By Lily B., ValidPath Member
Lily B. is the Founder of her IFA firm, where she provides fully independent financial planning advice to business owners and doctors. A Fellow and Chartered Financial Planner, she has built her career advising doctors on complex NHS pensions and helping business owners manage both their company and personal finances.
One of my clients once forgot which company I worked for.
This was before I’d set up my firm, while I was still advising within a larger firm. It might sound like an odd thing to be pleased about, but it told me something important. He didn’t really think of the relationship as being with the company. As far as he was concerned, I was his adviser.
By that point, I’d built up a loyal client base and referrals were coming in. I could see that people were choosing to work with me as an individual, rather than just because of the name above the door. That was one of the clearest signs that setting up my own financial advice business could actually work.
I still didn’t rush it. I spent around six months firming up the idea, working out what I wanted the business to look like, and deciding who I wanted to partner with before launching.
If you’re an employed adviser thinking about starting your own firm, there are a few things you need to get clear before you make the move. Here’s my advice for advisers thinking about going out on their own.
Find out more about starting your business with ValidPath.
Know whether clients are choosing you
Before you get too far into thinking about a name, a website, or the systems you’re going to use, you need a realistic sense of how strong your client relationships are.
For me, client referrals were one of the clearest signs. When clients start introducing friends, family, or colleagues to you, it tells you they trust you personally and are willing to put your name forward.
I’d reached a point where I had a good client following and could see that loyalty building. People weren’t simply attached to the firm I worked for. They were coming to me because of the relationship we had built.
There are a few questions I think are worth asking yourself:
- Are clients coming to you specifically, rather than simply contacting the wider firm?
- Are they referring other people directly to you?
- Have you built relationships that have lasted over several years?
- Do clients trust you with decisions that affect their family or business?
People can underestimate client loyalty. If you’ve helped someone make good decisions about their money, their business, or their family over a number of years, that bond can be very strong.
You have to accept that you might lose some clients when you move. I knew that too. But I wanted enough evidence that the relationships I’d already built would give the new business a solid starting point.
Interview IFA networks as carefully as they interview you
Once I knew I wanted to launch Rise Wealth, choosing the right network became one of the biggest decisions. I spoke to around 20.
There was a huge amount of variation between them, particularly in how much control advisers retained over investments and how much freedom they had to run the business in their own way.
Independence was non-negotiable for me. My clients wanted to know that I could look across what was available and recommend what I genuinely believed was right for them. I didn’t want to leave employment, set up my own business, then find myself working from somebody else’s restricted shortlist.
I didn’t just listen to what the networks told me, either.
I looked up advisers already operating under ValidPath around Yorkshire and Manchester and arranged a few coffees. I spoke to people with other networks as well because I wanted something to compare those experiences with.
I asked very direct questions:
- What’s it actually like?
- What works well?
- What doesn’t?
- What would you change?
- Which other networks did you consider?
- Do you feel like you’re running your own business?
- Would you make the same choice again?
One adviser at another network told me they felt more like an employee. That was useful because I knew immediately that wasn’t what I wanted.
You have to put the work into making sure the choice is right for you. I’d rather spend more time researching it upfront than make the wrong decision and regret it later.
ValidPath became the clear choice for me because independence sat at the centre of the proposition, their approach to technology felt progressive, and there was a real appetite to support advisers who wanted to be entrepreneurial and grow their businesses.
Tell your network what you want to build
Choosing a network is only the start. Once you’re in, people need to know what you’re trying to achieve.
I’ve always been clear that I want to grow Rise Wealth. I want to bring in new clients, build relationships with other professional firms, and keep developing the business. Because people within ValidPath know that, they can recognise opportunities that are relevant to me.
One example was a local law firm that wanted to build relationships with financial advisers. Someone at ValidPath knew what I was trying to do and was able to put us in touch.
There are opportunities around succession and acquisitions too, where an adviser looking to retire can potentially be connected with another firm that wants to grow through acquiring a book.
My view is simple: tell people what you want.
If you want introductions, say so. If you’re interested in acquisitions, make that clear. If you want to build relationships with accountants, lawyers, or other professionals, make sure the people around you know.
A network can be much more useful when it understands where you’re trying to take the business. Have those conversations from day one.
Use being small as an advantage
One of the things I really like about running my own business is being able to move quickly.
At Rise Wealth, I can look at a tool or piece of technology, test whether it works for us, and make a decision very quickly.
I use AI in the business, as well as tools such as PlannerPal. It has helped me complete reports and other pieces of work far more efficiently than I could under a more traditional model.
Think about what happens when a bigger firm needs more capacity. It might have to:
- Recruit another member of staff
- Absorb another salary
- Train that person
- Wait months before they’re fully productive
A smaller business can sometimes solve the same problem much more quickly with the right technology.
That doesn’t mean throwing every new tool into the business. It means recognising that your size gives you an advantage. You can test things, make decisions, and improve the way you work without having to take an entire organisation through the same change.
You don’t need to build a miniature version of a large firm. Use the fact that you’re smaller to your advantage.
Write your processes down early
When you work in a larger company, there are people, systems, and processes everywhere. Looking at all that infrastructure, the idea of doing it yourself can feel almost impossible.
I was surprised by how much easier the move was than I expected.
But you do need to be organised.
I’d get the basic processes written down as early as possible. Work out things like:
- What happens when a new enquiry comes in
- How a client moves through your advice process
- What needs to be recorded at each stage
- How you keep track of outstanding work
- How reviews are managed
- Your compliance obligations
- Where technology can remove repetitive admin
You don’t need to build an enormous operations manual. You do need a repeatable way of doing things.
Be realistic about the first year.
There were evenings and weekends spent getting Rise Wealth into shape. When you’re building the framework of the business, there’s an upfront investment of time, and I don’t think there’s much value in pretending otherwise.
The payoff is that once those processes are working, you stop reinventing the wheel every time something happens. The business starts to run more smoothly, referrals feed through, revenue builds, and things can begin to snowball.
The work you put in early gives the business something solid to grow on.
Make more of your time about clients
Starting Rise Wealth wasn’t simply about being able to say I owned a business. It has allowed me to give clients a much more personal service.
In a larger organisation, there can be a lot competing for your attention. You might be dealing with internal processes, managing people, chasing administration, or spending time on things that don’t necessarily improve the experience for the client.
Running my own firm gives me much more control over that.
I can shape my processes around the way I want to work, and spend more of my time talking to clients and looking after them properly. That’s what all the preparation is there to enable.
If you’re considering starting your own financial advice business, don’t only ask yourself whether you’re ready to leave your current firm. Look at the business you’d be leaving to build.
Are the client relationships strong enough? Have you researched the network properly? Will you have the independence you want? Do the people around you understand your ambitions? Have you thought about the systems and processes that will let you grow without making the business unnecessarily complicated?
The first year takes work. But if you build the foundations properly, you’re not just creating another job for yourself. You’re building a business that can grow on your terms, serve clients the way you believe they should be served.
Key takeaways
- Test the strength of your client relationships before you leave employment. Look at whether clients come to you directly, refer others to you, and would support you if you set up independently.
- Research networks properly before choosing one. Speak to existing Members, compare different networks, and ask directly what works, what doesn’t, and whether advisers genuinely feel like business owners.
- Tell your network exactly how you want to grow. If you want introductions, acquisitions, or relationships with professional firms, make that clear so people can spot relevant opportunities.
- Write your core processes down early. Decide how enquiries, advice, reviews, compliance, and outstanding work will be handled before the business gets busy.
- Use your size to move faster. Test useful tools quickly, keep what works, and use it to add capacity without automatically adding more people or processes.
Thinking about starting your own financial advice business?
Choosing the right network was one of the biggest decisions I made before launching Rise Wealth. I wanted to stay fully independent, move quickly, and build the business around my clients rather than fit it into somebody else’s model.
ValidPath gave me that freedom, alongside the technology, introductions, and support I needed to get the business moving.
Speak to ValidPath about launching your financial advice business with the freedom, technology, introductions, and support to build it your way.
