Simon Says

Simon Says

finance by Dave Szymanski | Tampa Bay Editor

Geoff Simon made the transition from business broadcaster to investment adviser years ago, but he still uses his journalistic skills to build good relationships.

Investment adviser Geoff Simon is a face that many Tampa Bay area business people know. But it's not primarily because of his investment counseling.

It's familiar because of Simon's work on television in the Bay area for more than 30 years, interviewing business leaders or giving personal finance tips.

Simon, 56, recently made news himself: He left his longtime employer, Robert W. Baird & Co., and went to Raymond James in Tampa to form a new subsidiary: SJS Wealth Advisors, an investment advisory firm for high-net-worth people. SJS set up shop on Tampa's Harbour Island.

While that's his primary focus, Simon still does business broadcasting. He now hosts a monthly interview show on WEDU in Tampa and his guests have included magazine publisher and former presidential candidate Steve Forbes.

The show, Suncoast Business Journal, used to be weekly. It has been nominated for three Emmy awards.

The new company, SJS Wealth Advisors, retains the partnership he's had with Debi Johnson, who Simon worked with for 10 years at Baird.

Joining them is another old friend, Jim Stanger, a former financial planner with Sagemark Consulting, a national practice. Stanger worked with Morgan Stanley, UBS and SunTrust handling money for high-net-worth investors. Stanger took early retirement, traveled and learned he was too young to be retired.

SJS combines Stanger's strength in financial, estate and tax planning with Simon and Johnson's strengths in wealth management, investment advisory and investment management.

No longer an observer

Simon, born in Great Neck, N.Y., was executive producer of WEDU. Although fulfilling, the work at WEDU helped Simon realize what he didn't know, especially in financial analysis and accounting.

So he started working on his executive MBA at the University of South Florida in Tampa while working at WEDU.

He was very interested in finance and investments. He was staying on top of events in world through his television work. He realized he wanted to move from not just observing events, but being engaged with people on how those events affected them.

"It seemed very challenging and well suited to who I was," says Simon, founder and senior vice president of investments at SJS.

After 15 full-time years in broadcasting, Simon worked as an investment advisor at Private Capital Management, a large money management firm in Tampa, for about two years, and at Baird for 15 years.

In 2007, he did more than a year of research, looking for a firm that was a good fit, before choosing Raymond James. He found he was able to get a great deal of independence with Raymond James.

Why did he leave Baird? The new partnership will allow Simon to do more comprehensive long-term planning for clients.

"It will not be just about their investments," he says. "We will really analyze how their portfolio is structured and make recommendations. We will find the best way for them to achieve estate goals and philanthropy. Jim's expertise gives us tools to really broaden out and deal with complex situations. This really allows us to provide a lot of depth and analysis."

Simon is happy he is still able to do broadcasting, even if it's a more reduced schedule.

"I like TV a lot," he says. "When you learn how to play piano, and get good at it, you can change paths. If you have the chance to play once a week, you do, to stay limber. That's like TV. It allows me to stay current and focus on issues of the day. People are keenly interested in financial and investment topics.

Simon, his wife Andrea and two children live in Tampa. When he's not working or with his family, Simon helps Andrea, chairwoman of Stageworks, a live theater production group, raise funds for a permanent home in Tampa's Channel District. A developer has already donated 6,000 square feet of space for the group. They have raised more than $500,000.

He is still active with WEDU and is now its chairman of the board. He's also on the board of the Florida Council on Economic Education and the USF Foundation Board.

The strategy

SJS has clients across the country. The corporate strategy includes providing customized service. The advisors analyze where clients are and what their goals and aspirations are. It helps them realize their personal and financial goals.

"By doing the analysis, the important thing is to be able to benchmark how well they are achieving that goal," Simon says. "If things change for them personally, we can make changes and modifications as we move along."

The clients are high-net-worth investors. Some are recently retired.

"We're helping them manage their whole lives," Simon says. "It's more than just a financial relationship because life goals tie into financial goals. It's a complete relationship. It's very gratifying for everyone."

What SJS strives to do is become the trusted advisor because no one can beat the market every day. Clients want someone who knows them and is objective.

"There's much too much emotion involved in investing," Simon says. "If you can find a trusted advisor to be part of your team, your chances of success go way up. We will bring all the resources necessary to the table, so our clients have the greatest chance of success."

To Simon, the keys to being a good wealth manager include:

• Understanding the client's risk profile

• Continually educating clients and understanding the dynamics of their financial situation.

• Being active. The advisor can't be passive, but needs to be engaged and involved so the clients chances of success go up.

• Integrity. Compromising is something you can never do.

• Compassion and empathy.

"It's important not to view them just as clients, but as human beings," Simon say. "We all go through life and are impacted by the events during the course of a lifetime. It's very important for a trusted advisor to know what impact the events of their lives are having on them. You have to be compassionate and empathetic about your clients. Very important to understand who they are and what they are going through."

Doing these things should lead to referrals, which account for more than half of its business. The advisors speak at public events and Simon's television work also helps.

Simon's mentors include Michel Emmanuel, partner at Carlton Fields law firm in Tampa.

"He gave me great guidance about getting help from people offering you help," Simon says. "I was having trouble raising capital for the business show early on. He helped me network with philanthropists. I was never able on my own. What I learned, is don't try and do everything by yourself. When you find good people, have them become your partner."

Simon says he enjoys imparting investment lessons he has learned over the years.

"I get a lot of satisfaction of bumping into people who say they have $50,000 in their 401(k)," Simon says. "It's good to quietly know you played a part in helping someone now and in the future."

Advising high net worth investors

Advising high-net-worth investors is a different game from helping other investors, money managers say. They obviously have more money, but many also want to make consistent returns.

At Adhia Investment Advisors in Tampa, founded in 1997, all of its clients are high-net-worth investors.

The No. 1 key for these investors is diversification between fixed income, equity and real estate. The rule of thumb it follows is whatever the client's age is, he should have half of his age in safe, short-term bonds, with three years or less maturity. So if the investor is 50, he should have about $25,000 in bonds, Adhia says.

The firm also favors no-load life insurance policies rather than buying from favorite agents. Fidelity, T. Rowe Price and Vanguard are some of the top players in this industry.

"We are doing very well," says John Adhia, CPA, president and CEO of Adhia. "Our approach is not to chase high returns. We have a focused, systematic approach for our clients."

The firm has only 30 clients, but the minimum account is $2 million.

Don Pearson, president of Pearson Capital Inc. in Apollo Beach, likes to see the similarity in all investors.

"They all like to grow their money," Pearson says.

The firm's main strategy: Diversification. A well-diversified portfolio should outperform the market, which historically rises 11% a year.

Pearson's favored sectors are energy, minerals and gold. And it favors investments in companies doing business in China, India, Canada, Australia and South America.

As independent registered investment advisors, Pearson isn't pressured to push any proprietary stock.

"If you came through door, we'd ask what are your expectations and we'll tell you if they are realistic," Pearson says. "You tell us how much risk you are willing to take."

REVIEW SUMMARY

Company: SJS Wealth Advisors

Industry: Investment counseling

Key: Help high net worth investors grow their portfolios.