Unmatched Independence, Service and Culture: Here’s What People Are Saying About Kestra PWS
Wondering if exiting the wirehouse model is the right decision?
You are not alone. Like many before who’ve considered starting their own advisory firm, when you decide to take that leap of faith and partner with Kestra PWS, you’ll be questioning why you didn’t leave the wirehouse sooner.
Whether your decision to exit is entrepreneurial, to have more control to better serve your clients needs, or compensation based, we are here to guide you every step of the way to ensure that going independent doesn’t mean doing it alone.
Below, you will find recent testimonials from clients which illustrates the full-service support you’ll receive when choosing to partner with us:
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Wirehouse restrictions and criticism: “You know very clearly that at the wirehouse, they own the client,” explains Krista Murray (California Wealth Transitions). “You’ve spent all this time, decades, building your book, and you aren’t able to realize some of the benefits for you and for your clients by having that true ownership. Kestra PWS has helped us give a much broader array of services to our clients than we could when we were at (the wirehouse), where we felt hamstrung.”
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Advantages to independence and Kestra PWS: “The first thing is your business ownership and controlling your future,” describes Brendan McCarthy (Three Bridges Planning). “And then the second is the services that you’re able to offer your client now. You just don’t have that opportunity at the wirehouse.” Keith Brandt (California Wealth Transitions) further explains, “If you’re going to leave a wirehouse, the issue comes down to going completely independent or going with a firm like Kestra PWS. I would say that going with a firm like Kestra is going to make that transition way easier, way more successful than going completely independent off the bat.”
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Transition to independence: “What attracted us to Kestra PWS was the turnkey transition to independence,” states McCarthy. “Going independent is scary because it’s definitely a leap of faith. You don’t know what you don’t know. I didn’t feel like I had the capacity to figure out real estate, figure out build out, figure out budgets. So that was a really nice benefit with Kestra Private Wealth. You've got that help with them providing the office, the printers, all the stuff that you would have to get on your own, the computers, the software, everything else,” explains TF Jenkins (Rivergrass Wealth Management).
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Payout: “Our payout at Kestra PWS is higher than it was at the wirehouse. And even if it's a break even, which it’s not, it's still a tremendous move because of the business ownership,” states McCarthy. “The infrastructure that Kestra PWS has really does help us to grow our business more than if we had gotten a bigger payout with a firm where we had to do everything,” expresses Murray.
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Marketing and business development: “Kestra PWS helped us with our branding and developing our niche. And it's pretty cool to literally build your own brand in your own name and in your own image, with some assistance. That's not always possible in our world,” voices Brandt. “We're able to market ourselves as individuals, which we couldn't do before. And there's just a whole lot more entrepreneurial opportunity on this side than there ever could have been on the wirehouse side,” says Jenkins.
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Setting up and running your firm the way you want: “We're proud now to have clients come into our office to see what we're building, what we're building for our families, our children. It's just an entirely different experience when you have not only the financial equity, but also when that financial equity equates to pride in the business,” states McCarthy. “We wanted flexibility, and they offered that flexibility. We wanted to be involved in certain decisions, and they allowed us to be. There were plenty of areas that we didn't want to be involved in. Then there's a turnkey solution,” describes Jeffrey Boudjouk (Northeast Investment Group).
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Client service and satisfaction: “The amount of commissions and minimum fees (at the wirehouse) was a real negative. By treating people the right way, we've been amazed at the referrals that we've gotten, as well as the benefits that have come our way as result of just doing the right things for the right reason,” explains Johnston. “With independence, there's been a cost benefit for the clients, perhaps something they don't see, but I think it’s definitely a benefit—our peace of mind and happiness with our job and careers, and enjoying coming in every day,'' states Jenkins.
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Business ownership: “If you're at the wirehouse, they may give you some kind of compensation if you decide to retire. But when you're a business owner, you can do a lot to enhance your business, grow your business, and, at some point, sell your business,” says Murray.
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Culture: “Any conversation with Kestra is all about improving our business and servicing our clients. That's the conversation here. That's the culture. The culture at the wirehouse is promoting the firm,” explains McCarthy. “They want to hear from us. They want to hear from their advisors, what's working, what's not working. They care, and, to me, that's a sign of what Kestra PWS is about,” says Boudjouk.
By partnering with Kestra PWS, our clients have the freedom to make their own decisions positioning themselves as truly independent entrepreneurs.
Start a conversation with us today to learn more.
