Worcester, 4th October 2024 – Financial Advice Centre Limited (FAC), Worcestershire’s leading Independent Financial Adviser and Mortgage Broker firm, is celebrating 25 years of success with a series of planned events and strong growth plans for the future.
Established in 1999, this award-winning business continues to help clients achieve their financial objectives by creating bespoke investment plans tailored to their individual needs. With a strong focus on integrity and service, the company attributes its ongoing success to its roots in the community.
FAC Ltd’s approach has not only provided wealth, prosperity and guidance to hundreds of clients in the Worcester and Wolverhampton areas; it has also resulted in a raft of industry awards and deeply loyal clients and employees.
Although its client base has grown and diversified over the last 25 years, FAC Ltd’s core customer base comes from helping teachers and other hard-working people in the area manage their wealth, including pensions and other investments.
Standout moments over the last 25 years include gaining industry recognition as domestic abuse and vulnerable client champions in 2019. That is also the year FAC Ltd launched its ethical investment vehicles as standard and established its mortgage department, forming strategic partnerships with leading estate agents in Worcestershire.
Other notable achievements include the opening of the FAC Ltd Wolverhampton office in 2021 and in 2022, the company was the first Worcester-based firm to be awarded the coveted title of Best Midlands Financial Advisors. In 2023, the company’s forward-thinking board reached gender equilibrium of women and men.
Today, the FAC Ltd team of 22 comprises talented independent financial and mortgage advisors, backed up by excellent operational support.
Piers Mepsted, Managing Director at FAC Ltd shares some insight into the company’s success over the last 25 years:
“At FAC Limited, I believe our success is built on doing the right thing for our clients and putting their financial needs and goals at the heart of everything we do. That’s why we value taking time to get to know and understand our clients and their financial objectives, and think it’s incredibly important that we regularly see people face-to-face to ensure we are supporting them the best way possible.
“Our fantastic, talented team at FAC Limited is equipped with the right tools, knowledge and experience to help support all our clients, whether they’re looking to choose the right mortgage offering, or build a solid financial platform for a comfortable retirement.”
In an increasingly crowded and complex world of financial advice and investment offerings competing for people’s attention, Niamh Byrne, Head of Mortgages, acknowledges that navigating your way through the plethora of advice can be challenging for some people. She is also keen to point out that FAC Ltd is not only for people with significant amounts of capital. She comments:
“We’re here to help people choose the right mortgage or investment plan for them. We’re not tied to any specific financial institutions, so we’re able to listen to our clients’ needs and help them select the right plan or product for them. That is as true for clients wanting to buy their first home, as it is for those wanting to build on their investment portfolio.”
It would be fair to say that not everything in the world of finance has been plain sailing over the last 25 years. For example, Jeff Bezos’ decision to expand Amazon from an online book store to selling toys and electronics saw its 1999 valuation of $30bn crash to $2.25bn in 2001, following the bursting of the dot.com bubble. And PayPal was originally voted one of the 10 worst business ideas of 1999. Fast forward to today, and PayPal now has over 329 million active users and Amazon is valued at over $1.9trn.
The housing market has also seen its fair share of ups and downs in the last two and a half decades. In 1999, the average UK house price was around £75,000, which equated to just over four times the average salary at the time. Today, the average house price is around £283,000, which is eight times the average salary of £35,500.
But when it comes to the future of FAC Ltd, Piers Mepsted, has a clear vision for the business.
“I am so proud of everything that we as a team have achieved over the last 25 years. Although markets have seen highs and lows during that time, the underlying principles of sound financial planning remain the same.
“The secret to our success and longevity is rooted in our rigorous, transparent approach, and our commitment to helping our clients manage their wealth with integrity, market leading insight and their best interests at heart.”
For more information and advice on financial investments and mortgages, visit face-uk.com.