Harrison Smith is a financial adviser based at Hartlepool’s Innovation Centre. Harrison, managing director of Azalea Wealth Management, offers an insight into money matters in a monthly column for North East Connected.
It’s hard to believe it’s already September. This year has flown by, and with everything that has been going on behind the scenes, I haven’t had the chance to officially announce what I’ve been working on.
Now, I can. I’ve officially opened the doors to Azalea Wealth Management.
For a long time, running my own practice has been a personal aspiration.
The biggest motivation for setting up on my own was my grandad, Bob. He owned a business right here in Hartlepool and was a huge part of my life when I was growing up.
It was something I always wanted to explore for myself, and 18 years later, it has become a reality.
The name, Azalea, is a nod to another significant part of my life.
Like many young people, I had dreams of being a professional sportsman. My love for football took me to the United States on a soccer scholarship in South Carolina, just two hours from Augusta, Georgia.
For golfers, the name Augusta immediately conjures up images of the Masters and its beautiful azaleas.
It’s a magical place and I’ve been lucky enough to visit the area ten times for conference football championships.
If there’s any way I can bring a little bit of that Augusta magic – that feeling of being part of something special – to Azalea throughout my career, then I’ll consider that a success.
For those who know me, you’ll know that detail and service are everything to me. It’s easy to take for granted what a financial adviser does, but to me, it’s a huge responsibility.
It’s about having the privilege to guide others with their financial decisions so they can achieve their dreams and ambitions. There aren’t many professions that can be more rewarding.
I recently worked with a client who thought they’d have to work for five or six more years, just scraping by. Six months after we met, he was comfortably retired and enjoying a lifestyle he never thought was possible.
To be able to tell someone they no longer have to work – that they can start enjoying life today – is one of the most rewarding parts of my job.
At Azalea, I want to be a trusted adviser that people can rely on for confidence and stability. After five years as a financial adviser at Emerald Associates in Northumberland, the most important lesson I learned is that service is everything.
If individuals and businesses are going to entrust their futures to me, I have to make sure I deliver on what they expect.
The financial landscape is always changing, and trying to navigate it on your own can be a massive undertaking. That’s where Azalea comes in.
We’re here to help you navigate the ups and downs, keep you focused, and get you to where you want to be.
We want to be with you for the long term. At my age, I can say that with confidence.
We’re not about transactional relationships; we want to work with people who care about their long-term future and want to strike that perfect balance of living for today while securing for tomorrow.
If this is something you’ve been considering, there’s no better time than now to have that conversation. Let’s get you on the path you’ve always wanted to be on.
Azalea is based in Hartlepool servicing clients regionally and nationally. Get in touch through www.azaleawm.co.uk [azaleawm.co.uk]