October 22, 2024
Cooper Bets Big on Jim Williams’ Startup Agency in 3 New Areas
Three Cooper agents in Ohio and Kentucky terminated; to be replaced by Jim Williams’ JAW Lighting
Cooper Lighting Solutions is undergoing a significant overhaul in its Ohio Valley territories, replacing three lighting agents with JAW Lighting, a startup agency led by industry veteran Jim Williams. Effective December 1, the changes will impact Cooper’s representation in Columbus, Cincinnati/Dayton, and Kentucky. This transition comes as JAW Lighting accelerates its launch, with Williams' Nashville and Eastern Tennessee representation now beginning on November 1, two months ahead of the originally planned January 1 start date.
Jim Williams, former CEO of KSA Lighting & Controls in Chicago, is now leading JAW Lighting after departing from KSA earlier this year. Under his leadership, KSA became the largest lighting representative in Chicago over the past two decades. His new agency, launched in Nashville last month, is now expanding to take over key Ohio Valley markets for Cooper Lighting, marking a significant shift for the brand in these regions.
Williams’ connection to Cooper Lighting extends beyond just his own ventures. His wife, Ashley Williams, is currently heading The Lighting Digest, Cooper Lighting’s agency in Chicago. While the couple previously represented rival brands — Jim Williams with Acuity Brands through KSA and Ashley Williams with Cooper — their business paths have now aligned, eliminating the former competitive dynamic, giving way to “His & Hers” Cooper Lighting agencies across numerous Midwest lighting territories.
Above: Agent footprints of JAW Lighting and The Lighting Digest. Boundaries are approximate for illustration purposes and do not accurately depict certain outlier counties in adjacent territories.
Notably, Williams, an Indiana native and Purdue University alum, is expected to extend his new presence in the Cincinnati-Dayton area into three southeastern counties of Indiana. This move is significant as Indiana serves as the main "white space" between wife Ashley's Chicago territory, managed through The Lighting Digest, and Jim Williams' Ohio Valley territory. Cooper’s Chicago contract with The Lighting Digest also includes Lake and Porter counties in northwest Indiana. Aside from those and other outlier counties, the rest of Indiana is covered by longtime Cooper agent partner Specified Lighting Systems, with offices in Indianapolis and Fort Wayne.
Prior Partnerships
JAW Lighting will replace Spectrum Lighting in Columbus, K2SA Lighting & Controls in Cincinnati/Dayton and Engineered Lighting Sales in Kentucky. While Spectrum and Engineered Lighting Sales had decades-long partnerships with Cooper Lighting, K2SA is a newer partner, having joined Cooper’s ranks more recently.
The move is particularly notable in Columbus, where Spectrum Lighting was one of the few agencies in the country representing both Cooper Lighting and Lutron, despite these brands being competitors in the market. Engineered Lighting Sales was similarly unique, as it represented both Cooper and Wattstopper, another rare combination. These grandfathered situations were unusual in the Cooper agent network, and Cooper’s decision to replace these agencies with JAW Lighting marks a clear break from this rare setup.
K2SA, established in 2017, operates with eight employees in the Cincinnati/Dayton area. With JAW Lighting stepping into this space, the region is seeing its fifth Cooper Lighting representative in just 15 years, following the exits of King Lighting, Brooks Lighting, Innovative Lighting Solutions, and K2SA.
While these changes impact Cooper Lighting’s presence in central Ohio, Cincinnati, Dayton, and Kentucky, they do not affect its other Ohio markets. In Toledo, Cooper is still represented by Clarus Lighting & Controls (out of Detroit metro), and in Cleveland/Akron, Lighting & Controls continues to serve as the brand’s representative.
Localized Approach with Some Centralized Support
In a Monday interview with Inside Lighting, Jim Williams expressed enthusiasm for expanding into the Ohio Valley, highlighting his commitment to local staffing and representation in each territory. While his focus is on a localized approach, Williams acknowledged that there may be opportunities to centralize certain operational functions, such as finance, IT, marketing, and human resources, to create efficiencies within the multi-territory agency.
“I’m grateful to Cooper Lighting for trusting me with our partnership across the expanded geography. This is a tremendous honor and I’m excited and motivated to begin building this agency.”
— Jim Williams, JAW Lighting
When asked about potential collaboration or shared resources with his wife’s Cooper Lighting agency in Chicago, Williams clarified that there are no plans to share operations between the two agencies, maintaining a clear separation of business interests.
What's Next?
As JAW Lighting establishes its footprint, the future strategies for Spectrum Lighting, Engineered Lighting Sales, and K2SA remain uncertain, particularly given the absence of other major lighting lines like Acuity Brands, Current, or Genlyte Solutions being available “free agents”. These agencies may need to explore new strategies to navigate the transition away from representing Cooper Lighting.
Adding to the complexity of this transition, JAW Lighting faces the urgent and important task of hiring dozens of staff members to support its operations across multiple territories. With the November 1 launch in Tennessee and the December 1 start in three Ohio Valley markets quickly approaching, building a team to cover the vast geography and varied needs of the business will be a critical undertaking.