From tech giants Cisco and VMware to startups ModCloth and Lynda, married co-founders are everywhere.
By Angie Chang (Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Women 2.0)
We often joke about our “work husbands” and “work wives” but realized this week that we know a flurry of married startup co-founders.
Both Founder Friday hosts (Julia Hartz of Eventbrite and Susan Gregg Koger of ModCloth) speaking tonight in San Francisco are married to their co-founders. We celebrated SlideShare CEO Rashmi Sinha (married to her co-founder) as her $118 million acquisition by LinkedIn was announced yesterday.
So we asked ourselves how many powerhouse couples have started great companies. We found many good examples, not including engaged co-founders and co-founders who are dating.
Here are 11 female founders of tech startups who are literally married to their co-founder:
Adi Tatarko (Co-Founder & CEO, Houzz)
Houzz CEO Adi Tatarko launched what a New York Times article called one of the “largest resources for house porn” with her husband Alon Cohen.
Diane Greene (Co-Founder & Former CEO, VMware)
VMware founding CEO Diane Greene is married to her VMware co-founder Mendel Rosenblum. She took VMware public in 2007, and joined Google’s board of directors in January 2012.
Joselle Ho (Co-Founder & Creative Director, Miso Media)
Miso Media Creative Director Joselle Ho is married to her co-founder Aviv Grill. Miso Media is a Google Ventures-funded startup in Los Angeles. Follow her on Twitter at @joselleho.
Julia Hartz (Co-Founder & President, Eventbrite)
Eventbrite President Julia Hartz is married to her co-founder and Eventbrite CEO Kevin Hartz. Follow her on Twitter at @juliahartz.
Kass Lazerow (Co-Founder & COO, Buddy Media)
Buddy Media, founded by husband and wife team Michael and Kass Lazerow, was acquired by Salesforce for $689M in June 2012. Follow her on Twitter at @kasslazerow.
Lisa Sugar (Co-Founder & Editor-in-Chief, Sugar Inc)
Sugar Inc co-founder Lisa Sugar is married to her co-founder Brian Sugar. Founded in 2006 with PopSugar, Sugar is backed by Sequoia Capital and IVP. Follow her on Twitter at @lisasugar.
Lynda Weinman (Co-Founder & Executive Chair, Lynda)
Lynda Weinman started the eponymous company Lynda with her husband Bruce Heavin (now their Chief Creative Officer). Follow her on Twitter at @lyndaloo.
Prerna Gupta (Co-Founder & CEO, Khush)
Khush CEO Prerna Gupta is married to her co-founder and CTO Parag Chordia. Khush was acquired by Smule in an “eight-figure deal” last December. Follow her on Twitter at @prernagupta.
Rashmi Sinha (Co-Founder & CEO, SlideShare)
SlideShare CEO Rashmi Sinha is married to her co-founder and CTO Jon Boutelle. SlideShare was acquired by LinkedIn for $118M in May 2012. Follow her on Twitter at @rashmi.
Sandy Lerner (Co-Founder, Cisco)
Cisco co-founder Sandy Lerner was married to her co-founder Leonard Bosack. She went on to start Urban Decay, acquired by Moet-Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) in February 2000.
Susan Gregg Koger (Co-Founder & CCO, ModCloth)
ModCloth Chief Creative Officer Susan Gregg Koger is married to her college sweetheart and co-founder Eric Koger. Read Susan’s story and follow her on Twitter at @susangkoger.
Xochi Birch (Co-Founder & Board Member, Bebo)
Bebo co-founder Xochi Birch is married to her co-founder Michael Birch. Bebo was acquired by AOL for $850 million in March 2008. Follow her on Twitter at @xb.
Wendy Tan White (Co-Founder & CEO, Moonfruit
Moonfruit CEO Wendy Tan White started the company with her husband and co-founder Joe White. Follow her on Twitter at @wendytanwhite.
Know of more female founders of high-growth or high-tech companies who are literally married to their co-founder? Let us know in the comments below.
Photo credit: M.G. Kafkas on Flickr.
Angie Chang co-founded Women 2.0 in 2006. She currently serves as Editor-In-Chief of Women 2.0 and is working to mainstream women in high-growth, high-tech entrepreneurship. Previously, Angie held roles in product management and web UI design. In 2008, Angie launched Bay Area Girl Geek Dinners, asking that guys come as the “+1” for once. Angie holds a B.A. in English and Social Welfare from UC Berkeley. Follow her on Twitter at @thisgirlangie.
