The company was formed to focus on the “at retirement market”, providing lending solutions and life cover with a speciality for Equity Release Products. We have developed fantastic relationships with our providers which has led to many exclusive deals that are the envy of our peers. We have enjoyed phenomenal sales growth year on year. We believe the Equity Release market has a strong future and have backed this with significant investment in IT systems and recruitment throughout with growth year on year. The business now has a National Salesforce of 65 advisers many qualified to Diploma Level 4. Our contact centre is fully operational with a CRM system capable of taking live hand offs and putting customers immediately in contact with advisers to arrange face to face appointments. The investment is generating qualified appointments allowing our consultants to work more effectively and spend more time giving advice. Lead generation is crucial to our success. We have several National IFA’s as introducers which develop as they grow to trust us with their clients and recommend us to their peers. We have been giving advice to Aviva clients for over 3 years.

Equity Release is deemed to be the final piece of financial planning a client may ever make. It is a bigger decision than arranging a conventional mortgage and we often deal with elderly clients in vulnerable situations. We developed our National Solicitors Network to protect clients and help them in their decision making. We insist that before completion of any application, all of our clients receive independent legal advice and have at least one meeting with a solicitor. Our panel solicitors understand how Equity Release products work. This means that they are able to confirm that clients have a solution appropriate for their needs and they understand the concepts of their plans. Our business and each individual consultant are now members of the Equity Release Council. We are committed to supporting them in promoting Equity Release direct to consumers. Education is crucial to encourage Equity Release as part of mainstream holistic financial planning. It is rewarding that over 95% of our customer contact reports believe our service is excellent. There is no better advocate for our business than our customers. We now receive a constant stream of referrals which is a priceless source of lead generation.

In the last 12 months our sales force has doubled giving us full geographical coverage of the UK. To support this growth we have taken on a National Sales Manager to work closely with advisors. Development workshops are provided along with one to one tutorials and field visits to help them grow their business. We have not just grown in numbers, we are seeing improvements in conversion rates and business mix which gives us a higher return from each lead generated. Early in 2013 Aviva decided to focus on being a product provider rather than distribution and closed their direct Salesforce. In an innovative move, they decided that they would continue to market Equity Release and maintain a contact centre for lead generation. After a tough tender process we have been selected as a preferred referral partner to service Aviva leads for the next 3 years. This is a first for the Equity Release industry and we now have a profitable and stable lead source. We are proud to be chosen which reflects the energy and enthusiasm we have to grow the Equity Release market. We went live in September 2013 and the results so far are exceptional.

Our vision is to become the leading force within the Equity Release community. We are delighted to be associated with Aviva and look forward to working with the biggest brand within Equity Release. It gives us confidence that we have a credible offering to promote in the market. We are fortunate that our business model also allows us to work truly independently with all other providers. The Directors are passionate about growing Equity Release in the marketplace. 2013 has been a huge year for us and we are now offering a viable national alternative to the two major players that have dominated to date. The mission is to educate the masses and establish Equity release as a mainstream product with face to face, trusted, independent advice. Winning this award would be recognition of the huge efforts of the whole team in 2013. It is not just a business. We truly care about our customers and what we do for them. It is one of the most enjoyable ventures anybody could hope to be associated with. Each and every day we see clients change their lives and help them look forward to enjoying the retirements they dream of.