LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 9, 2025) — Brent Cooper, a 1991 graduate of the University of Kentucky, entrepreneur and current president and CEO of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, is dedicated to making his community and the Commonwealth a better place to live, work, play, learn and give back. He also exemplifies the range of careers open to UK College of Arts and Sciences.
Cooper is the founder and CEO of C-Forward, anIT support business now in its 26th year, with locations in Covington and Lexington. Early in his IT career, he became interested in his local chamber of commerce and began serving as an ambassador by attending events and serving on committees. It was a way to get to know his community and engage with its business people on a deeper level. As Cooper built relationships and made connections, he and his business earned trust and respect from the community.
As his business grew, so did his involvement with the chamber. He served as a volunteer on the chamber Board of Directors from 2007-14, was elected board chair in 2011, served as interim president for seven months in 2014 and was named president and CEO in 2017. Today, that role is his full-time career, along with being CEO of C-Forward.
“We currently have 1,750 members, making us one of the largest chambers in the state, and we’re viewed as one of the top chambers in the country,” Cooper said. “We have a very engaged chamber with 1,100 unique volunteers every year. We are immensely proud of the work we do.
“Our mission is to promote business growth and improve the economy, making our state as competitive as possible. We do that through leadership and advocacy and if we do it right, we help create a better quality of life for all. That is the ‘why’ behind what we do in Northern Kentucky. There is no better place to make a difference in your community than the chamber of commerce.”
Lifelong Cats fan
A native of Morehead, Kentucky, Cooper is the son of two UK graduates; his father is a pharmacist and his mother was trained in radiologic technology and was an associate professor at Northern Kentucky University. He’s a lifelong Cats fan and loves Kentucky so much that he never wanted to go to college anywhere but UK.
“Choosing UK was one of the best decisions I ever made,” Cooper said. “I fully availed myself to the college experience, and I absolutely loved every minute of it. It shaped the person I am today.”
Cooper worked as a server at the UK Faculty Club when it first opened and led campus tours for the Visitor Center. He was involved in Greek life as a Kappa Sigma, serving as treasurer of the Interfraternity Council, and in his senior year he joined the Student Activities Board.
Sports played a large role in Cooper’s life in high school, and he carried that love of sports with him to UK, participating in several intramural sports. Cooper recalls camping out for basketball tickets and says he was front row for three straight years during the Pitino era, attending every SEC tournament except for one in the '90s.
“I’m as UK as it gets,” he said. “I had several classes with the ‘Unforgettables’ and, well, I still hate Laettner.” he said, referencing the 1992 NCAA Tournament Elite Eight classic between UK and Duke.
Cooper earned a degree in sociology with a minor in history from the UK College of Arts and Sciences in 1991. His plan was to attend law school.
“I fell into computers during my freshman year in 1987 when most students were using typewriters," he said. "I was one of two students that I’m aware of who had a computer in their dorm room. It was a Commodore 64, a very basic computer that used floppy discs. I could type 90 words a minute, save, spell check and it seemed like magic back then.”
Cooper’s growing fascination with computers was about to change the course of his life. He advanced from the Commodore 64 and became proficient with the first Macintosh and Apple II that he used for his fraternity work.
“I had experience with both Macs and PCs and, back then in the early ’90s, that was a pretty valuable skill set in the IT world," he said. "Because I had a good background at UK, I was able to communicate in a way that could explain technology to people who didn’t understand IT.”
During a summer IT job between his senior year and going to law school, Cooper realized not only was he highly skilled with computers, but he also really liked the work.
“I found a career. I tell people this story all the time because the degree and experience I got at UK were invaluable, and you never know where life is going to take you," he said. "I got into IT while thinking I was going to be a lawyer.”
After graduation, Cooper joined an engineering firm in Cincinnati. He earned certifications from Microsoft, Novell, Cisco, Citrix and Dell. He became an expert at Novell and Microsoft computer networking and linking computers together. Email was in its infancy, and the internet was on the cusp of exploding into business. As the internet became increasingly sophisticated, Cooper helped businesses get connected.
Cooper began to think about venturing out on his own when enough people began asking him for tech assistance with their business, and he found himself helping people on weekends or evenings. The idea of entrepreneurship is something he witnessed in his own family while growing up.
“Both my dad and my grandpa were entrepreneurs,” he said. “My dad is a pharmacist and had two pharmacy stores in partnership with my grandpa, one in Flemingsburg and one in Morehead. My mom encouraged me as well and gave me seed money to get started. I wouldn’t be where I am without both of their support and guidance.”
In March 1999, C-Forward opened in Fort Thomas. Cooper had a desire to offer small businesses the same quality network services that large businesses were afforded.
“Our vision is to provide quality, cost-effective and innovative IT solutions to help our employees, our customers and our community succeed. I will say, the community success component of our vision is something special,” Cooper said. “We want to leave this place better than we found it. At both the Northern Kentucky Chamber, and at my own company, that’s the lens we look through every day.”
C-Forward grew a loyal following of customers and averaged nearly 50 percent growth in its first three years. The original company slogan was “Helping you look forward to the future,” which evolved to today’s slogan, “We make IT easy.”
The company has been named Small Business of the Year by both the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber and also has received awards from nearly every growth organization including the Better Business Bureau and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Today, C-Forward is thriving, and Cooper is able to “steer the ship” with the help of his management team while serving full-time as chamber president.
“While I’m CEO of C-Forward, I’m definitely a 24/7 chamber president,” he said. “Chamber of commerce leaders never have an off switch.
“It’s very unusual to have a chamber president who is also a business owner, but that has really served both myself and the Northern Kentucky Chamber well, especially during the pandemic. It almost felt like fate that I was president of the chamber during that time because I could speak directly to how it was impacting businesses.”
Cooper says involvement in a chamber of commerce is a great way for people to learn about the community they live and work in, and to also give back by promoting business and welcoming people into the community.
“I think the whole reason I’m in the chamber of commerce stems from my experience at UK. Candace McGraw, who recently chaired the Kentucky State Chamber Board and led our Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, calls it ‘raffle rules’ — you’ve got to be present to win," he said. "Being present and showing up, being a part of something that’s bigger than yourself, can really make a difference, both personally and professionally. UK taught me that.”
During the pandemic, Cooper started taking drum lessons which he says has been a ton of fun and a great outlet. In high school, Cooper lettered in sports, sang in all state choir and was in the school play. Cooper has also shaken hands with four of the last six UK basketball coaches — Mark Pope, John Calipari, Rick Pitino and Joe B. Hall.
“I got to sit in a private practice with Coach Pope and the team," he said. "UK is absolutely blessed to have him as coach right now. Regardless of how it turns out, it’s just been fun to watch.”