Guardian targets family wealth protection
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Guardian Financial Planning is looking to refresh its brand by positioning itself as a family wealth protection advice specialist, according to Guardian’s executive manager Steven Browning.
As the group looks to grow from about 150 advisers within the network towards 200 over the next six to 12 months it will focus on acquiring firms that are focused on family wealth protection, creation and advice, he said.
Guardian had had a strong life risk heritage since its conception almost 10 years ago but over time that had diversified, he said.
“The advice offerings within the practices that are aligned to Guardian have diversified to the point now that I think 60-70% of the revenue of Guardian comes from life risk insurance and the balance comes from wealth advice,” he said.
“It’s a broader-based business but we have a very strong life risk base to our business and we want to continue to grow with practices that have life risk as a key or core component of their advice offering.”
While the number of firms and advisers within the network had been fairly static over the past 12 months, the process of the brand refresh was about to commence, Browning said.
“Guardian is fast becoming one of the last remaining non-bank institutionally-owned dealer groups in the market,” he said.
“We’re keen to position ourselves in that large corporatised boutique licensee non-bank advice network. There’s a number of other boutiques groups [filling that role but] not many now left that are institutionally owned,” he added.
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