\u201cWhat we noticed was that local founders here were being overlooked, not because their ideas weren\u2019t strong, but because they didn\u2019t \u2018look the part\u2019 compared to founders on the coasts.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s how Kwamena Aidoo describes the problem Corridor Ventures set out to solve when it launched in New Orleans in 2022. The young investment firm focuses on backing promising startups in the South at the very earliest stages, when raising money is often toughest.<\/p>\n
Aidoo, who built a career in finance and private equity, teamed up with Kelli Saulny, a New Orleans native with deep roots in entrepreneurship and nonprofit support. Saulny helped grow Carol\u2019s Daughter, the beauty brand later acquired by L\u2019Or\u00e9al, and worked at Camelback Ventures, which supported women and minority founders. Aidoo co-founded Cannon Capital, a $100 million fund, and earlier worked at major investment firms in New York.<\/p>\n
Together, they created Corridor Ventures to bridge the funding gap in the region. The firm typically invests up to $500,000 in fields like health, climate and technology, while also offering hands-on guidance and connections to help founders succeed.<\/p>\n
In this week’s Talking Business, Saulny and Aidoo discuss their strategy, the challenges they see for Southern entrepreneurs, and what it means to build a venture firm in New Orleans.<\/p>\n
The following has been edited for clarity and length.<\/p>\n
Why base Corridor in New Orleans?<\/p>\n
Aidoo: All four of us who launched the firm \u2014 Kelli and me, along with partners Jarrett Cohen and Adrian Mendez \u2014 are from New Orleans or the South. We built careers elsewhere, then came back. What we noticed was that founders here were being overlooked, not because their ideas lacked promise, but because they didn\u2019t \u201clook the part\u201d compared with entrepreneurs on the coasts. Investors often chase a familiar mold \u2014 the next Zuckerberg, for example \u2014 rather than evaluating each founder on their own merits.<\/p>\n
When I returned in 2018, I started coaching founders, often through Kelli\u2019s connections at Camelback. The talent was clear. The lack of capital was, too. That gap led directly to starting Corridor.<\/p>\n
Kelli, what did you see on the ground when you worked with Camelback?<\/p>\n
Saulny: I had spent years in New York, helping build a company that eventually sold to L\u2019Or\u00e9al. So I knew what capital and networks could do for a young business. Coming home, I saw founders with terrific ideas tackling big issues \u2014 whether in hospitality, culture, or water management. But too often, their work stalled because they didn\u2019t have the money or the relationships to take the next step.<\/p>\n
One strength of Southern entrepreneurs is that they\u2019re close to the problems they\u2019re solving. That gives them insight and urgency. We wanted to provide the missing piece: funding, along with practical guidance.<\/p>\n
How has fundraising gone since you launched?<\/p>\n
Aidoo: We didn\u2019t rush. In 2022, we spent time traveling the South \u2014 Atlanta, Raleigh-Durham, Birmingham, Tampa \u2014 testing our theory that overlooked founders were everywhere. By 2023, we raised about $2 million from regional banks, family offices and individual investors, and made our first five investments, including two in New Orleans.<\/p>\n
This year, we\u2019ve been raising a $30 million flagship fund and have closed about $3.5 million so far, including some institutional backing.<\/p>\n
Our local portfolio includes Ingest, a restaurant technology company that\u2019s grown from under $300,000 in annual revenue to more than $2.5 million, and Obatala Sciences, which develops alternatives to animal testing. Those companies show the potential here when capital meets talent.<\/p>\n
Some local incubators have been criticized for a lack of diversity. What\u2019s Corridor\u2019s perspective?<\/p>\n
Saulny: I can\u2019t speak for every group, but for us, diversity is a natural outcome of where we operate and who we are. Our networks are broad, so we see a wider range of founders. That makes our portfolio more reflective of the South.<\/p>\n
Aidoo: Exactly. We don\u2019t have a mandate around race or gender, but we also don\u2019t fall into the trap of backing the same kind of founder over and over. That\u2019s both a responsibility and an advantage.<\/p>\n
What more could New Orleans and Louisiana do to support this ecosystem?<\/p>\n
Aidoo: Collaboration is critical. I\u2019m encouraged to see groups like Idea Village, Momentum Fund and Nexus Louisiana beginning to work together. But we also need more local capital at the table. Too much wealth here sits on the sidelines, flowing into private deals instead of startups. If more of that money supported early-stage companies, we\u2019d build a stronger funding pipeline.<\/p>\n
Saulny: And we need to define innovation on our own terms. New Orleans doesn\u2019t need to mimic Silicon Valley. We should build on our strengths \u2014 hospitality, water management, health \u2014 and create a vision that\u2019s authentic and globally relevant. That\u2019s how the city finds its stride.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cWhat we noticed was that local founders here were being overlooked, not because their ideas weren\u2019t strong, but…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50711,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[72,191,22522,61,60],"class_list":{"0":"post-50710","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entrepreneurship","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-entrepreneurship","10":"tag-hardwall","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50710","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50710"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50710\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50710"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50710"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50710"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}