Profile: Calvin Cooper
Meet Calvin Cooper. Co-Founder and CEO of Rhove.
Name: Calvin Cooper
Job: Co-Founder and CEO, Rhove
City: Columbus
Hometown: Columbus
Q: What do you do at Rhove?
Rhove turns renters into owners. We enable renters to own a stake in their apartment, and connect them with communities that contribute to their financial well-being.
We launched Rentership this summer, a first of its kind solution that turns every renter into a stakeholder. Every resident living at a property offering Rentership is granted a stake in their building. Each stake entitles holders to cash distributions and a fractional stake in the sale value of the property. Residents can buy a larger stake in their property on their own terms. Renters that own a stake can buy more, hold and earn distributions, or sell anytime using the Rhove app.
This is a new category that improves on the traditional choice between renting and homeownership. For more information visit our website or download the Rhove app from the Google Play or Apple App store. (Editor's Note: Fast Company recently covered the launch of Rentership. More on that here.)
Q: What’s a problem that you are working to solve?
The millennial generation has zero net real estate wealth. Also, young people are expected to spend over $200,000 in lifetime rent with no financial return. Moreover, systemic inequality in housing has created a wealth gap in America. We are addressing these issues by turning every renter into an owner.
Further, expanding ownership in communities is more than an economic imperative. Ownership expands our sense of mutual accountability and social responsibility. We are changing what it means to be a renter or an owner, which has the potential to really transform society.
Q: What’s a lesson you’ve learned that has helped shaped your work?
Abandon bad ideas quickly. Problem-first thinking is critical.
Too often, entrepreneurs are in the business of selling ideas. That’s why they end up pushing a boulder up hill trying to convince buyers to purchase their product. However, many of the entrepreneurs that are able to repeat success are not in the business of selling ideas. Instead, they sell problems. They spend time finding, defining, understanding and addressing a big and compelling problem space. Seeing oneself as a problem solver instead of an entrepreneur changes the way you approach a market and all of the agents in the market. This opens up so many opportunities in product development to really understand people and build solutions that fill their most urgent needs. This mindset also makes it easier to have the intellectual discipline to scientifically test and iterate ideas without sunk cost bias or other fallacies getting in the way.
Done correctly, buyers seek you out because there is a problem that needs addressed. Even if your solution isn’t clearly defined or built, customers will pay you to figure out how to build a solution. In these cases, you don’t have time to keep up with demand as you test and quickly iterate your product to better meet your customer’s needs. If your tech and product development is struggling to keep up with sales, that’s a good sign. Conversely, if product development is ahead of your sales, then you may need to start listening more intently so that you can pivot and go solve a more urgent problem.
Q: What’s a trend in technology or innovation that you believe doesn’t get enough attention?
Philosophy is generally taken for granted, even though it is the foundation that shapes society. Now, we are at a turning point where technology is being integrated into every aspect of our lives, and philosophy will play an even greater role in how society develops over the next century.
We are having to think about the moral implications of code, and even exploring how to program morality into technology. For instance, self driving cars will have to make life or death decisions. Does the vehicle optimize to protect its passengers, or does it consider the lives of bystanders and other drivers? There aren’t straightforward answers to questions like this. This is a common trolly problem example, but it illustrates the point. There are many many other questions being asked at the intersection of technology and philosophy that we are going to have to address in the coming decades. Artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, biotechnology, brain-computer interfaces, and other emerging fields of technology are going to disrupt much of our lives and what it means to be human. In addition, as technology automation starts to eliminate jobs more quickly than we invent new jobs, we’re going to have to revisit what it means to be a productive member of society, how we distribute value in our economy, and even deeper existential issues.
Yuval 'Noah Harari is one of my favorite authors that has written on this topic. His books Sapiens, Homo Deus, and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century are great reads that explore some of this uncharted territory.
Q: What’s one moonshot idea that could help make Ohio a world leader in technology and innovation?
Imagine if every renter was an owner. What if everyone got a financial stake in the property they lived in? It would transform our neighborhoods, cities, states and country. Every American would have the opportunity to participate in the value created in our communities. It’s a total paradigm shift, a solution to a problem many people did not think could ever be solved.
There’s a reason why America’s Founding Fathers wrote on the topic of expanding property ownership as a strategy to maintain the balance of power in our democracy. In addition to the economic benefits, ownership correlates with greater rates of civic participation, voting, volunteerism, and reductions in many of the problems that plague our society.
Q: What’s a recent book, podcast or news story that you found interesting?
The Score Takes Care of Itself by Bill Walsh and Eleven Rings by Phil Jackson are two of my favorite books that I read recently.
I’m not a huge sports fan, so I was skeptical about reading these books. However, I believe that there are lessons to be learned everywhere, and especially from people who reached the greatest heights of their craft. Walsh and Jackson are two of the greatest coaches that ever lived. I now understand why.
They really focused more on building people and a cohesive team, focusing their energy on the individual human and how the team can come together as a collective community. The goal is to build people, and winning is a side effect of doing the hard work of human development. Too often people focus on the score. But both Walsh and Jackson believed that if you focus on the people, the score will take care of itself. I think this is a very powerful perspective.
Q: What's your favorite place in Ohio?
Summers on the Scioto Mile in Downtown Columbus. I love spending time with my partner and friends outside during festival season.
Usually there are so many great events from Pride, to the Jazz and Ribs Fest, and many more. While these events have been cancelled or postponed this year, there are other more important events taking place downtown that I’m proud to be a part of, like protesting police brutality and participating in voter registration drives.
While parades and festivals are usually a time of celebration, they are in honor of cultural movements and were born out of struggle. I feel compelled to be a part of more than just the celebrations. It’s also important to be a part of the struggle for a better society that these festivals commemorate. It’s all a part of what makes our country great. Our city centers are more than where history is celebrated. Downtown is where history happens, and I enjoy being in the heart of it.
Q: What makes Ohio special to you?
The people. This is my hometown. We’ve had an incredibly challenging year, but I am inspired by our community and how we’re able to come together. Ohio is the heart of America, and it’s incredible to be here during this time as our state grows as an engine of collaboration and innovation that will propel our country forward well into the future.
Connect with Calvin on LinkedIn.