Mawson has short-term drop for long-term gain

The drop in the number of advisers atMawson Securitieswas a deliberate controlled move, chairman Peter Johnson says.

“Some time ago we recognised that while we had a lot of advisers, it was not as profitable as we wanted,” he says.

“So we introduced a flat fee for all advisers, so people who were not earning a lot found it difficult.”

Johnson says the move helped some advisers, especially older risk agents who dabbled in financial planning, make the decision to leave the industry.

“We helped them by selling their registers to other advisers in the Mawson group,” he says.

“So the volume of business remained steady despite the rationalisation.”

At the same time, Johnson says the company also identified the need for a separate group for risk advisers, so it formed Aurora.

“Mawson originally grew out of a life business and we identified there was a slice of the market that would be best served by a different dealer group,” he says.

“So we formed a new label to deal purely with the risk segment.”

As a result, a number of Mawson advisers moved across to the new group — again impacting on Mawson’s adviser numbers in 2003.

However, Johnson says the group is looking to expand adviser numbers with financial planners going to Mawson and risk advisers to Aurora.

“We are never satisfied with adviser numbers so we are looking for more advisers,” he says.

“It is about getting the balance right and doing it better.”