A new investment banking firm is quietly setting up shop in Shockoe Slip.
Dickinson Williams & Co. — a startup by two investment bankers at Cobblestone | Harris Williams — signed a lease for about 2,000 square feet at 1209 E. Cary St.
John Dickinson and Harold Williams III work for Cobblestone, the arm of Richmond-based Harris Williams that specializes in investment banking services for smaller companies. Cobblestone is closing June 1, which BizSense reported in February.
Josh Bilder, who owns the building, confirmed that Dickinson Williams signed a lease. The building’s other tenants include shirt maker Ledbury.
“We’re happy to be leasing the space,” Builder said.
Harris Williams said in February that it was eliminating Cobblestone because other groups within the larger firm were eating away at Cobblestone’s business. Some Cobblestone-related jobs were being eliminated, the company said at the time. But it also made offers to several Cobblestone employees to stay on at the firm, some of whom declined.
A Harris Williams executive in February declined to say whether Dickinson or Williams were among those staying.
Dickinson Williams & Co. was incorporated May 6, according to State Corporation Commission records. Dickinson and Williams declined to comment about their new business.
The startup will be the latest financial services/investment banking firm to set up shop in Shockoe Slip.
Cary Street Partners, Harbert Venture Partners and Boxwood Partners are just around the corner. Boxwood recently expanded by leasing additional space above the pub Sine.
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Investment adviser RiverFront Investment Group is building out the former Richbrau space for its new Shockoe home, and Gibson Volatility Management made the move from the suburbs to the Slip last fall.
“The space is filling up on Shockoe Slip,” said Christian Kiniry, a Shockoe Company principal who worked the lease for Dickinson Williams. “The only significant [vacant] spaces left are a just a few pockets.”
“Its’ a true mix of firms that are moving in, and it keeps the streets busy, which makes it a fun place to come to work,” Kiniry said.
According to the Cobblestone website, Dickinson has been with Harris Williams since 1994 and helped launch Cobblestone in 1998. He previously worked for Circuit City. He received his MBA from the University of Virginia and his bachelor’s from Hampden-Sydney.
Prior to joining Cobblestone, Williams helped found Custer Williams and Co. and Riverside Capital. Williams is a graduate of U-Va. and received his MBA from Georgia State University.
Michael Schwartz is a BizSense reporter. Please send news tips to [email protected].
A new investment banking firm is quietly setting up shop in Shockoe Slip.
Dickinson Williams & Co. — a startup by two investment bankers at Cobblestone | Harris Williams — signed a lease for about 2,000 square feet at 1209 E. Cary St.
John Dickinson and Harold Williams III work for Cobblestone, the arm of Richmond-based Harris Williams that specializes in investment banking services for smaller companies. Cobblestone is closing June 1, which BizSense reported in February.
Josh Bilder, who owns the building, confirmed that Dickinson Williams signed a lease. The building’s other tenants include shirt maker Ledbury.
“We’re happy to be leasing the space,” Builder said.
Harris Williams said in February that it was eliminating Cobblestone because other groups within the larger firm were eating away at Cobblestone’s business. Some Cobblestone-related jobs were being eliminated, the company said at the time. But it also made offers to several Cobblestone employees to stay on at the firm, some of whom declined.
A Harris Williams executive in February declined to say whether Dickinson or Williams were among those staying.
Dickinson Williams & Co. was incorporated May 6, according to State Corporation Commission records. Dickinson and Williams declined to comment about their new business.
The startup will be the latest financial services/investment banking firm to set up shop in Shockoe Slip.
Cary Street Partners, Harbert Venture Partners and Boxwood Partners are just around the corner. Boxwood recently expanded by leasing additional space above the pub Sine.
View Larger Map
Investment adviser RiverFront Investment Group is building out the former Richbrau space for its new Shockoe home, and Gibson Volatility Management made the move from the suburbs to the Slip last fall.
“The space is filling up on Shockoe Slip,” said Christian Kiniry, a Shockoe Company principal who worked the lease for Dickinson Williams. “The only significant [vacant] spaces left are a just a few pockets.”
“Its’ a true mix of firms that are moving in, and it keeps the streets busy, which makes it a fun place to come to work,” Kiniry said.
According to the Cobblestone website, Dickinson has been with Harris Williams since 1994 and helped launch Cobblestone in 1998. He previously worked for Circuit City. He received his MBA from the University of Virginia and his bachelor’s from Hampden-Sydney.
Prior to joining Cobblestone, Williams helped found Custer Williams and Co. and Riverside Capital. Williams is a graduate of U-Va. and received his MBA from Georgia State University.
Michael Schwartz is a BizSense reporter. Please send news tips to [email protected].