Lexington, KY - Hampton Scurlock's new office is nothing fancy. A few metal file cabinets. A stately Lane Allen roll-top desk that belonged to his grandfather. Another desk with a top made from an old wooden schoolhouse door, topped by a laptop computer. A few photos of family, including one of himself as a child dropping coins into a money jar.
The photo is a reminder that even before the certified financial planner founded the Retirement Tax Advisory Group (RTAG) in 2001, he was a money saver.
"I am a penny pincher," Scurlock admitted, "and a lot of clients love that."
Scurlock's clients love it because they are trying to stretch their money. Most of them have retired or are preparing for retirement.
His new location was chosen in part to better serve them. Now at 160 Moore Drive, it has better parking and is easier to walk in and out of, with an elevator to Scurlock's second-floor office.
He shares office space with Number Crunchers, an accounting service headed by Dee Dee Stone, and Cooper and Associates
insurance, headed by John Cooper, which offers expertise in long-term care issues. The three professionals have a symbiotic relationship, being able to rely on each other for additional expertise and refer customers to each other.
"We are all independent," Scurlock said. "But it makes it kind of be a one-stop shop."
The ability to provide one-stop shopping while remaining small and independent was one of the qualities that helped Scurlock earn the Independent Business Professional of the Year award in 2008 from Commerce Lexington. RTAG also was
named one of "America's Top Financial Planners" in 2008 and 2009 by Consumers Research Council.
The new location, which opened in September,
has been well received by clients, Scurlock said, with the exception of one - a woman who lives downtown and doesn't drive. So for her, Scurlock makes a house call.
"It's not something I do a ton," said Scurlock, who estimates about half his time is spent in meetings with clients, "but it's nice to get out of the office for a change."
Retirement Tax Advisory Group had been located on Third Street near Transylvania University. Scurlock, a Louisville native, attended Transy, and after his first year, convinced his father that buying a house near the campus would be better than renting. Scurlock lived in the house and rented out extra rooms. It was also used by his younger brother when he attended the University of Kentucky.
After graduating from Transy in 1999 with a business degree,
Scurlock went to work for a large firm, but he said he didn't like the way the firm was "pushing a lot of its own products." So being "young and idealistic," he decided to strike out on his own, using that same home as a home and office. But that was right about the time of the September 11, 2001, terroristic attacks.
"I had no clients and a whole lot of overhead," he said.
But by "talking to everyone I knew" and
offering to do tax returns for $49 to help make more contacts, he built up a client base. While some financial planners don't offer both investment and tax services, he sees them as working hand-in-hand and does not charge his investment customers extra for tax preparation. This year, he is raising his tax preparation price to $59 but still accepting referrals for new customers.
"I haven't made a cold call in years," Scurlock said.
His business still consists of mostly asset management and financial planning for individuals in or near retirement and managing some corporate retirement plans for small and medium businesses.
He said that most of his clients were able to remain "pretty calm" through the financial turmoil of the past year because most were already taking a long-term approach to investing.
Scurlock was even asked by the College of Financial Planning, a Colorado-based group that provides on-going training for financial planners, to be featured in a DVD on "Strategies for a Down Economy."
His strategies for his business and his clients are pretty conservative. RTAG doesn't have a big budget for advertising or slick marketing materials; Scurlock prefers back-to-school sale folders with a little return-address sticker on the front. He submits columns for publication and
maintains contact with current and potential clients through a newsletter. He also has added a Facebook page and Twitter account. While many of his current clients don't use Facebook or Twitter, he figures a few of those $59 tax return customers will be socially connected.
But there are no big plans for expansion for RTAG, which has just one other part-time employee. So Scurlock's goals for the next five to 10 years, he said, are to add a few new clients, stress a high level of service and "be able to enjoy the business."