Our Client Stories
Background
Laurie and Barbara Naumann, retired. 5 children.
10 years with Ethical Futures
Advice service: Ongoing Investment Monitoring
Other services used: Assess and Select
Laurie and Barbara have 5 children and they were firstly concerned about their pension but now they are using Ethical Futures advice to secure their children’s future.
Why did you think you needed a financial adviser? What were your expectations?
I took early retirement and I was able to draw my work pension so I sought advice. Later we both inherited from our parents, so we had money to be managed and invested so it was an opportune time to approach EF.
Why have you chosen EF?
We wanted an ethical investment. Ethical Futures were the most accessible of all and local. It was small and personal and that’s very important as so much else is by internet or telephone.
We liked that investments were avoiding arms and tobacco and going to businesses with services and products which reflected our values.
I was brought up in a family where ethical issues were a priority, especially anti-war. We lived on an organic farm, I’ve always eaten organic food, it somehow all went together with that, that’s why we chose to go to Ethical Futures.
I was brought up in a family where ethical issues were a priority, especially anti-war. We lived on organic farm, I’ve always eaten organic food, it somehow all went together with that, that’s why we chose to go to Ethical Futures.
Ethics
Why is ethical investment important to you?
We wanted something that was long term use, we have a family so we weren’t looking for a quick return. One of our particular concerns was that we were very fortunate that our parents were able to leave us something but as we have 5 children, it’s a lot to share everything out. So we felt we wanted some security that we were doing the right thing.
We were seeking a secure future for us and our children.
It was important having professional advice, we could have bought a limited amount of ISA’s and deposit accounts but they weren’t to generate much income. So we wanted to know that the money is going to good use and we would be confident about steady return, we didn’t want to gamble.
Family values played a big role too. I remember very distinctly when I was 13-14 my father had some investment in a company called Decker and he was keen not to be involved in anything military related. He discovered that the biggest income for Decker was developing military radar so he disinvested in it. It was a usual discussion over the table at breakfast, so the idea has been around for a long time so it’s something I feel strongly about it. I care about the consequences, and publicising the fact, we like to recommend Ethical Futures.
What were your ethical criteria in choosing EF?
No arms, tobacco, multipharmaceuticals, clothing, human rights, employment abuse. I’d be concerned about investing in mining, climate stuff. We are happy to have invested in green energy and crowdfunding for supporting local projects.
Advice
How did EF help you tackle your financial problems/make financial decisions/simplify your life?
Martin had questions about what where we investing in and it was a very thorough interview for checking on the list of things to be excluded from investment, that was obviously an important part of the process. Martin certainly gave me confidence saying “we are not going to make big bucks on this but it should be steady, certainly keeping in line with inflation and perhaps more than that” and that’s what we wanted to do, knowing that money is going to be used in way in which we approved.
We had investment advice and Martin has always been very approachable on the phone. I have always had various little queries that he has been able to answer and always been very responsive to that.
We are lucky to not have had financial problems, but EF were keeping us on the right track, we feel confident about the advice that we’ve been given, we both look at the returns when we get correspondence and generally its good.
Outcome
What benefits have you seen from using EF service? How was experience in EF?
Peace of mind. Knowing money is looked after and it hasn’t lost an enormous amount, not had any major crashes even throughout 2008, things obviously fluctuated a bit but have recovered, and they are generating some income so I’m content about that. We were recently able to assist our daughter raising deposit for her mortgage, helping our children is a priority.
Future
What further goals you wish to achieve in the future?
Keep the same security and life level.
