the
CLUB
to WelcoMe
The ClUB
We are excited to welcome you to the first edition of the Carrington Club. We’ve called it The Club as we would love our clients and professional associates to feel part of an exclusive club. Over the years we have moved the business away from that of a traditional IFA and have placed the emphasis and focus on Financial Life Planning and Investments. We want to help inspire you to realise your dreams and achieve your goals, ultimately living a more fulfilling life. Look out for some of the things on our bucket lists, which we hope might kickstart your imagination. The Club magazine also offers a platform to share your extraordinary stories with other like-minded people. In addition, we hope that
this will give you more of an insight into our business, allows you to put faces to names and find out who we are and what we’ve all been up to behind the scenes. This first edition includes interviews from a long-time client, Rod Connors who shares his passions, achievements and business insights with us, and a trusted adviser, Dom Trigg, who tells us what he loves most about working with clients and some rather interesting stories about the stranger things he’s been asked to insure! Both Rod and Dom epitomise the ethos of the Carrington Club and share many of our values and beliefs. Thank you to both Rod and Dom for giving up their time.
Enjoy! Mike & Al
Top Row L-R: Carolyn Stewart, Ali Moorhouse, Cecily Chapman & Alistair Candlish Bottom Row: Eric Woodward, Nicola Craxton, Mohsin Bukhari & Mike Hodges Location: Home House Private Members Club
the
Carrington timeline
2010
MOVE Moved to Baker Street & launched New Client Service
APR 2010
2012
GROWTH LAUNCH 3 Members of Staff, 30 Clients on Service
Launched our Life Planning Service
2013
FEB 2014
RECRUIT LAUNCH Alistair Candlish joined Carrington Investments as a Director
Launched a Graduate intake programme hiring our first Grad
AUG 2014
NOV 2017
LAUNCH
PUBLISH
Launched Family Wealth Planning Service
Won 'Excellence in Client Services' at the International Adviser Best Practice Awards & New Model Adviser Top 100 Wealth Manager Firm
10 Members of Staff, 220 Clients on Service
Welcome to the first edition of the Carrington Club Magazine
QA &
CLIENT INTERVIEW
ROD CONNORS
How were you introduced to Carrington? I was introduced to Carrington about 10 years ago by a lawyer that was managing the acquisition of a company that I had founded and was running at the time. He told me I should meet Mike as he had a really interesting way of looking at how you work out your finances for the future – a different way of looking at things. I’ve been a client ever since and I really enjoy working with him and the team.
What gets you out of bed? Two things I would say: Number one is my work. I’ve always been motivated by making a difference and challenging the status quo. I love to look at different ways to help businesses win. Whether that be the business I’m working in at the moment or whether it’s my clients. It’s always about saying there must be a better and more effective way of doing things and I love that. I love
the challenge of that. Doing things differently is definitely something that gets me out of bed. Number two is my family. I have four kids, the youngest is 15 and the eldest is 24. It’s a big family and there’s always lots going on.
What do you do to relax and what interests do you have outside of work? I’m a great Leeds United Fan – my family come from Yorkshire and my parents come from Leeds. It’s been a cross I’ve had to bear as Leeds have been in the doldrums for the last few years. But it looks like there might finally be a bit of a light at the end of the tunnel, they’re playing quite well (although I know now I’ve said this, things will most likely take a turn…). Sports have always been a big part of my life. Having grown up in a family of four boys, playing football, rugby, cricket – basically everything that was on offer, we used to be part of. These
Vital Statistics... NAME: Rod Connors BORN: Cambridge LIVES: Brighton with wife and four children
JOB TITLE: Managing Director, System 1 GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT: The Lynx Effect and Nike: Run London
FAVOURITE GADGET: Go Pro FAVOURITE APP:
Strava
FAVOURITE HOLIDAY DESTINATION: Vietnam
days I do a lot of cycling, particularly in the French Alpes. I also love live music and I like to go and see lots of live music – lots of indie bands, small bands, new music. I have quite eclectic tastes and living in Brighton, I’m lucky because there’s lots of that here.
Tell us a bit about you… I grew up in Cambridge and went to school in a local comprehensive. From there I went to Sussex University where I read French (and met my wife). I joined Unilever straight from Uni on their graduate marketing scheme and was there for 12 years six years working on the deodorant side of the business (brands such as Sure and Lynx) and six years working on the oral care side of the business (including a three-year period where I lived in Milan!). Working for Unilever was a very good university for learning about marketing, marketing strategy, building brands and building global brands. Really there were only one or two companies that I would have left Unilever to join so I thought I might be destined to live out my career there. However, one day my phone rang and it was Nike (very exciting time!) and shortly after that conversation I joined Nike as Marketing Director. I felt so lucky as I had the opportunity to combine my
two real passions in life – my passion for marketing and my passion for sport, I was like a kid in a sweet shop! I got to go into work every day and work with the best athletes and teams in the world.
What are the highlights of your career? I would say there are three main career highlights: 1. Leading the marketing for Lynx at Unilever – at the time it was a very exciting brand to work on with some iconic advertising campaigns such as “The Lynx Effect”. We effectively built Lynx (Axe everywhere else in the world other than the UK) into the biggest male toiletries brand in the world. 2. Working on a project that we ran at Nike called “Run London”. It was all about trying to encourage people to get up and run a 10km. It was at the time when running was just on the cusp of taking off as a major pastime (probably in about 2002). The whole idea behind Run London was to try and inspire people that had never run before to run a 10k and to help train them all the way along. We ran the campaign for six years and it really made a difference to people’s lives. It also catapulted Nike from number four in the world of running to number one, so it was successful from a business point of view too.
it really made a difference to people’s lives
3. I set up my own business called the BSG (the Branded Sport Group). I really enjoyed that and we had some great clients including Unilever, Virgin Atlantic and Diageo. Our ethos was to help companies produce much more effective marketing across all of their brands. It was a very successful time and we really made a difference to our clients, so I loved that.
there’s too much smoke and mirrors, and we’ve got to a point now where people say all too often “I understand that 50% of my marketing works but I just don’t know which 50% it is” – well we can tell you exactly what works in your marketing and what doesn’t. I want to get that out there and I want to make sure that every single penny of people’s marketing budget works.
What are you doing now? Now I’m running an Ad Agency called System 1. It’s based in Russell Square in London, but we have offices all around the world. We’re part of a bigger marketing services group called System 1 Group. The world doesn’t need another advertising agency, there are far too many of them out there already…and so this is very different. What we do is we only develop advertising that we can prove will help to grow a brand. We guarantee our work – it’s never been done before and it’s a really pioneering concept. It basically means that we test everything before we show it and share it with clients.
What are your goals? From a business point of view my goal is to build System1 into a real force in the world of marketing and advertising around the world and we’re working very hard to do that. We want to change the way that brands and businesses think about advertising and marketing. I think
Who has been your biggest influence in business? My biggest influences have been the people I’ve worked with. I’ve had some amazing bosses and coaches, and I’ve also met some amazing people in the world of sport. My first boss in Unilever was a guy called Hugh Dennis who is now on the TV (Outnumbered for example). He and I managed Lynx together. He was an
Doing things differently is definitely something that gets me out of bed
amazing guy to share an office with – it was when he was on the cusp of breaking into his acting career. Another amazing boss was a guy called Keith Weed who is now the CMO for Unilever and who was also very influential on my career. Then I’ve worked with loads of incredibly interesting people in the world of sport. I’ve always found that the athletes I’ve worked with have all got very inspirational stories to tell in their own right. People like Victoria Pendelton – cyclist and Double Olympic Gold medallist – and Matt Parker who was director of the Marginal Gains programme for British Cycling. They both talked a lot about how you set goals and objectives and then how you put in place a plan to achieve them - how you really drive high level performance. I’ve done a lot of thinking about how you take this and apply it to business – I love it!
Which charity is close to your heart? One of my huge bug bears is litter. I hate litter and it drives me mad. We waste so much money cleaning up litter around the UK and people are still not in the mindset that dropping litter is anti-social. I helped set up an organisation called Clean Up Britain – I’ve spent a lot of time with them to help establish them as a major force in the anti-litter
movement. Our number one goal is to try and develop and implement a UK wide anti-litter advertising and communications programme to try to and make people understand and change mindsets that dropping litter is anti-social. We’re talking to many organisations and brands whose products are littered brands like CocaCola, McDonalds, and we’re trying to get them to fund this campaign. I have a personal commitment to myself that if I see people dropping litter I ask them to pick it up. Although it sometimes doesn’t work at all and you have to have a very thick skin and be prepared to run!
Favourite business book? There are loads – but we’ve just written one, System1 - Unlocking Profitable Growth, so I would have to say this one at the moment. We’ve just launched it and we’re very proud of it
Bucket List To climb as many French Cols on my bike as possible - and to spend some months travelling in India.
Round up Follow us on Twitter for our latest news, views and social antics @Carringtonviews
What the carrington team have been up to this year INDUSTRY RECOGNITION
STAFF NEWS
GROWING THE TEAM!
Nicola finished the fourth year of her BSc (Psych) with Distinction – the course is offering great insight into the minds of Mike and Al.
Al on the other hand decided to once again tackle the Alps on his bicycle and although he came home unscathed, others weren’t quite so lucky!
Whilst Carolyn is on maternity leave, Cecily will be stepping in as Client We’re very proud to have been recognised by our peers and by Relationship Manager. She will be the Mohsin also decided to take to the the industry for the following awards: new client point of contact and will roads this summer, however, his glory continue to ensure everyone is well was achieved in his car, driving from New Model Adviser Top 100 Firm looked after. London to Albania in 41 degree 2016 & 2017 temperatures with a 3 month old ACHIEVEMENTS Best Practice International Adviser baby…give the man a medal. Awards – Excellence in Client Service Ali passed his RO6 exam Cecily ventured far out of her comfort 2017 and received his Diploma zone and went camping for the first in Financial Planning. Growth Investor Awards – Financial time. Not only did she survive the Advisor of the year - Alistair Candlish Cecily is taking her RO6 exam in experience, but she actually enjoyed it, – Shortlisted October – good luck Cecily! to all of our disbelief. Investment Week - Woman in They’ll both shortly be unleashed Eric, having spent many a day on the Investments Award – Carolyn Stewart into the world as junior advisers and golf course decided, to the dismay and Cecily Chapman - Finalists financial planners – watch out world! of his wife Shirley that he was well Mohsin has recently become a dad for the third time. He and his wife Anca, welcomed little Saskia into the world in May and apparently what she lacked in weight, she’s made up for in personality! Huge congratulations are due to Carolyn, who is due later this year! Very exciting news for her and her husband Dave. Carrington’s very own Future Advisers.
IN OTHER NEWS Some may have noticed via our Twitter feed or other sources that Mike celebrated his half century this year. Styling it out with a weeklong celebration and no less than 5 surprise birthday parties!!
qualified to tend to their lawn and managed to turn the whole of their garden black – just in time for the lovely summer al fresco dining.
Ali and Nicola took part in the Hever Castle Triathlon, part of the Castle Triathlon series, at the end of September. This was Ali’s first triathlon and Nicola’s fourth. It’s fair to say the bug has bit and they are trying to rope in the rest of the office for next year!
Media
8%
27% Retired
Married
68%
Armed forces
Financial professionals
2% 16% 19%
Client for longer than 5 years
% Members of golf clubs
Own their own business
4%
Watford FC fans
Have a home abroad
Who are our
clIENts?
Bucket list
What is yours? Do you know how MUCH is enough? Financial Life Planning gives you clarity over your future and allows you to make key decisions in life with confidence. It helps you answer questions such as: How much money do you need for the rest of your life? When can I retire? When should I sell my business? Can I start ticking off things on my Bucket List? What if I die tomorrow? Is too much money a problem?
Clarity creates Simplicity
“It was very helpful and inspiring – it’s new for us to focus on where we can go with our finances in the future – feels very enlightening
Great Financial Planning can change your life.
Dorn Rushin
Why should you have a Bucket List?
Gives your life direction – shifts focus away from the unimportant, to what really matters to you. Enables you to design a life around your personal goals and dreams. Lets you reflects on your life and what you have achieved up until this point. Helps you create a blueprint for an exciting life.
Where will YOU be 5 years from today?
OUR BUCKET LIST Nicola wants to sleep in an igloo
Cecily wants to learn how to make sushi
Ali wants to build a pizza oven in his garden
Carolyn wants to experience the migration
David wants to DJ a set at a festival
Mo wants to be a space tourist
Mike wants to watch the sunrise over the Grand Canyon
Alistair wants to enjoy some of the worlds classic train journeys including the Eastern & Oriental Express
Eric wants to fly in a fighter jet
QA &
PROFESSIONAL INTERVIEW
Dominic Trigg
Having advisers we can rely on to provide our clients with the same level of service we pride ourselves on offering is vitally important to us. Dominic Trigg from Christopher Trigg insurance is one such adviser, in fact he’s also Mike’s personal insurance broker, and here we’ve asked him a few questions about what makes him tick, why he does what he does and what he loves about working with his clients.
+44 (0) 1923 712434
WHO ARE CHRISTOPHER TRIGG INSURANCE?
dtrigg@christophertrigg.co.uk
Christopher Trigg are commercial and private client insurance brokers who were established in 1972 in North West London before relocating to our current location in Rickmansworth 13 years ago.
Managing Director Christopher Trigg Insurance Brokers
www.christophertrigg.co.uk
We are members of the Marsh Pro Broker network organisation, which enables us to secure preferential terms with insurers, which we pass onto our clients. We employ 12 staff of which 9 are brokers dealing with our clients with 3 in our finance and compliance team.
WHEN DID YOU JOIN CHRISTOPHER TRIGG AND WHAT IS YOUR ROLE? I joined the firm (a family business) over 20 years ago – originally as a temp providing a helping hand during the summer holidays and have been here ever since! The firm has changed immensely in that time and I’ve had the great pleasure of overseeing our expansion as Managing Director during the past few years. As Managing Director I’m now responsible for our continued growth and development and work very closely with the rest of the team, our clients and our Insurer Partners to achieve that.
WHAT MAKES CHRISTOPHER TRIGG DIFFERENT? We are a relatively small firm which gives us the power to make fast and efficient business decisions benefiting both the firm and the levels of bespoke personal advice we deliver to our clients. Whilst harnessing this power our membership of the global Marsh organisation gives us the purchasing power to provide highly competitive premiums to our clients. We are immensely proud of our client retention rates which are in excess of 97% each year which reflects our professional and friendly approach to client service.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB? The personal contact I have with clients has always been my favourite part of the job. I have also really enjoyed working with the team to formalise our ethos and values. Bringing this ethos to life by developing and training the team to reflect this further, has been particularly satisfying.
HAVE THERE BEEN ANY PARTICULAR CHALLENGES? Being a family business and having always been really involved in every aspect of our clients’ insurance programme, it can be a challenge to take a step back from the business to see it more strategically.
Vital Statistics... AGE: 47 POSITION: Managing Director INDUSTRY: Insurance INSPIRATION: Nick Faldo FAVOURITE PART OF JOB: Making a difference to clients in need FAVOURITE BOOK: Papillon, Henri Charrière HOBBIES: Golf, football, travel, chief supporter for wife’s marathon running.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT HELPING CLIENTS? Managing a difficult claim for our clients is the most rewarding aspect of working with them. I remember a few years ago receiving a phone call from one of our clients who was standing outside his office and warehouse, which was burnt down. I met with the client at his premises, he felt as though his world was caving in, but we managed to work with him and the insurers over the following weeks to ensure his business recovered to where they were prior to the loss which would not have been possible without having a robust insurance programme in place.
WHAT’S THE MOST BIZARRE THING YOU’VE BEEN ASKED TO INSURE? We have had so many requests over the years which seem strange including high net worth artefacts including gold bullion. However the strangest, which springs to mind, was goods in transit insurance for cattle semen, which we currently insure through Lloyd’s of London.
TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF? I am 47 years old and married with 2 children and also live in Rickmansworth. I attended John Lyon School in Harrow before that fateful summer of lending a “helping hand”! I love sport, both playing and watching, especially golf and football.
WHAT DO YOU DO TO RELAX/ UNWIND?
WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY READING?
I either run or go to the gym at 6AM most mornings which I find sets me up for the day and I also play as much golf as possible. I seem to be travelling more, having a few holidays throughout the course of the year which include a few city breaks either in the UK, Europe or the USA. My wife runs marathons all over the world so I sometimes go with her to watch!
The Truth by Professor Phil Scraton which provides an accurate but harrowing account of the Hillsborough tragedy. My all-time favourite book is Papillion by Henri Charrière which I must have read on at least 5 occasions during my lifetime.
WHO IS YOUR GREATEST INSPIRATION? I am easily inspired but to be specific Nick Faldo the golfer has always been a great inspiration to me as he succeeded through sheer hard work rather than natural talent. As a firm we also support various charities and seeing the hard work and effort charity volunteers put into their charities is a great source of inspiration. In particular we support the Herts Inclusive Theatre and seeing the great work this charity does is truly inspirational.
Managing a difficult claim for our clients is the most rewarding aspect of working with our clients.
Book review
At the start of the year we launched our Carrington Book Club. We take it in turns to choose a book that we think will INS PIR E the team and we then come together to discuss it as a group. Our aim is to learn from visionaries and industry leaders and to then take the ideas we value and adapt them for ourselves. As a group we were particularly inspired by the following book and wanted to share it with you. If you have a book that you think we should read please let us know!
LEGACY by James Kerr Legacy is an inspiring read that explores the reasons behind the success of the legendary All Blacks of New Zealand. The book reveals 15 concepts regarding leadership that the All Blacks apply on a day to day basis which have led to their success and in turn, sustaining it. Whilst the All Blacks are regarded as one of the most successful teams in sporting history, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. In 2004 it was clear the team had problems; the 2003 World Cup had not gone to plan which resulted in players threatening to leave, a lack of discipline and further losses. Legacy discusses the response to these problems under the new management team, and Graham Henry, as they began to rebuild the team. The book highlights the importance of culture and working to create a
long-term successful cultural legacy. Managing their culture is what gives the All Blacks their competitive advantage and James Kerr breaks down the values on which they have built it. Parallels are drawn throughout the book between how to create and maintain a successful rugby team and how this can also be applied in a business environment. There is a strong focus on the humble and hard-working nature of the whole team and the lengths to which they will go, both physically and mentally, to achieve their goals. As an office, we have all learnt a lot from this book and it has encouraged us to focus on our values and how we can improve. We have especially adopted the ‘sweep the sheds’ lesson, with Mike and Alistair making rounds of tea! An easy and compelling read.
a day in
the life of
Ali Moorhouse
STAFF INTERVIEW
: Zzzz - Wake up, bleary eyed and
jump in the shower, pack up my things for the day ahead and hop on my bike to cycle in to work. The cycle takes around 25 minutes and wakes me up for the day.
: Arrive at the office after braving the London traffic on the short trip in, I change and start work.
: My Job - I work as part of the client relationship team and we handle day to day client requests. At the start of each day Cecily, Carolyn and I meet to discuss any ongoing activities we are helping our clients with. We also keep the advisers updated, then tell them to leave so we can get some work done.
Build my own Pizza Oven Watch a football match at every stadium in the football league
: Life Plan Meeting - Life Planning
is a central part to our business and, for me, is the most enjoyable aspect of the job. We usually have a life plan ongoing for a client and their family which takes over your life for a week or two, no toilet breaks, nothing. We spend an hour meeting as a collective to discuss the most appropriate planning solutions for each bespoke situation. Everyone chips in, we are a very open office and encourage each other’s ideas. There is no ‘one size fits all’ to financial planning. As we like to keep as current and knowledgeable as possible in this regard, we schedule regular webinars, training and seminars and are members of a Life Planning group, which meets frequently to discuss changes to the industry and share new ideas.
Bucket List Travel around India by train Complete an ironman
: Plank Time! Every day we plank as
a group for 1 minute at 11:00am and 3:00pm. Health is wealth.
: Lunch - I enjoy cooking, so often
have left overs from the night before when I cook for myself and flatmates. I eat a lot. We also have an oven at the office so the world is my oyster. If I need to stretch my legs, then I might take a walk down to Oxford Street or visit one the nearby parks. Our office is conveniently positioned right in the heart of Marylebone!
: Afternoon - I spend the
afternoon writing reports with the recommendations we are making to our clients, this could be transferring a pension to benefit from our investment management or simply getting more financially organised. I shadow Mike and Alistair at their meetings with clients as often as possible. It’s great to get out and put a face to a name and meet the people we have heard so much about in the office.
Top 5 Facts
Favourite App Sky Sports Score Centre Favourite Business Book The Big Short Parkrun PB 19:18 My film doppelganger Professor Gilderoy Lockhart Football Team Huddersfield Town
Meeting clients and being involved in complex planning means no two days are the same.
: Plank no. 2
: Revision - Since joining Carrington in 2015, I have always had an exam on the horizon so try and get some revision done every evening. I am currently studying towards being Chartered in financial planning.
: I play 5-a-side football 3 nights a week for 3 separate teams so most nights I cycle down to Peckham for a kick about followed by a couple of pints with the team. If I’m not playing football I usually go out for a run or go to the gym.
: TV - I live with 3 close friends so if everyone is in the house, we watch an episode of a boxset or 8 out of 10 cats does countdown to wind down then it’s off to bed John Boy, Mary Ellen.
chAriTY OF THEyEAR : NPRF This year for the first time we are delighted to announce that we are officially supporting a charity. We have previously supported our clients in their amazing fundraising endeavours, and will continue to do so, however, we would like to do more. The charity we have selected is the Niemann-Pick Research Foundation (NPRF). This is a special charity that was formed and is run by our friends and clients David and Sue French. Their son William was diagnosed with the disease at a very young age and this prompted David and Sue (pictured left with his sister) to set up the foundation in 2011. William suffers from Niemann-Pick Type C (“NPC�) which is a very rare, terminal, neurological disease. There are only about 80 people with NPC in the UK. The disease often presents in children and symptoms vary across patients, but normally
problems with vertical gaze are an early sign. NPC is a form of dementia and these neurological symptoms become worse as the disease develops. The disease affects muscle tone and motor skills and patients can suffer from epileptic attacks. Clumsiness and slurred speech are also symptoms as well as difficulty swallowing. There is no cure for this devastating disease. David and Sue realized early on that there were avenues of research that can be pursued, often with relatively modest funding. They set up the NPRF in 2011 with the sole aim of raising money to fund research and trials into a successful therapy for NPC. There is currently promising research being undertaken but it needs to be translated into therapeutic treatments. To aid this worthy cause, Carrington are planning a number of events throughout the year, kicking off with sponsorship of the annual NPRF Ball which took place in October.
www.nprf.org.uk
Keep your eyes peeled for more information around our upcoming fundraising events and challenges.
There is no passion to be found playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living NELSON MANDELA
29 Gloucester Place . London . W1U 8HX t. 020 7034 7037 w. carringtoninvestments.co.uk
@CarringtonViews