Spotlight On: Neil Wattam

Neil Wattam is a co-founder of WKM Wealth Limited. They’re an independent financial planning and investment management business launched in 2020. Set up by four friends with the intention of helping people with their personal wealth and hopefully helping them have a comfortable future.

How did you get into the finance world? And how did you end up setting up the business? It’s quite a varied journey. I started off in design back at university. I really enjoyed it, but can't draw, which is a bit of a problem! Having said that, I liked it and did well. I went to Boots in their purchasing department and then decided to become an accountant. I am a chartered accountant, having completed my ACA training in Hertfordshire with BDO, prior to joining Tesco, where I worked for five years or so. I joined

Capita in 2010, who are a big outsourcing firm. I'd been a chartered accountant working in big corporates for a long time, which was fine, but generally quite stressful, quite hard. To a degree I enjoyed the treadmill that I was on. Then one Christmas, I sat with my brother in his house, and he was talking about the potential of starting something. And I thought how can I get involved? What can I do that this size of business needed? I really wanted to be a part of something like that, especially with my brother. Roll forward about 15 months or

so and we had our second child. After paternity leave, I decided I'm off. I remember that summer of 2018 was a scorcher. I decided I was going to go all-in. I quit, took the summer off and did my exams with the Chartered Insurance Institute; so I could undertake this regulated role. Going back to study after a long time was challenging. My job for that summer, was to study. I passed those exams quite quickly, as it turned out, with a lot of hard work. Then went back to work, where I provided accounting consultancy roles for a bit,

which was enjoyable. Roll forward to October 2019 - the four founders got together and applied to the FCA. Seven months later, in April 2020, we got the green light. So, a variety of education, big corporate life, and actually just thinking I want to do something that's ours and give it a go. What's the worst that can happen? My decisions along the way have always been about what do I enjoy and what I want to do next and go for it. Not be too worried. It's easy to say it with some hindsight, but I picked design because I enjoyed it. I picked accounting because it seemed like a good idea. I guess a bit of a tip for people generally is just go for stuff. Don't think overthink too much.

How did you all get together? We have all worked for, in some cases, larger corporate, some slightly smaller. Ben, Tim and Adrian all worked in the finance services industry for many years and met each other whilst working at the same company. We have been friends, on for 20+ years. I was the one who's come from a slightly different background, from the accountancy route, rather than advisory. It’s the first time I've worked on my brother as well. We didn't know how it would go, but so far, so good!

Between the four of you, do you each have specialist areas? Good question! Ben Wattam is our investment director. That's what he has always done – looking after billions of pounds for clients. He's the brains behind the investment side and that's what makes us different for a firm of our size. Most businesses of our size outsource this to another company. Adrian, Tim, and I are client facing. As in many smaller businesses, we all have our other hats. I look after our finances. Tim’s our compliance director and Adrian looks after sales and marketing.

Who is your ideal sort of client? It would be someone who's perhaps sold their business, in their 40s, 50s or 60s. Depending where they are with that, they've released a decent sum of money and may have already accrued a number of pensions and wealth but need some assistance managing their finances. Some may have made some money quite suddenly and have no idea what to do. Some people have built it over time. You might be someone who's worked in a corporate life all your life, and you've just put money into pensions. You’re in your 50s and you probably should look at that now. We typically work with people who have accrued relatively large amounts of wealth and need some help to manage it for the future. The world of finance can be quite daunting. A lot of jargon has arisen in most industries and we can help navigate them around something that may be a bit of a mystery to them.

What is your “why”? I think there are a couple of things. One is to help people, we're here to help. When people wake up thinking they’ve got a question about this, or this has happened at work, or something's happened in the

family; they can just pick up the phone and we're here. That's why I get out of bed. That's what I love doing - helping people. We want a good life as well - we set up this business to enjoy our work, as per the strapline of “enjoy the journey”; which works for clients, us and anyone who works with us. We don't want to come to work dreading it, or dreading speaking to someone. So, we have a “rule number one violation” - if someone violates our rules, we won't work with them. We want to work with nice people ultimately. Our “why”: work with nice people, do a good job, earn a living and keep it simple!

What would you say makes you different from your competitors? There are many financial advisors out there. The things that make us stand out, include that are we are completely independent, we are authorised directly by the FCA; which doesn't mean we're any better - it just means it's us, we make the decisions, we make the investments. Our money's in this thing - what we tell clients and what we advise, is what we do. It's not a standout thing that's different to everybody, but if you come to us and people work with

us, it is because we're doing what we say we'll do. As we are managing investments in house, making the decisions, it is a much more personal service for clients; you are not going through unknown third parties – it is us! You’re dealing with people who are making the decisions and want to see it grow for both clients and ourselves. It's win win. It's not a win for other shareholders. You're not paying dividends out to some randoms. It's for us and for the future

of our clients as well. I think that independence and small mindset is a real differentiator. Also, most firms do not have a “Ben” with the experience and expertise that he has.

What would you say has been the biggest challenge setting up your business?

The biggest challenge was getting going. Particularly with the FCA. Because we are directly authorised, it is different to a lot of firms that are

appointed representatives, piggybacking off an umbrella organisation. Being direct means that our necks are on the line - it's us, it's our risk. To get there was very, very hard. That’s why we ended up going live in April 2020 - we didn't choose that date, we didn't ask for it - it was the earliest we could get going due to the approval we needed. Our industry is so heavily regulated, for the right reason and it's good to see that the FCA are thorough and despite us all having lots of years of experience, and in theory, on paper, should be almost a rubber stamp, it was still difficult. That's why a lot of people don't do it but we got there! Our challenge now is to grow the business and creating a team of excellent people.

What's your model for charging clients for the services you provide? We charge a percentage based on the value of investments clients hold with us. As it grows, our fee base grows as well. We don't charge anything over and above. There are other firms out

there that will charge you to phone, have a meeting - you’re on the clock. With us, you pay your fee, you may not see it directly as it happens largely in the background. However, we're always up front. When people come to work with us,, they will know up front what they'll pay. It's not the same for everyone, because there is a “treating customers fairly”, which is one of the FCA’s fundamental principles. We have to treat clients fairly and fair does not mean the same. The fee and costing in our industry is always a bit of a hot potato. There's a lot in the media about is it worth the cost? There is a cost, because you're paying for professionals who are doing what we've already talked about. With us it's transparent, and we try and be up front about it all. Again, there are smoke and mirrors - some people can say “we charge this as well”, “does it include that?”, “does it include if you want a meeting?” It’s not about being the cheapest either – it’s about generating a fair income for us, that is commercially viable and represents value for the client. If our clients are seeing the value of their portfolio going up, ideally, outside of the market averages, then they're going to be happy. We’re really keen to emphasise that it's the joined up

planning that adds value. It's all very well that markets will hopefully in time go up. If they stood still though, do you have the right planning from your financial advisor so that your investments will still increase by them doing the right thing and making sure you’re in the right spot at the right time given market conditions. You can control what you do, but you can’t control the markets.

What is your top tip? From a financial perspective, talk to your accountant and/or financial advisor about how you extract money from your business – your renumeration; be it salary, drawings, dividends, pension contributions, etc. Think ahead about your shareholders, family involved, any other aspects of your business that can impact your financial future and the implications these factors may have. Have a strategy going forward, don’t wander aimlessly along – think, talk, get advice. There’s no one size fits all, your situation will be specific to you.

This is an extract of a video interview – to watch the full session, visit: https:// www.youtube.com/ watch?v=DTCgmxUYDLg.