Dale’s children) along with Century City Chamber of Commerce president Susan Bursk.
A ribbon cutting ceremony for Century City’s recently launched Western Ridge Financial and Insurance Services LLC was held last Wednesday. The dignitaries of the Century City Chamber of Commerce were able to personally come to the firm office with giant scissors and participate in the celebration of a new beginning alongside the Western Ridge founders.
The close-knit community environment that Century City undeniably carries was all the more amplified during this event, as the Chamber members were all familiar and friendly with the Western Ridge staff.
The insurance firm was officially launched on June 1. Its two founders, managing partner Andrew Dale and senior partner Brook Stevens, both know how to effectively carry a balance of friendliness and professionalism.
Though they are both clearly very knowledgeable in their field, they still maintained a sense of warmness and approachability toward everyone who walked through the company’s front doors.
Both Dale and Stevens had hailed from other firms, with Dale having about 10 years of experience within the same field.
However, he became frustrated by the way large major firms worked with their clients. It makes sense that Western Ridge negates the way several other firms function by commendably creating its own method of serving its clients.
When asked about his favorite part of the job, Dale referred to his “love of coaching.”
“From my kids, to my financial advisors, to my clients, I love working with people to help them reach their goals,” Dale said.
Dale’s sincerity and genuine interest in his clients makes it clear that Western Ridge has an unconventional approach to financial planning.
“We start with financial organization, as we find that many clients out there have accumulated many products, like a 401k, insurance, and other investments,” Dale said. “But no one has ever sat down with them to make sure all the puzzle pieces fit together.”
Western Ridge therefore offers the rare component of sincere care and genuine interest in the client.
“We’ve had a couple of clients refer to our style as a family office approach,” Stevens said.
The firm acknowledges the utmost importance of teamwork and the fact that this work is not, nor will never be, a one-man show.
In fact, their sleek, organized new office intentionally do not incorporate high cubical walls in order to encourage team planning. This emphasis on collectivism not only reveals the company’s values, but also makes Western Ridge stand out among the rest.
“We have people who specialize in different areas of financial planning,” Stevens said. “Our clients appreciate that they have multiple points of contact. No one pretends like they know everything.”
Western Ridge also possesses the drive of a “start-up type of mentality,” as it has been but a month since its debut. But the backing that Western Ridge has from its parent companies mean that the firm also has a variety of contacts and resources, and is ultimately able to offer a holistic approach to its clients. In this way Western Ridge boasts both the passion of a start-up business as well as the resources of a seasoned firm.
With a starting staff of about ten people, Western Ridge is of course “looking to expand and to grow.”
However, Western Ridge does not relent on their belief that passion and integrity is key.
“We look for people who want to make a difference in the lives of others and help them out, not just sell a product and take advantage of people,” Dale said.
At the end of the day, Western Ridge places integrity over all other aspects of business, which is a rare sight to see in the realm of corporate America.
“People need someone they can trust,” Dale said. “But it’s so hard to find that.”
Western Ridge seeks to offer the reliability that clients need by building and practicing the integrity of a trusted advisor.
For more information, visit western-ridge.com.
