Chambers Smith

Dan Smith was not short of offers for his IFA business Chambers Smith – but none seemed to be the right fit before Fairstone came along.

After buying the firm in 2018 and successfully growing the business, by 2023 Chartered Independent Financial Adviser Dan found that the way he spent his working hours had gone from 70% spent with clients and 30% spent on back office work and compliance to 50% spent with clients and 50% spent on back office work and compliance.

Helping clients

“I got into the industry to help clients and see people, not for doing all the back office work,” he explains.

“People had approached me to purchase the business, but a lot of those offers were centred around buying my clients, altering a lot of the platforms or investment solutions, moving clients around and then looking to extract me from the business after a couple of years.

“At 40 years of age with a young family, that wasn’t for me – I’m very much in this for the long term.”

Lightbulb moment

When Dan found out about Fairstone’s Downstream Buy-Out (DBO) model, it was quite the lightbulb moment.

“The DBO was a different ball game for me,” he says.

“I had never heard of it before, but the fact that they wanted to keep me on in the business long-term and they don’t change the staff and keep the office was fantastic for me.”

In partnership

Chambers Smith is currently a partnership firm of Fairstone, integrating with the wider group before eventually being acquired by Fairstone.

So far, the experience has been wholly positive for Dan, his staff and his clients.

“The impact of the change on clients was my greatest worry,” Dan admits.

Outstanding client feedback

“The feedback we have had from clients has been absolutely outstanding. They’re now used to Fairstone and the response from our annual client surveys to the change has been really positive.

“Our office staff have also been really pleased with the change. As a smaller firm, we didn’t really have those larger systems in place but now everything is much more structured and straightforward.”

Growth and recruitment

Going into partnership has also benefited Chambers Smith in terms of growth and recruitment.

“It’s allowed me to grow the business to the point where the last 12 months is probably the best 12 months we have ever had,” Dan reveals.

“With the regulatory burden taken off me, I have been able to go out much more, speak to contacts and win new clients.

“In the past, we have struggled with recruitment because that’s not my major skill set, but with Fairstone behind me, I have help to recruit staff and grow, but it’s still very much my office, my team and my clients.

Support blanket

“Fairstone have just wrapped a support blanket around me and said ‘if you want anything from us, perfect, but if you don’t then you can just carry on as you were’.”

Having had such a positive experience so far, it’s unsurprising that Dan has been spreading the word about Fairstone and the DBO model to others in the industry.

“It’s amazing how many people you meet are in a similar position to me – you’re a small firm struggling with all the back office and regulatory demands and you almost feel like you’re getting lost.

“So I actively go out and talk to people and say ‘I’ve done it, I’m in it and I’m very much enjoying it so it’s something you should consider’.”

Interested in learning more?

To find out more about Fairstone’s DBO model, contact Fairstone M&A Team Business Development Executive Euan Morris today.