'We want Brixton to be a black Silicon Valley'

In the heart of Brixton Village sit three young black entrepreneurs with a vision: to turn their home into a black Silicon Valley.

Born and bred in south London, Karl, Cyril and Yvonne are the founders of Black Seed, which claims to be the first venture capital firm in Europe that only invests in and supports black-owned businesses.

"You are more likely to contract skin cancer than receive funding for your business as a black founder in the UK," Yvonne tells me when I meet the trio at their Brixton office.

And it was this powerful statistic, along with the murder of George Floyd in 2020, that spurred these entrepreneurs into wanting to make a change.

Having raised over £5m since the firm began in 2021, Black Seed plans to start investing in 30 black-led start-ups by 2026.

"Our vision is to make Brixton the home of black tech, we want to be the bridge between the City and the black founder community," say the three entrepreneurs.

But it has not been an easy journey for the founders to get to where they are today.

I meet co-founder Karl Lokko, 33, at the estate he grew up on when he was younger.

"When I was 12 years old I witnessed someone being shot for the first time and as a result I ended up getting heavily involved in gangs and subscribed to that way of living," he explains.

Karl managed to turn his life around and "from the age of 18 I began denouncing gangsterism and I was fortunate to get out".

He was keen to give back to his community and began working as a consultant to local government and special adviser to Prince Harry.

It wasn't until he met his now co-founder Cyril Lutterodt, 29, that he realised he could help black entrepreneurs on a larger scale.

"Cyril really brought to life the reality of what it is like for a black entrepreneur in the UK trying to raise money for their company," he says.

Karl got to know Cyril while the 29-year-old was trying to find investors for his own tech business. Cyril had pitched to over 100 investors and was unable to secure any funding.

Having faced so many rejections, he tells me how difficult it was to find funding.

"I had to deal with a lot of no's and eventually I realised I was not the only black entrepreneur finding it hard to grow my business," he says.

"The founders we work with now need three things: capital, connections and access. We work to provide all of those things."

Talking to the founders, it's clear that the scope of Black Seed goes far beyond just investing in companies - it's about community too.

"There are certain challenges that black entrepreneurs face that their peers don't. We speak to many start-up founders who have no mentor or network of support," says Yvonne.

The 30-year-old left her full time job in finance a few years ago to work with Black Seed full time.

"I was tired of angrily protesting and I wanted to make a difference," she explains.

"I feel super privileged to set up a fund in the heart of Brixton and give back to the community that essentially raised me."

Up to now Black Seed has been hosting regular community events, from fireside panels with successful entrepreneurs to networking dinners. The trio plan to continue these in addition to making investments.

"We've worked with around 2,500 to 3,000 companies so far, providing them with anything from mentoring, to networking opportunities, to investment," Yvonne says.

One of the companies that caught the eye of Black Seed is a mother and daughter duo who run an online fashion and wellness brand.

Caliya and Rose Sterling from Ealing, west London, set up The Pro Box seven years ago and have been receiving support from the entrepreneurs.

Rose says Black Seed has "helped us expand our network and we've been able to meet up with other entrepreneurs to share ideas.

"They have validated who we are as founders and allowed us to build more conviction around our proposition.

"It's super challenging to get funding for your business in the UK and being connected to Black Seed has opened so many doors for us."