Clifton broker Venture Insurance has bought nearby-based Poole Martin in a move which will mean it placing premiums of £13m a year.
The tie-up will increase staffing at Venture Insurance to 22 and comes shortly after the company moved into new offices on the corner of Whiteladies Road and Burlington Road.
Poole Martin has been trading since the early 1970s and is currently based in Elmdale Road. Directors Andrew Bollen and Richard Evans have been seeking long-term continuity for their clients and their staff.
Having originally helped Venture Insurance’s directors launch in 2011, Mr Bollen and Mr Evans said they were delighted about the acquisition and the move to new offices.
They assured existing Poole Martin clients of a seamless transition when incorporation takes place – likely to be at the end of this month – and that it would be business as usual.
For Venture Insurance, managing director Simon James said the move would further strengthen his company’s growing reputation with major insurers who are increasingly supportive of independent brokers.
He said: “We have had a great relationship with Andrew and Richard at Poole Martin for a number of years and there has always been a lot of synergy between our two companies.
“We are both independent, we share each other’s values and the incorporation of their business with ours is the ideal way for us to strengthen.
“The large insurers are actively supporting and encouraging small independent brokers like ours to set up and do business with them. So we are extremely confident about the future of Venture Insurance and its longevity, especially with the added influence of Poole Martin coming into our growing company.”
Mr Evans added: “This is an excellent move for Poole Martin, its staff and its client base who, apart from the practicality of the office move, will notice little or no difference in the way our business is done on a day to day basis.
“Venture Insurance was formed by experienced individuals, who wished to provide the level of service and care associated with independent insurance brokers. At the time they formed, they approached Poole Martin, seeking our help to begin their trading and we were delighted to help. We became professionally close and were impressed with the way they operated, in keeping and in line with our own standards and expectations.
“So it is with great delight that we are able to announce that we are combining forces with Venture Insurance. Andrew and I have been seeking options for continuity and a solution in providing us the confidence that clients continue to be looked after in the same way on a long-termed basis.”
Pictured, from left: Andrew Bollen of Poole Martin, Simon James and Danny Shore of Venture Insurance and Richard Evans of Poole Martin
