Higos managing director Ian Gosden has admitted that everybody thought he was a “nutter” when he opened his first high street branch five years ago, but that the move has paid off.
In a wide ranging interview with Insurance Times, carried out at the Somerset-based company’s head office in the cathedral city of Wells, Gosden said: “Our strategy has been to not follow the crowd, I just feel that a lot of what goes is just blindly following the crowd.
“Everybody thought I was a nutter when I started opening in high streets, but they don’t think that way now. We grew last year in an environment which is as tough as it’s ever been.”
Since Higos acquired its first high street broker in 2006, the company has built up a network of 16 branches.
The company’s latest acquisition, the Plymstock Insurance Centre in Plymouth, was announced last month.
Before 2006, the company relied for its distribution on referrals from independent financial advisers and mortgage brokers.
Gosden also talked to Insurance Times about his ambitions for Higos, his relationship with major shareholder Zurich and why good brokers will continue to have a role in the SME market.
Click here to read the full interview with Higos boss Ian Gosden.
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