly, if you can make an impact in the world with your position. 

At CU Boulder, women who are interested in becoming part of the larger community of female entrepreneurs and business owners can participate in programs like The Leeds Women’s Empowerment Initiative or clubs like The Women in Business Club. 

Although there is still a significant amount of progress that must be made before the finance and technology industries are equitable for women, people like Katie Stanton are paving the way for a more inclusive environment with each decision that is made. Companies like Moxxie are driving forward a new narrative of inclusion and equality in the technology and investment industry.