Brandywine Oak Personal Wealth, a registered funding advisory agency nestled within the Delaware Valley of southern Pennsylvania, was based in 2018 by 5 breakaway wirehouse advisors with $500 million in shopper property between them.
The agency has grown by greater than 68% in simply 5 years, primarily by natural progress, whereas including seven further employees and creating an affiliated tax apply with three devoted accountants. At the moment, Brandywine Oak oversees round $1.5 billion in property and co-CEOs Michael Henley and Alison Brooks anticipate to achieve $5 billion over the approaching decade.
Associated: The RIA Edge 100: Rising Above and Past
However not by attracting extra purchasers. The other, in reality.
“We’re really making an attempt to shrink the variety of purchasers that we work with,” mentioned Henley. “And enhance the scale of these purchasers.”
Associated: S.C. Advisor Reunites with Brandywine Oak Personal Wealth Workforce
Tracy McGuire; Steve Maconi; Alison Brooks; Michael Henley; Lisa Quadrini; Mark Jackson; Chris Smith.
If the agency’s median shopper has $3 million in manageable property, he defined, they’re concentrating on purchasers within the $5 million vary. And when their median shopper reaches $5 million, they’ll be courting households with greater than twice that quantity.
“The extra we are able to go up-market, we discover these households have extra refined planning wants which might be a greater match for our talent set,” Henley mentioned, including that it additionally is sensible from a capability standpoint. “You possibly can solely deal with so many households. In case your common shopper is $2 million, you most likely shouldn’t be onboarding a bunch of $1 million purchasers—however I see it taking place on a regular basis.”
Brooks and Henley mentioned they left positions at Merrill Lynch—the place every spent greater than a decade—as a result of they discovered they had been unable to provide goal and unconflicted recommendation underneath the captive wirehouse mannequin. They based Brandywine Oak with Chairman Steve Maconi, Tracy McGuire and Mark Jackson, all Merrill Lynch expats with 75 years of expertise between them.
“We’re now ready to be on the identical facet of the desk because the purchasers,” Henley mentioned. “And we’re younger; we have now an extended runway forward of us and finally didn’t need to be trapped into sure funding merchandise, sure recommendation, et cetera.”
One of many companies included on WealthManagement.com’s RIA Edge 100 listing, created in partnership with Discovery Information, Brandywine Oak has grown at a considerably sooner tempo than its extra established friends, whereas additionally sustaining an above common client-to-advisor ratio and investing in skilled certifications.
In only a few brief years, the agency has added and expanded companies and capabilities by considerate additions, ongoing skilled growth and a proactive staffing coverage to handle progress.
In addition to monetary planning companies, Brandywine Oak presently affords funding administration, retirement planning, tax planning and preparation, insurance coverage and property planning, entry to sure banking companies and ongoing monetary schooling. The agency has native legislation and insurance coverage companies on retainer to supply the related experience and needed paperwork—however introduced taxes in-house 18 months in the past, launching an adjoining apply with CPA Chris Smith and three workers.
“That has been an enormous differentiator when it comes to aggressive benefit,” mentioned Henley, noting that the tax apply persistently units the agency aside from Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo, in addition to bigger RIAs like Inventive Planning.
“What we underestimated,” he added, “was the overwhelming variety of purchasers that wished to right away change over to having their taxes completed. We anticipated round 10% within the first 30 days, and it ended up being nearer to 40%. So, it was loads, but it surely was actually a game-changer.”
Each underneath the age of 40—together with 80% of the agency’s employees—Henley and Brooks venture a cushty administration dynamic that deserves credit score for no less than a few of their success.
“Michael is the agency’s visionary,” mentioned Brooks. “He works with our most refined purchasers and comes up with all these concepts which have actually been key to our progress.”
“And Alison is aware of execute on these concepts,” Henley mentioned.
That co-management philosophy extends all through all the agency. Every shopper is roofed by no less than one lead advisor and two devoted associates and has entry to all of the experience and expertise Brandywine Oak has to supply.
“None of our advisors have their very own purchasers,” Henley mentioned. “They’re all purchasers of all the agency and that’s important.” He defined that the mannequin permits his employees to stay extremely concerned with every shopper whereas lessening the day-to-day workload for senior advisors who can focus their power on extra sophisticated duties for more and more refined wants.
Inside crew constructing can be an vital exercise at Brandywine Oak, he mentioned—and a brilliant enjoyable one with a predominantly millennial employees. One latest tour took all the agency to the Porsche Expertise Heart in Atlanta, Ga.
“We had allBrandywine Oak Personal Wealth, a registered funding advisory agency nestled within the Delaware Valley of southern Pennsylvania, was based in 2018 by 5 breakaway wirehouse advisors with $500 million in shopper property between them.
The agency has grown by greater than 68% in simply 5 years, primarily by natural progress, whereas including seven further employees and creating an affiliated tax apply with three devoted accountants. At the moment, Brandywine Oak oversees round $1.5 billion in property and co-CEOs Michael Henley and Alison Brooks anticipate to achieve $5 billion over the approaching decade.
Associated: The RIA Edge 100: Rising Above and Past
However not by attracting extra purchasers. The other, in reality.
“We’re really making an attempt to shrink the variety of purchasers that we work with,” mentioned Henley. “And enhance the scale of these purchasers.”
Associated: S.C. Advisor Reunites with Brandywine Oak Personal Wealth Workforce
Tracy McGuire; Steve Maconi; Alison Brooks; Michael Henley; Lisa Quadrini; Mark Jackson; Chris Smith.
If the agency’s median shopper has $3 million in manageable property, he defined, they’re concentrating on purchasers within the $5 million vary. And when their median shopper reaches $5 million, they’ll be courting households with greater than twice that quantity.
“The extra we are able to go up-market, we discover these households have extra refined planning wants which might be a greater match for our talent set,” Henley mentioned, including that it additionally is sensible from a capability standpoint. “You possibly can solely deal with so many households. In case your common shopper is $2 million, you most likely shouldn’t be onboarding a bunch of $1 million purchasers—however I see it taking place on a regular basis.”
Brooks and Henley mentioned they left positions at Merrill Lynch—the place every spent greater than a decade—as a result of they discovered they had been unable to provide goal and unconflicted recommendation underneath the captive wirehouse mannequin. They based Brandywine Oak with Chairman Steve Maconi, Tracy McGuire and Mark Jackson, all Merrill Lynch expats with 75 years of expertise between them.
“We’re now ready to be on the identical facet of the desk because the purchasers,” Henley mentioned. “And we’re younger; we have now an extended runway forward of us and finally didn’t need to be trapped into sure funding merchandise, sure recommendation, et cetera.”
One of many companies included on WealthManagement.com’s RIA Edge 100 listing, created in partnership with Discovery Information, Brandywine Oak has grown at a considerably sooner tempo than its extra established friends, whereas additionally sustaining an above common client-to-advisor ratio and investing in skilled certifications.
In only a few brief years, the agency has added and expanded companies and capabilities by considerate additions, ongoing skilled growth and a proactive staffing coverage to handle progress.
In addition to monetary planning companies, Brandywine Oak presently affords funding administration, retirement planning, tax planning and preparation, insurance coverage and property planning, entry to sure banking companies and ongoing monetary schooling. The agency has native legislation and insurance coverage companies on retainer to supply the related experience and needed paperwork—however introduced taxes in-house 18 months in the past, launching an adjoining apply with CPA Chris Smith and three workers.
“That has been an enormous differentiator when it comes to aggressive benefit,” mentioned Henley, noting that the tax apply persistently units the agency aside from Merrill Lynch and Wells Fargo, in addition to bigger RIAs like Inventive Planning.
“What we underestimated,” he added, “was the overwhelming variety of purchasers that wished to right away change over to having their taxes completed. We anticipated round 10% within the first 30 days, and it ended up being nearer to 40%. So, it was loads, but it surely was actually a game-changer.”
Each underneath the age of 40—together with 80% of the agency’s employees—Henley and Brooks venture a cushty administration dynamic that deserves credit score for no less than a few of their success.
“Michael is the agency’s visionary,” mentioned Brooks. “He works with our most refined purchasers and comes up with all these concepts which have actually been key to our progress.”
“And Alison is aware of execute on these concepts,” Henley mentioned.
That co-management philosophy extends all through all the agency. Every shopper is roofed by no less than one lead advisor and two devoted associates and has entry to all of the experience and expertise Brandywine Oak has to supply.
“None of our advisors have their very own purchasers,” Henley mentioned. “They’re all purchasers of all the agency and that’s important.” He defined that the mannequin permits his employees to stay extremely concerned with every shopper whereas lessening the day-to-day workload for senior advisors who can focus their power on extra sophisticated duties for more and more refined wants.
Inside crew constructing can be an vital exercise at Brandywine Oak, he mentioned—and a brilliant enjoyable one with a predominantly millennial employees. One latest tour took all the agency to the Porsche Expertise Heart in Atlanta, Ga.
“We had all
