Meet the people behind Prospera

Deionte Jones

Co-Founder & Investment Partner

Deionte co-founded Prospera Hills after several years investing in and scaling founder-led businesses across the middle and lower middle market. Through his institutional private equity investing experience, he developed a conviction that lasting value is created when investors work closely with founders and management teams as they continue growing and strengthening their businesses.

After working alongside founders and management teams executing growth initiatives, Deionte saw firsthand how collaborative partnerships between investors, operators, and leadership teams can drive stronger businesses and outcomes. He co-founded Prospera Hills to build a firm centered around that approach.

Prior to founding Prospera Hills, Deionte was an investor in Incline Equity Partners’ micro-cap fund, where he worked alongside founders and management teams executing buy-and-build strategies across lower middle market businesses.

Earlier in his career, Deionte invested in middle market services businesses at Kohlberg & Company. He began his finance career in investment banking at J.P. Morgan and BMO Capital Markets.

Deionte holds a B.A. in Business Administration from Morehouse College.

Luis Mercader

Co-Founder & Operating Partner

Luis is an operating executive with more than 15 years of experience partnering with founders, management teams, and private equity sponsors to drive operational improvements and enhance value to private equity portfolio companies.

Luis co-founded Prospera Hills after years of guiding and working alongside leadership teams to improve and grow their companies. He recognized that there is a better way to transform these businesses into lasting enterprises through a methodical process centered around partnership and strategic alignment. His goal is to bring that operator-led perspective to our businesses.

Prior to starting Prospera Hills, Luis was a Director at Incline Equity Partners’ Catalyst Group, where he focused on financial and operational initiatives for several portfolio companies. He previously served as the Director of Finance and Portfolio Operations for Turnspire Capital Partners, where he developed the portfolio operations function and managed the firm’s internal processes.

Earlier in his career, Luis spent several years as a consultant, leading management teams through restructurings and corporate carve outs for sponsor backed businesses, and as an Operating Executive at Corinthian Capital Group.

Before transitioning to private equity, Luis held various operational and financial roles at Schering-Plough / Merck, Ingersoll Rand, and Procter & Gamble.

Luis has a B.A. in Economics and an M.B.A. from Duke University.