When we describe our company to financial industry folks, we often use the shorthand description that we are building “the Chick-fil-A of wealth management”. But, what does that mean exactly?
Well, what are the some of the first things that come to mind when you think of Chick-fil-A?
Let’s take those one at a time and see how they might apply to our industry:
Chick-fil-A is known for inventing the chicken sandwich, making it taste great and serving the same thing in stores all over the country. At Archetype, we have developed what we believe are best-in-class services for clients that cover four “menu items”. We call these areas “The Four Quadrants”. They include investments, strategy, family and legacy. Most of the industry focuses primarily on investments and maybe some financial planning. We go deep on right and left brain issues that we believe result in fulfilling our mission to “help families thrive across generations”. Importantly, like Chick-fil-A, you will get the same menu in every store around the country. Just as they are scaling, we too, plan to have locations all over the country.
When I think of my positive experiences at Chick-fil-A, I think of friendliness, cleanliness and efficiency. Those qualities come from culture, training, teamwork and repetition. Culture is the biggest ingredient. At Archetype, we are laser-focused on culture. As Peter Drucker is quoted as saying “culture eats strategy for breakfast”. People are what make the difference! We are obsessed with hiring people who are drawn to our mission and vision. Once they are here, we train them on a repeatable process that is delivered in a team environment and then rinse and repeat until we are a well-oiled machine. Most of our industry still works in silos. We believe when people spend most of their time in their area of giftedness and rely on teammates who do the same, everyone benefits—especially clients.
The average Chick-fil-A store grosses more than the average McDonald’s, Starbucks and Subway—combined! [1] Why is this? We think it is a combination of the solid product and the great service. The bottom line is that everything is working together in a way that produces wildly successful stores. We believe that a big part of why everything works so well together is that all of Chick-fil-A’s stores are company-owned. This keeps each of the stores more closely aligned with the service standards of the parent company. Archetype is doing the same thing. Rather than having franchisees who may or may not be completely aligned, we are maintaining service standards with tight collaboration.
Most people know that Chick-fil-A is owned by a Christian family. The company’s purpose statement on a bronze plaque reads: “To glorify God by being a faithful steward of all that is entrusted to us. To have a positive influence on all who come in contact with Chick-fil-A.” Dan Cathy, Chick-fil-A’s former President says “it’s a company that operates on biblical principles…they really work.” At Archetype, we don’t have the cross on the front door just like Chick-fil-A doesn’t stamp a cross into their sandwiches, but, we too, are unapologetic about our principles being rooted in Biblical principles…They do really work! Archetype means “ideal model”. Our vision is “to build the ideal, God-honoring wealth management company”.
Source
[1] https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/320615