Working moms are building community beyond parenting
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A Breadwinners dinner on March 14, 2026, in Austin, Texas. Photo: MadHouse Photo
A new type of community is emerging for working moms who want to connect with each other beyond parenting and their careers.
Why it matters: Many women are simultaneously managing households, careers and social lives — and searching for community with others navigating a similar reality.
Zoom in: New groups with nationwide reach are creating a template for how working parents can gather and be seen beyond their job titles or kids' schedules.
- The Breadwinners, launched in 2025 by tech executive Alexis Contos, brings together high-achieving, working women for curated dinners across multiple cities.
- Its goal it to replace the isolation and guilt that working moms often feel with confidence and community, Contos says.
- The dinners offer a space where women can talk about "the hard things" with people who understand them, she says.
Meanwhile, a California-based group, momsIRL, organizes "early-bird" dance parties where moms can let loose in a setting that doesn't revolve around their kids.
- The events — drawing 150–250 attendees each — are neighborhood-based, so connections can outlast the dance floor.
- By hosting recurring events in the same neighborhoods, momsIRL aims to build "real friendships and durable community," says momsIRL leader and Axios alum Erica Winograd.
- The group has been active across LA and is hoping to expand to new regions.
Between the lines: These organizations tap into a deeper shift in how women see motherhood, with many working mothers rejecting the idea that parenting should eclipse every other part of who they are.
- "Modern motherhood is really challenging. And suddenly women feel like they have the license to ask: What about me? I want to have fun too," says Winograd.
- "The idea of giving women a space to remember who they are — without trying to teach or fix them — is what resonates," she says.
Zoom out: Working mothers are an increasingly powerful demographic.
- 4 in 10 working moms are the primary breadwinners in their households.
- Collectively, working moms control 85% of consumer spending and roughly a third of all retail financial assets across the U.S. and Europe.
- More mothers are working now than before the 2020 pandemic, due in part to the rise of remote and hybrid work.
The bottom line: "We're trying to get moms out of the chat, off their phones and back into real-life friendships," says momsIRL founder Jordyn Lundy.
Go deeper: Learn more about momsIRL and The Breadwinners. ... Share this story.
