Prepare for retirement with a Truly Succession Strategy

“One of the things we often miss in succession planning is that it should be gradual and thoughtful, with lots of sharing of information and knowledge and perspective, so that it’s almost a non-event when it happens.” – Anne M.Mucahy

As we get older the thought of retirement grows stronger. As an independent financial adviser it is vital that you have a well thought out succession strategy in place for when that time eventually comes. Planning for your retirement should ideally begin right at the very start of your business venture. When writing your business plan it should not just be for the coming year, but include a well thought out plan for when you plan on retiring.

The thought of retiring from your financial advice business may at first appear a frightening prospect due to the sudden loss of regular income you are used too. When asking advisers for their main concerns regarding retirement affordability is usually the main concern, however equally concerning is the future of the business that has been built up over many years, and secondly, the concern of managing your clients that you will have built strong relationships with over the years. This is why it is so important to have strong succession strategy in place to ensure a smooth transition for both you and your clients.

Are Agencies the answer?

Using an agency is an option available to you when you plan on retiring, however these should be avoided if possible, as while they can be convenient this comes at a heavy price. Here are five reasons to avoid relying on an agency to sell your business.

1.They are not interested in achieving the best price for you, since quite often they will be acting initially for both parties by bringing them together.

2.They will charge both parties a completion fee which has known to be as high as 6% on both sides.

3.They are not interested in regular monthly instalments since they will want their fee on completion only.

4.As the one-off seller, you will not bring repeat business for them, so they don’t have your interest at heart.

5.They will not spend any time with you to establish a process or methodology for sale.

If you have to rely on an agency to sell your business then you have failed to plan, to prospect and promote your business.

The Truly succession strategy

Here at Truly Independent we have developed and implemented our own succession strategy available to all of our advisers. We match a retiring adviser with a level 4 qualified Truly Independent adviser in a two-stage acquisition process. Working together, there is a natural blend of experience and qualifications where all parties can benefit, even the client.

Your successor will offer the support you need in your retirement. On top of this we can also provide a local mentor for you to work with. Our contracts and successor agreements ensure smooth and uncontested relationships.

Our 4×4 succession strategy is a unique buy-out retirement contract available to all of our advisers and is one of the best buy-out propositions on the marketplace today and probably the best from a National IFA. It is the final piece of a comprehensive adviser support proposition to ensure your journey with us and into retirement, is truly easy. Advisers who have been with us for at least 4 years can retire from us with up to 4 times their annual renewal income. Financial advisers who join Truly Independent will no longer have to find a buyer to achieve 2 or 3 times their renewal at retirement. Simply by joining us, you have also secured a buyer. When an IFA sells their business, the process of transferring their clients to the third party is an enormous task and stressful, especially when you would much rather be retired! Eliminate this task by joining Truly Independent today and begin your journey to a smooth and happy retirement.

If you want to take advantage of the Truly succession strategy or just wish to find out more information, you can book a discovery session here.