“Entrepreneurship is very lonely, very difficult.”
When you are called to be a beacon for others, you either choose to shine luminously or dim your radiance. Brian and Candice Brackeen have marked themselves as immovable pillars—lightships— to stand in the gap and usher in a new wave of entrepreneurship. Through their leadership, the two have vigorously bolstered access to sustainable capital for BIPOC and women founders. Fully understanding their respective entry points to business and ownership, they have developed a system that generates a sizable output economically and socially.
“Entrepreneurship, as anyone can tell you, is very lonely, very difficult. You go home and talk to your family, but they don’t really have the answer you need. It’s unlike other parts of life so where do you get that help and support? We want to provide that for women and minority founders to come this way [into entrepreneurship] safely,” expressed Brian Brackeen.
While many of Tulsa’s brightest entrepreneurs have benefitted from the brainchild that is the Brackeen’s Lightship Capital, this impact has emanated outward to the regions of Cincinnati and Miami, to name a few. Furthermore, the locations where the entity has the most reach are integral to its origin story. In tandem with their mission of cementing equity in the venture capital space, this dynamic duo is encouraging folks who have been historically disenfranchised within the lanes of business to go back, reclaim what’s theirs, and prosper.
Every great stanchion of industry has a name that encapsulates its mission. Similar to the varying ways in which Lightship Capital provides support, its name shares a manifold of meanings. By definition, a lightship is a light-emitting structure planted on boats in water. Moved by the lighthouses that served as a landmark for enslaved African Americans looking to escape slave states, the company has desired to be a guiding light for those looking for direction in the often tumultuous bay of business.
It was in the time before Brian and Candice knew each other that would construct their formidable foundation, allowing them to be a force for eminence for others. Brian, a Cleveland-born, Philly-raised tech executive who substantially sold his facial recognition software company knew there were more opportunities and lessons to be learned from the successes of BIPOC businesses nationwide. This made for sublime alignment—and a wonderful marriage— upon meeting Candice. She was another entrepreneur who co-organized a collective of women founders after being frustrated with the lack of resources available and recognizing the innate power in numbers.
After meeting at Black Tech Week, which is now acquired under the Lightship Capital umbrella, they both have been moved through their lived experience as Black business owners to pay it forward and share the wealth, literally and figuratively. Since its inception, Lightship Capital has been a refuge for businesses that have found themselves landlocked and unable to make proper progress. Often, these barriers—namely discrimination, systemic debt, and developmental suppression— are caused due to the economic challenges of withstanding the entrepreneurial landscape.
Through these aspects, the company has been able to successfully work toward the reversal of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade’s detriments through economic means. With a tailor-made ecosystem that Lightship has curated through a robust portfolio of subsidiary funds, events hosting over 10,000 people, and a non-profit serving 16 cities, the Brackeens have been at the forefront of aiding a fleet of businesses aiming to thrive in their respective fields.
As if boasting a fortitudinous reserve of powerhouse resources wasn’t enough, their Lightship Venture Capital Fund assesses 2,000 BIPOC companies yearly whereas their Lightship Anchor Fund is valued at $2 billion with consistent support from an archive of “institutional investors.” The magnitude of what Lightship is achieving in the venture capital world is extensive.
While the experiences of those striving for such success reflect the country’s ideologies, it seems like an odd occurrence —even today— for other folks to seek out derailing organizations trying to help communities obtain a piece of the pie. In early 2023, the Fearless Fund, a fellow venture capital organization, was sued in light of the Supreme Court decision to dissuade diversity and equity initiatives by reversing affirmative action.
“This is the difference between good and evil.”
Those looking to diversify this arena, like the Brackeens and those at Lightship Capital, have remained determined to see this goal through. “We’re devastated by what’s going on but not deterred. We’re involved with a number of committees and groups working on political action committees and funds to aid with paying the legal bills… but beyond the direct work, the person who had the audacity to sue Fearless Fund, as a white male, is eligible for 99.6% of all venture capital. He can’t let these sisters have their 0.4%? This isn’t a case of a misunderstanding or differences in political or financial opinion. This is the difference between good and evil,” expressed Brian.
It doesn’t require much to be a “boss” nonetheless it takes a raging luminosity to be eminently a courageous leader. Called into action and empowered to persevere for the sake of collective good, the Brackeens’ commitment to finding luster within the minority entrepreneurial community is an example that will illuminate the way for generations to come.
▪️ WORDS BY Savannah M. taylor | PHOTOS BY AARON CONWAY
Featured in Issue No. 5
For our second “Everywhere” issue, we meet Black entrepreneurs who are creating spaces for their communities. Each founder is cultivating an environment to fill a gap in their hometown that is reverberating around the world.
