PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
Planning ahead
Looking after your money is a wise thing to do, however people tend to find investing a rather daunting prospect. But, says Kate Hamilton, if you get the right financial advice then it can actually be extremely easy…
“If people are going to invest their hard-earned money, then they deserve to deal with a real person face to face,” explains Tina Owen of Tina Owen Financial Planning Ltd. Her mantra to her clients is, “I don’t just look after your money – I look after you.” And you can well believe it. Sat in her sunny office overlooking Queens Gardens in the heart of Colwyn Bay, Tina is one of the most approachable people that you are ever likely to meet. She makes her clients her business and, as a result, is approached for all sorts of advice – not just financial! “I want people to know that when they come to see me, I want to make their lives as easy as possible. I work very closely with local solicitors and accountants to make sure that every single aspect of my clients’ finances and legal commitments are taken care of in the best possible way. I’m a local business, with local clients and find our Colwyn Bay office is an ideal central location for the people of North Wales.” But just how did Tina end up as the financial planner that puts people first? “I started out with what was Midland Bank, now HSBC before becoming a Financial Adviser for Lloyds’s, a career that has so far spanned over 35 years,” she explains. “When Lloyds Banking group made the Financial Adviser role redundant in November 2014 and after many offers of employment I decided to set up on my own. I wanted to be able to look after my clients in my own way without the restrictions of a large corporate organisation. A lot of my former clients have since followed me. It’s amazing how loyal people are once they know that you genuinely have their best interests at heart. It makes me feel really valued.” The majority of Tina’s clients are retired or just coming up to retirement and require help with the complicated retirement process and options available to them, many of them then stating they wished they’d met her earlier, which just goes to show it is never too early to start planning for the future. “Most of my clients aren’t millionaires, they are everyday people, who simply don’t want to be left alone with their finances. I start at ground level ascertaining their tax position (you won’t believe the amount of people that overpay!) making sure that their investments and pension pots are best placed for their individual requirements. I simply want to improve their lives.”