Monarch Wealth & Investment Group Inc. may be a fairly new name on Bay Street, but the company is aiming to differentiate itself from other small and mid-sized firms with its dedication to personalized service and added value to both its clients and its advisors, says CEO Jacqueline Boddaert.

“We have both clients and advi-sors who have been here for many years [with predecessor firms] because of the personalized service they have received,” Boddaert says. “We are a boutique firm, and what that means is we provide a distinct type of service for all of our clients and advisors. We tend to make sure we keep that personal feel and tone at the forefront of everything we do.”

Monarch is the result of a merger of two well-established financial planning firms, with more than 40 years of combined experience.

In 2002, Boddaert — as a primary shareholder — purchased Toronto-based Tom Delaney Financial Inc., which was established in 1982, creating Monarch Delaney Financial Inc. Two years later, the assets of Monarch Delaney Financial Inc. were amalgamated with those of Toronto-based Investment Shop Inc. when Boddaert purchased the latter. Investment Shop, which was established in 1985, was then re-branded to create Monarch Wealth & Investment Group.

The firm is now made up of three business lines: Monarch Wealth & Investment Group, Monarch Wealth Assurance Agency Inc. and Monarch Wealth Deposit Group Inc. With seven offices in Ontario and 19 in-house advisors, the boutique-style firm has expansion plans and a new marketing strategy in the works.

“I am very aware of the power that advertising has on the building of businesses and I believe it really is the next logical step for us to get the word out,” Boddaert says, noting that although Monarch has never used advertising in the past, it plans to launch its first campaign in the new year. “The challenge is to make sure that we advertise in a way that is effective and, as with smaller firms, we don’t have the same money that big firms have to generate those types of awareness.”

The launch of a new advertising campaign comes at an opportune time for Monarch, as it is also planning to expand outside Ontario early in 2008. Currently, it has offices in and around the Toronto area and a subbranch in Ottawa. The firm is also licensed in British Columbia. However, Alberta and the Atlantic provinces are the two destinations in which Boddaert would like to see the expansion begin.

“The opportunity is there, and it really is an exciting one,” she adds. “Also, we have helped create an opportunity with what we have done to brand the company and develop the positioning of new branch levels.”

Boddaert hopes to expand the Monarch brand by developing subbranch offices. Within the past six months, the firm has added about 30 advisors through subbranch offices in Ontario. In addition, the firm has invested in technology that will allow subbranches to set up easily and advisors to stay connected. Monarch is the only firm in Ontario that has invested in a program called MAPS, which allows advisors to be e-mailed when a client’s portfolio has moved beyond know-your-client parameters.

“This technology creates the opportunity for client discussions, which is great for advisors,” Boddaert says. “It is also efficient from a compliance standpoint because we can be really proactive with making sure all portfolios stay within KYC tolerances.”

In addition to viewing client portfolios, advisors are also able to perform portfolio comparisons regarding asset allocation and risk returns, and produce easily understandable graphs for clients.

Monarch believes in the fundamentals of managed planning and creating relationships that go deeper than just managing money.

“It’s about understanding your client’s needs,” Boddaert says. “Goal-based planning is something that advisors can utilize, and we can assist them to have much broader relationships with clients. We don’t just call our clients at RRSP time; we see them throughout the year just to check on their portfolios, update strategies and see how they are doing.”

The firm currently has about 6,000 clients and $1 billion in assets under administration. It offers clients a range of financial planning services, including portfolio planning, tax and estate planning, insurance planning and business-succession planning. Monarch offers a selection of products, including GICs, annuities, principal-protected notes, mutual funds, segregated funds, group and individual insurance, and income trust funds.

@page_break@For products that Monarch doesn’t itself offer, Boddaert is working toward establishing a referral service. Currently, clients can access legal counsel for estate planning needs or an accountant for their tax planning. In the future, Boddaert wants to include securities referrals that would provide clients with access to specific portfolio managers.

“It goes beyond just referring trades to the company,” she says. “It is the manager that is going to make the difference in the assets that they manage, so I would think that having a strategic relationship with a portfolio manager and being able to choose who you would like based on performance would be attractive to many clients. That is part of the enhanced personalized service we want to continue.”

Building businesses has been the focus of Boddaert’s career. With more than 15 years of diversified business experience as a senior executive in the financial services, packaged goods and pharmaceutical industries, Boddaert has been involved in developing strategic plans for businesses, putting resources in place, making sure the economics are right for the businesses to grow and building teams.

Boddaert has worked for such internationally known companies as New York-based Sterling Drug Inc., a division of Eastman Kodak Co.; Germany-based Bayer Inc.; Etobicoke, Ont.-based Borden Catelli; Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Chattem Inc.; and Toronto-based Bic Inc. She has held senior management positions with a variety of companies, managing businesses for both private and publicly held organizations, and has extensive management experience with multifunctional teams from finance, manufacturing, sales and marketing, as well as a proven track record in improving the financial performance of organizations undergoing significant growth.

When it comes to management, Boddaert says, Monarch has one of the most diverse teams out there; each one brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the table.

“With staff members who are experienced in both the regulatory side and the business side, Monarch provides a diverse perspective in the industry,” she says. “We have all the talent that is needed to grow a business successfully.”

That talent includes:

> Gordon Pridham, Chairman. Pridham brings more than 25 years’ experience in investment banking, capital markets and corporate finance and has managed the investment-banking groups of national and international firms such as Raymond James Ltd., Research Capital Corp., Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group PLC and Midland Walwyn Capital Inc. Most recently, he was president and CEO of IPC Securities Corp. until he joined Monarch in September 2006.

> Howard Brand, Chief Compliance Officer. Brand is responsible for regulatory compliance and brings 14 years of industry experience to his role. Brand started his career on the advisory side of the business, which helped him gain a comprehensive understanding of advisor needs and challenges, Boddaert says. Brand spent three years as compliance officer at the Mutual Fund Dealers Association of Canada and also worked at FundEx Investments Inc. as assistant chief compliance officer before joining Monarch last year.

> Antonella Valente, Chief Financial Officer. Valente has been with Monarch and its predecessors for nine years and is responsible for the firm’s financial position and all of its financial reporting. Valente began her career with the firm as an advisor for two years before taking on the responsibility of controller and now CFO.

Many of the employees in the compliance department have been advisors themselves, which makes it easier for the firm’s current advisors.

“I am a firm believer that you need to be able to put yourself in the place of an advisor or client to service them really well,” Boddaert says.

Monarch has both veteran and rookie advisors. Unlike some of the larger firms, there are no book minimums or sale targets. Recruitment is done by referrals from existing advisors, word of mouth and cold-calling by the firm’s recruitment department.

“We see a lot of the larger firms that have been very successful [are] not able to deal effectively or do not want to deal with advisors who have small books of business of less than $15 million,” Boddaert says. “Or [they don’t want] advi-sors who don’t aggressively manage the book of business, or who have a large books of business but the revenue isn’t quite at what the benchmark should be for a large firm.

“We see great opportunities for those advisors in a boutique environment ,” she adds, “and want to help them grow their businesses and develop better relationships with their clients.”

Industry forecasts expect a doubling of AUA by 2014, so there is no better time to expand, Boddaert says: “You have to build one client at a time, and I believe that it’s about relationships and it’s about being steady, consistent and being able to deliver on your promises.

“What we can provide clients will translate into great returns for them, as well as a personalized relationship that is unique in this industry,” she adds. “We are here to do it for everybody.” IE