Sprout Family raises $1.7 million pre-seed round to make fertility benefits more accessible in Canada
Summary
Toronto-based Sprout Family startup has closed a $1.7-million CAD pre-seed round as it looks to increase the accessibility of fertility, surrogacy, and adoption care to Canadians.The all-equity round, which closed this past October, was led by StandUp Ventures with participation from Blue Collective, MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, The51, Boon Fund, and some undisclosed Canadian angel investors.Founded in 2023 by CEO Jackie Hanson and COO Suzanne Mason, Sprouts platform helps employers include comprehensive fertility, surrogacy, and adoption benefits in their health plans. Sprout sells its access to its platform to human resources and benefits teams, which in turn provide access to their employee members.The platform provides employees with educational family planning resources, a network of fertility clinics and surrogacy agencies, and unlimited telehealth appointments with specialists. Businesses can also add Sprout Pay to their package, which provides financial benefits to cover expenses related to fertility treatments, medications, surrogacy, and adoption.Although paying a surrogate or paying a company to arrange surrogacy services is illegal in Canada under the Assisted Human Reproduction Act, intended parents have to cover many costs related to surrogacy, such as for medications, travel, and non-covered medical services. Hanson told BetaKit in an email statement that Sprout helps its members navigate the complexities of both Canadian and international surrogacy, including process mapping, connection to legal support, and guidance on agency selection.We help our members choose between domestic and international options based on whats best for them and their goals, Hanson said.According to the World Health Organization, an estimated one in six people worldwide experience infertility on average. While there are avenues to achieve conception despite fertility issues, many treatments and medications are very costly and are not covered by most Canadian employers.Sprout will use its fresh capital to bolster its go-to-market efforts, expanding partnerships with insurers, benefits brokers, and employers, Hanson told BetaKit, adding that Sprout will also work on improving its platform with a strong focus on personalization and information transparency.We recognize that every path to parenthood is unique, and were committed to ensuring that everyone who needs supportwhether for fertility treatments, surrogacy, egg freezing, adoption, or other family-building optionshas access to the right resources and care, Hanson said.The company currently has five full-time employees, a team it grew soon after the round closed, and five part-time contractors.