When the rich and super-rich (net worth = $500M or more) decide on whom to work with ongoing, the answer usually centers on the quality of the professionals they are considering or dealing with.
From Forbes-- That is not to say that the brand of a major institution does not carry weight.
For a percentage – a relatively small percentage – of the rich and super-rich the brand of the institution, for various reasons, is very important. However, for the great majority of the rich and super-rich, the “brand” of the professional supersedes any institutional brand.
What is important to note is for most professionals working with the rich and super-rich, the quality of their relationships is critical. This is why when professionals leave a firm they are often able to bring a substantial number of their clients along with them. This is across all industries from wealth managers to accountants to attorneys and on and on.
Those professionals with a well-conceptualized brand are able to fairly easily offset any institutional branding. In any high-touch environment the quality of the experience and the perceptions of the providers is paramount.
Thus, boutique firms can readily compete with much larger institutions.
The optimal situation is where a strong professional brand is complemented by a stellar institutional brand. In this regard, when it comes to the rich and super-rich, more is better.
There is often a strong synergistic effect by leveraging the two brands. Still, the professional’s brand is usually critical when it comes to sourcing and working with the rich and – even more so – the super-rich.
In all high-touch industries, the wealthy – across the spectrum – are looking to work with empathetic experts. It – many times – does not matter if they are part of a larger institution or a boutique firm.
