# Hayley Barna

> Hayley Barna is a General Partner at First Round Capital and co-founder of Birchbox, the subscription beauty pioneer that invented an entirely new retail category. After growing Birchbox from a Harvard Business School idea to a 200-person company with over a million monthly subscribers, she joined First Round Capital in 2016 as its first female partner and was promoted to General Partner in 2017. She brings a rare founder-operator lens to early-stage investing, with a portfolio spanning healthcare, consumer, and commerce companies including Alma, Thirty Madison, Studs, Mirror, and Clare. A finalist in the Intel Science Talent Search who once worked at IBM's research lab at age 16, Barna is equal parts scientist, builder, and storyteller - one of the most distinctive investor voices in New York's startup ecosystem.

- **Role:** General Partner at First Round Capital
- **Organizations:** First Round Capital, Birchbox, All Raise, Society for Science, RAB Lighting, Madison Reed, Collective Retreats
- **From:** New Jersey, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BA Economics (magna cum laude), Harvard University, MBA, Harvard Business School, Research Employee (age 16), IBM Research Center, Yorktown NY
- **Known for:** Co-founded Birchbox (2010), pioneering the subscription commerce category, Grew Birchbox to 1M+ monthly subscribers and 200+ employees, First female partner at First Round Capital (2016)

## Career timeline

- **2001** — Intel Science Talent Search finalist; worked at IBM Research Center at age 16; published in international science journal
- **2005** — Graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University with BA in Economics
- **2005-2008** — Strategy consultant at Bain & Company, New York; worked at Christie's Hong Kong in strategy operations
- **2008-2010** — MBA at Harvard Business School; met co-founder Katia Beauchamp
- **2010** — Co-founded Birchbox with Katia Beauchamp; launched subscription beauty box service
- **2010-2015** — Co-CEO of Birchbox; grew company to 200+ employees, 1M+ monthly subscribers, raised $70M+ in VC
- **2015** — Stepped back from day-to-day Birchbox operations; remained on board of directors
- **2016** — Joined First Round Capital as Partner and first female partner; led New York office
- **2017** — Promoted to General Partner at First Round Capital - first female GP in firm's history
- **2018-present** — Active investments in Alma, Thirty Madison, Studs, Mirror, Clare, Caper, Anvyl, CrowdJustice, Keeps, Live Tinted
- **2025** — Introduced Hall of Fame inductees at NYC Tech Awards

## Achievements

- Co-founded Birchbox (2010), pioneering the subscription commerce category
- Grew Birchbox to 1M+ monthly subscribers and 200+ employees
- First female partner at First Round Capital (2016)
- First female General Partner at First Round Capital (2017)
- Intel Science Talent Search Finalist (2001)
- Published in international science research journal in high school
- Fortune '40 Under 40'
- Fast Company 'Most Creative People in Business'
- Ad Age 'Women to Watch'
- Forbes Women's Summit 2013 Leadership Award (shared with Katia Beauchamp)
- Founding member of All Raise, supporting female founders and funders
- Treasurer of the Board of Trustees at Society for Science

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Led investment in Live Tinted Series A-III round
- **2024-12** — Portfolio company Love Stories TV had an exit
- **2025** — Introduced Hall of Fame inductees at NYC Tech Awards 2025

## Links

- Website: https://firstround.com/team/investing/hayley-barna
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/hbarna
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/hayleybay
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hayleybay/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/firstroundcapital

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/hayley-barna
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-09