Don Cameron

Act 1:

  I Started in the business in Saskatoon in March 1976 as a Life insurance agent.

Although it took a couple years to get going. Thank goodness for Wendy my wife (who had a great job) we finally took off in year 3 and never looked back.

 In 1979 my brother Larry and I, formed a company called Cameron and Associates. We began to work heavily in the corporate markets in Saskatchewan. Corporate life insurance, buy-sell agreements and tax planning became our core business.

After three successful years working with Larry, in the summer of 1981, Alberta called and I moved my wife and 3 month old son, Darris, to the promised land.

Or so we thought…

 After the cuban missile crisis and massive global oil embargoes, the NEP followed later that year and so did 20% inflation and 18% mortgage rates.

 Over the next 2 years we did okay and built a reasonable size firm.

That same year I joined the Canadian Tax Foundation. (Later to become a huge part of the firms I would build)

 In 1983 I was Head hunted by Montreal Life to take over their Alberta operations. At that time the company was owned by Guardian Royal Exchange out of London England and I was to bring the Life Insurance business into Property/Casualty agencies around Southern Alberta.

A totally new challenge.

I built a thriving firm and became very good at recruiting. My prior experience and tax background was very useful and we gained some very good recognition in the industry.

At this time i also began to get involved in our national association which brought us to a whole new level of business and professionalism.

Through this time I built the #1 Agency in Canada.

 In 1985 Montreal Life was purchased by Empire Financial Group and a life changing opportunity presented itself.

  In 1986 I first met Donald Miano, arguably one of the top portfolio managers in the world and undisputedly the top Canadian Equity manager. I would enter public equity markets through Segregated funds. With his mentorship, this would soon become the cornerstone my career and the 3 circle investment model was born.

 Empire ran 3 agencies in Alberta. One in Edmonton and two in Calgary. After a couple years of excellent growth, Empire rewarded me with both Calgary branches, which i would combine. I built a lean and mean agency.

 Over the next 5 years, my team and I built a great organization. We did a lot of business with a large agent force. We were among the top 3 agencies in the country and the most profitable by far.

 In fall of 1989, Empite offered me a couple opportunities. One was to head east, to Kingston ONT and take on a Vice President role, or, en route to that, move back to Saskatoon and take over operations for the prairies. This included Saskatchewan, Manitoba and North Western Ontario.

They wanted me to spend a couple years rebuilding that area and then look at moving to Kingston, Ont in a VP role.

We did a good job there, but 2 years in, a new President came along and things changed. Empire wanted me to stay in Saskatchewan.

I felt I had done as much as I could with this role, and it was time to move onwards and upwards.

 Not soon after this revelation, in the Spring of 1992, I was again head hunted to move back to Calgary with Imperial Life to take over their operations there.

So they brought me in to right a floundering ship.

 I created my own compensation contract, based on recruiting, cost cuts, production and profitability. A first for Imperial Life. Unique through the industry at the time.

I joined an eclectic bunch of agents, working out of “the Tajmahal”, as we would call it; a very austere looking place of green granite, bold lighting and huge offices.

In the first 12 months I recruited more agents than the next top 5 agencies in Canada. Which caused head office and the president to take notice. They asked what direction I wanted to take.

“Brokerage” I said and built the companies first brokerage agency in Canada.

Imperial was looking to change nationally from a traditional career organization to brokerage or agency model. Most of the industry in Canada had done so, by this point, and I was known as a leader who had a history of building successful agencies.

Kismet.

Over the next 2 years, we worked hard, continued to build and eventually changed the profit picture from a $400,000 loss to a $300,000 profit.

Unheard of numbers back in those days.

Imperial decided that my model was the route go and we began to successfully change a 100 year old company model, with my guidance.

 In 1994 Seven of partners from across the country negotiated and purchased the blocks of business, from Imperial, in our regions. We turned career brokerages, into independent and thriving businesses.

I bought the Alberta block.

To our knowledge, this was the first and last time a life insurance company has done this.

 I went from being a handsomely paid regional manager on a Friday night, to waking up Monday morning with no income and being SEVEN figures in debt.

 The Financial Growth Inc (FGI) brand was born!

With our model and people, offices in Calgary, Red Deer and Edmonton; we quickly built a massive block of business, expanding into the prairies and by 2000 had over 350 agents.

 Then along came a buyer. A western organization and gave me a great offer and purchased FGI.

 It was 2001, I was 49 years old…

I was retired and spending my Winters with my gorgeous wife in sunny Southern California!

 Act 2:

 By the end of 2003 I had become boring and bored. (2 different issues)

A former producer from FGI, offered me his business for a great price, and I couldn’t resist the temptation to build again. I learned retirement is what you make of it.

 It was a block of about 110 Farm clients in and around Calgary and south central Alberta. One that I helped the former owner of the business build.

So I opened an office, hired a great gal and away we went. We made a great team, she got me in front of all these great folks. I had a great time meeting and converting them into clients, as well as friends, through my Tax foundation background, combined with the Three Circles model.

But Winter was taking us south for almost 4 months a year. What to do…

 In 2006, I asked our son Darris to join the team, and would soon make him a partner in the firm. He had been in the industry a couple of years, and was making a name for himself.

Since joining FVI and partnering up, Darris and I have worked as a very effective team to build and grow Financial Value. My time working with my son has been as rewarding as it is challenging. As any father and son duo can probably attest to. We maintained a common goal in mind and I have felt comfortable having Darris as a partner in business since day 1.

In my experience spanning 5+ decades I have seen very few parent/ child (frankly very few of any dynamic) partnerships pan out. We worked very hard to ensure our clients have a functional and thriving succession plan in place to ensure they are looked after long after Darris puts me out to pasture.

I adore the business, but retirement does have its perks.

We have worked as a solid team for going on twenty years. with our experience and concepts combined with our enthusiasm and ability to adapt, we have been able to manage client accounts and capital, through ups and downs, that have broken other firms.

This partnership has given me the opportunity to give back to the community via the Rotary Club of Calgary (Calgary’s downtown chapter of Rotary International) to build a series of events that have raised millions upon millions of dollars for local and international charities. I feel blessed to have been able to do this work with my wife and son, and our many friends who have volunteered through the years. (Click here to check out the work we have done over the years)

In 2016 Wendy and I were awarded the Paul Harris Award as recognition for our efforts put back into the community through the Rotary Club of Calgary. This is Rotary Internationals highest achievement and a great honour for both of us.

In 2015, Darris and I began to talk more and more about my long term plan, to move more into retirement and taking on a different role with FVI. The previous year, we bought what would become a thriving business in Edmonton.

At this time, I made him CEO of Financial Value Inc, and took a step back into a role of founder and advisor, while still maintaining control of the company, Darris was now fully running the day to day, while we managed and continued to grow FVI.

For nearly two decades, I was able to build and enjoy a network of freindships and partnerships, working with Darris and our clients. I continued to spend time in California, with Hemet as our second home.

Before I knew it, it was December of 2019, and all of our lives would change.

ACT 3

In 2019, Darris and I secured a deal that would buy me out and “retire” me for a second time. He would buy the shares of Financial Value Inc and succession would be complete.

In January of 2020, he paid me my first of two payments and took over the company. A few weeks later, the world would be thrown into chaos…

Retirement is what you make it. I chose to continue to help build Financial Value, to work with Darris and go through unprecedented times together, with our clients and with the world.

Act 3 of my career, which I hope lasts a long time, as long as I am able; has been as challenging and rewarding as the prior two acts. This new phase of my life has seen a great deal of change. We sold our second home in Hemet, we have two incredible grandchildren and so much to experience through their eyes and actions.

Darris and I continue to work together, and continue to find ways to thrive with our clients, in our business and together as father and son, business partners and buddies.

If you have made it this far, you have seen the fruits of 50+ years of work. Going on six decades of, if I may be so bold, innovation and excellence.

FVI exists, because FVI is the life I built in this industry. I built it with my Family, with our clients and maybe with you.

I am Donald Cameron, founder of Financial value Inc. and this is my story.