A string of changes at Bleakleys has come too late to stop eight of its offices in Victoria from breaking away and forming their own company.
A string of changes at Bleakleys has come too late to stop eight of its offices in Victoria from breaking away and forming their own company.
A group of 18 associates from these offices, which together have more $500 mil-lion under advice, have obtained their own dealers licence and have formed a boutique chain called OzPlan Financial Services.
Among the break away associates are John Ives, Graham Manning, Roy Holbrook, Greg Wormald, Gerry Mayfield, Laurie Pennell, Brendan Smith and Glen Steches.
Ives, a director of the new company, says: “Our leaving was a natural progres-sion of growing our businesses. We decided we were big enough to get our own li-cence. And, we can run our businesses more cost effectively by equally sharing expenses.”
The new company consists of a law firm, a financial planning practice and six accountancy practices. It has offices in Melbourne (two), Geelong, Warrnambool, Ballarat, Sheparton, Benalla and Morwell.
Ives says: “We left on the absolute best terms with Bleakleys. They assisted us in the transition and they helped us with the bulk transfer of our existing cli-ents.”
Bleakly’s chief executive Wes McMaster concurs.
“The group told me that they had been planning to leave for 18 months. It’s a pity they made their decision before some of the changes we have implemented started to emerge,” he says.
Bleakleys has been through a major revamp since McMaster took over the helm in October. Among the new services introduced are research, asset management, training, professional standards and a life brokerage. Bleakleys’ staff are also receiving risk training and business plans will be prepared for all offices.
“We are carefully positioning ourselves as the dealer of choice for the account-ing community,” McMaster says.
He confirms, however, that there are plans to close Bleakleys’ Hurstville office in Sydney. Those working there will either move to its Chatswood office or form an external office, which mean it will become an owner operated office under the Bleakleys banner. The move follows the conversion of Bleakleys’ Paramatta office to an external office.
