Earlier this week, we brought you the news that Broker Network had announced the acquisition of regional broking powerhouse, Boyd Insurance.
Now, Boyd’s managing director has revealed more about the move and what it means for the Paisley-based brokerage in an interview with Insurance Business.
“I think the key opportunities for us are the profile that we will get within the market and the opportunity for us to grow our client bank, both organically and through acquisition,” Eric Richardson explained.
A growth plan for Boyd to increase its business from £12 million to in excess of £20 million within the next three years, will “only be achievable, if there is some acquisition activity,” Richardson said.
With that growth is likely to be increased staff numbers too. From the standpoint of existing Boyd employees, the move gives them both job security and job opportunity, he explained, “but as the business grows, our staff numbers will correspondingly grow in line.”
“I think all too often when people hear about an acquisition they just think it’s a consolidation, it’s a way of trying to reduce costs – and invariably those reduced costs will mean reduced staff costs and reduced numbers. Quite the reverse for us, this is a real opportunity for staff numbers to increase and for opportunities within our existing team,” he explained.
The effect of the move on an operational, day-to-day basis will be “very little,” Richardson said, but the acquisition will allow Boyd to continue providing a “hands-on, local service approach” to clients, combined with the support and buying power of major player Broker Network.
“Our mid-tier commercial and corporate clients get a much more joined up approach to service than we believe they would get with the larger national and consolidating brokers,” he commented.
Describing Boyd as an efficient, well-run business with excellent customer loyalty, Richardson said that Broker Network acquired the business “on the back of having liked what we’ve done, and what they’ve seen in terms of how Boyd as a company has got to where we are at the moment.”
“Broker Network have a slogan of ‘local broker, national backing,’ and I think that’s a great way of summing up Boyd Insurance as a business,” he added.
