Jessica Herrin, founder of Stella & Dot, has raised $5 million in seed funding for her new AI marketing startup, Marklo, the company confirmed. The Burlingame, California-based startup, launched in 2025, helps consumer brands plan marketing campaigns by analyzing sales, inventory, and past marketing data. Marklo is opening its software to the public ahead of the holiday shopping season.
The funding round was led by Forerunner, with participation from Freestyle Capital and angel investors including former Klaviyo and current Shopify leaders, according to news.crunchbase.com. Marklo’s software identifies which promotions drove sales, suggests products to promote next, drafts campaign briefs using AI, and organizes marketing tasks. Herrin said more than 100 brands, including Away, Clare V., Monica + Andy, Maya Brenner, and Latico Leathers, are currently piloting the software.
Marklo addresses marketing challenges Herrin encountered during her time building Stella & Dot, a company that sold over $2 billion in products through independent sellers. The startup’s AI-driven approach to campaign planning aims to improve efficiency and decision-making for consumer brands. While still pre-revenue, Marklo’s early adoption by notable brands highlights growing demand for AI tools in retail marketing, a sector seeing increased investment in automation and data-driven solutions.
Marklo plans to use the new funding to hire engineers, enhance its product, and expand customer support, according to Herrin. The company’s launch ahead of the holiday shopping season positions it to capitalize on increased marketing activity during this critical retail period.