What does it mean for our business to be “client-centered”? (Wait, shouldn’t all business be “client-centered”?…) In this week’s video, Mark and Caitie talk about the role the firm plays in our relationships with you, what the client’s job is, and more.
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It takes all kinds. Really, literally. A versatile team is made from a variety of strengths. Here’s a little glimpse at some of the players we like to see in a balanced portfolio.
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What does it mean for our business to be “client-centered”? (Wait, shouldn’t all business be “client-centered”?…) In this week’s video, Mark and Caitie talk about the role the firm plays in our relationships with you, what the client’s job is, and more.
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What a journey thus far!
I started at the kitchen table. Bought the office building at 228 Main when I could neither afford it nor afford to pass it up. Struggled and juggled for years. Fit a snowbird lifestyle into the middle of it. Survived personal tragedy, a cruel disease that slowly took the life of my high school sweetheart.
And through it all, we grew. More and more people entrusted more and more wealth to our care. More and more teammates helped me hold up my end of the deal.
They say it is not the strongest or the smartest who survive and thrive, but those who adapt and adjust to change.
But then, there are the things that have not changed. We are a team of four advisors—myself, Greg, Caitie, and Billy—along with two full-time service team members, Whitney and Brenda. All of us serve one book of business. Everyone gets access to the same set of services. One story, one philosophy, one book of business.
You may not recognize how different this makes us. (But you also know I’ve never been one to follow the crowd!)
Many financial advisor shops, however, are a collection of sole proprietors, each on the prowl for new business all the time. There may be other four-advisor shops that work more like four separate teams that happen to compete nearby each other—not like teammates who play together, toward the same goal.
We believe we are organized differently—and better.
With a team set-up, any client can call any one of us. Four advisors, two service team members, one team. No matter who picks up the phone, we’re committed to getting you pointed in the right direction.
That’s what the team means to me, today.
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Play the audio version of this post below:
It takes all kinds. Really, literally. A versatile team is made from a variety of strengths. Here’s a little glimpse at some of the players we like to see in a balanced portfolio.
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This time of year often invites some reflection. We’ve said goodbye to 2024 and are welcoming 2025. We’re thinking about beginnings, endings, and transitions.
In Roman mythology, Janus is the god of these things. He had two faces, one looking forward and another looking back. His purview included doors, archways, and gates.
It feels natural at this time to take stock of where we’ve been—and think about the best way forward. That’s what we’re doing at 228 Main.
When Mark founded this enterprise decades ago, it was just him at a kitchen table. In 2000, he moved the business to the digs at 228 Main Street in beautiful downtown Louisville. He knew that he was on to something, that he could keep building something special on a simple but powerful foundation: if he took care of his clients, their business would take care of him.
And the work kept growing. In those intermediate years, he hired staff to help him manage. Among their ranks were family and friends who provided administrative and service support.
Since 2020, the staff has continued to transform. Today, the team is both more specialized and more interwoven. The three of us “next-gen” advisors are co-owners with Mark, with three portions of 24.9% of the shares to his 25.3% portion.
Now we’re in transition, preparing for the decades ahead. There are six of us total on the LFS team, each one still growing and learning. But it takes all of us to make sure our three key activities can happen: 1) We talk with you to sort out what you are trying to do in life. 2) We research investment opportunities. 3) We manage your portfolios.
As we do these things, we’re planning a structure for the enterprise that is collaborative and collegial, where every generation and every teammate puts their gifts on the table for the benefit of all: the wisdom of experience, the energy of youth, and all the diversity of talents and interests we bring.
Many of you know from company lore—and your friendships with Mark—that he intends to work to age 92. (It’s a whole thing for him, a vision that he gleaned from some important mentors early in life. Ask him sometime.) We can’t know the future. And some of us may actually have more years ahead of us in this line of work than there are behind us.
But it’s fair to say that we are all indeed in this for the long haul. So how do we make this thing more sustainable?
We’re all committed to some important things: continuing to build on our strengths and what’s working and staying open to the future and all the opportunities ahead. We learn and grow from both perspectives.
Like the Roman god Janus, we’re looking back and we’re looking forward. Working with the foundation of our history and the road ahead—that’s the superpower of this team.
Want to talk about this or anything else? Call or write, anytime.
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Play the audio version of this post below:
What a journey thus far!
I started at the kitchen table. Bought the office building at 228 Main when I could neither afford it nor afford to pass it up. Struggled and juggled for years. Fit a snowbird lifestyle into the middle of it. Survived personal tragedy, a cruel disease that slowly took the life of my high school sweetheart.
And through it all, we grew. More and more people entrusted more and more wealth to our care. More and more teammates helped me hold up my end of the deal.
They say it is not the strongest or the smartest who survive and thrive, but those who adapt and adjust to change.
But then there are the things that are not changing.
I recently heard second-hand the misperception that “Mark Leibman is not taking new clients.” But from a business sense, Mark Leibman became Leibman Financial Services, Inc. (LFS), a long time ago. And LFS is definitely working with anyone who contacts us with an interest in what we’re doing in here. Everyone gets access to the same set of services. One story, one philosophy, one book of business.
And still, anyone with an internet connection can know what I, Mark, am thinking. Every client gets the impact of my ongoing obsession with the markets. And they get a lot more brainpower working for them than I personally possess.
I have always asked myself, and you, and my teammates, and our mentors this question: “What could we be doing differently or better?” The underlying object has always been to try to grow the buckets—and help people connect their money to their lives. Some of you tell us we have done it differently and better.
In an industry seemingly focused on getting new clients and finding new money, we aim all of our intentional efforts entirely at you, our clients. Don’t have time to chase “new money.” Not me, not my teammates.
Eliminating sales activity enables us to put investment research, portfolio management, and communicating with you at the center of our work. Many other investment advisors outsource all of that into model portfolios managed by others and buy canned communications, all so that they can go look for new customers.
Paradoxically (or not), when we stopped pursuing prospects, we began attracting more clients. People tend to like it a lot when their buckets grow.
These distinctions empowered our evolution into a different and better organization. We have many teammates, and ownership and management is now a four-person collaboration. But we still have one story, one philosophy, and one book of business. Many “financial advisor” shops, however, are like a collection of sole proprietors, each on the prowl for new business all the time.
We believe we are organized differently—and better.
At the beginning, Colonel Sanders cooked all the chicken. At the beginning, I did everything, too. The business has grown into something that no single person could operate on their own—not me, not Sanders, not any one of my three partners. It takes all of us.
All three of my partners have the credentials and experience to consult with clients, to take the lead when they are the best fit. Each of us brings the same philosophy, the same investment offerings based on the same research, to every client. Any client can call any one of us. I am still here to talk—and so are my partners.
And the whole enterprise rests on the same values and principles, the same herbs and spices that we started with.
Wondering what any of this means for you? Call me, or any one of them, any time.
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When designing a portfolio, one might think about it like a baseball team. Obviously we want to build a winning team, but we know it won’t likely be an undefeated team. The strength of the team is in the versatility of the lineup.
Each player brings a skillset. There’s the base-stealer, the defensive replacement, the slugger, the all-star… We’re thinking about how some of these spots play a role in portfolios.
No portfolio can be made from just one type of player. A portfolio consisting of only all-stars would be too expensive (and we like a bargain). A team of streaky players would be good during the good times—and tough to watch when they’re all struggling in sync.
A balanced lineup is what we desire. No guarantees on any particular outcome, but we think there are plenty of strengths that come in handy. Clients, when you have questions, please write or call.
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Clients, I’m one of a kind. I’ve worked many years and traveled many paths to be the person I am today.
Even though I’m the one and only Mark Leibman, I get to do what I do as part of an amazing team at 228 Main. I notice this truth now more than ever.
The enterprise has three core activities:
I sometimes say I am in business to talk all day, but as you can see from these notes, it takes the whole team to make that possible.
Four of us here in the shop contribute to our communications. Three of us collaborate on investment research and analyze portfolios. Two focus on logistics and paperwork, taking care of details.
While I spend the most time with you, Caitie Leibman directs our communications, which really is just another way to talk to you, with contributions from Greg Leibman, and Billy Garver, and me. Greg, Billy, and I work on research and portfolios. And Patsy Havenridge and Larry Wiederspan take care of service—the paperwork and logistics.
The buck stops with me, of course: I take responsibility for investment decisions and trading and recommendations and everything, but I could never accomplish by myself the things we are able to do as a team. We are working with more than $100 million for clients in twenty states.
I’ve often said that if there were three of me, we’d all be busy. But the world does not need any more copies of me. Every member of the 228 Main team knows that the better off you are, the better off we will be—and they each contribute skills and abilities I don’t have.
I couldn’t be more proud of them.
Clients, is there anything for which you could use our team’s perspective? Call or write, anytime.
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