Latitude is a new retail marine insurance broking venture set up by Andrew Brooker, Tom Fulford-Smith, Charles D’Alton and Vanessa Toucas in a joint venture with Cooper Gay Swett & Crawford, one of the world’s largest wholesale and reinsurance broking groups.

The Latitude team is already up to 11 with a number of notable clients signed up.

Among those attending, including the launch party, were Cooper Gay chief executive Toby Esser, marine chief Stephen Barton and Rudi Hansel, chief executive of Junge & Co, the German broking arm of the group.

Esser