August 2nd 2023.
Luke Cooper, a serial entrepreneur and mergers and acquisitions lawyer, wanted to share his knowledge and experience with fellow business owners. He started his own venture capital firm, Latimer Ventures, to do just that. Named after African American inventor, Lewis Latimer, Cooper's firm provides early-stage, post-seed investments in enterprise tech startups.
Cooper noticed the success rate of Black founders was higher than non-Black founders and he wanted to give small-owned businesses the potential they needed. As he put it, "Within the enterprise technology, Black founders are over-performing—1 in 3 is getting Series A funding vs. 1 in 15 overall." He was determined to make a difference and provide capital and support to underserved communities.
Cooper has had his own share of success in the business world. He was one of the co-founders of Caldwell Technology Solutions, a cybersecurity software business, in 2006. During his time at the company, Cooper oversaw strategic partnerships, business development, and mergers & acquisitions. The company was sold for close to $55 million. After dropping his phone on a bus, Cooper then went on to create Fixt, a SaaS-based mobile device repair app. This too was bought by Assurant in 2020.
With his own firm, Cooper has been successful. He reached his fundraising goal of $50 million in November 2022, with $20 million in funds. He has invested $2 million in four companies— Pienso, AI Squared, Meter Feeder, and CyDeploy. Cooper is confident that his investments will lead to the success of Black entrepreneurs and provide much needed capital to underserved communities.
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