Good morning,
I am connecting with you all this morning to announce a very exciting new chapter for Davis Rea. When you visit www.davisrea.com you will see a new brand direction for the firm as well as some additions to our leadership team. This new look of the firm came as a result of reflection. Since I acquired Davis Rea in 2010, we have spent a great deal of time thinking about the future and building the team. As part of that planning process, I made the decision to bring in Don Ritchie as President of Davis Rea. Don is not only one of the most respected people in finance in North America - but one of the best minds in the business. In the coming days and weeks many of you will get to meet and get to know Don. I am delighted that he agreed to come on board and will be adding exceptional value to our client offering.
JC O’Connell has worked with the team since 2017. He has continued to expand his responsibilities becoming the CFO of the larger and growing business. He also has completed his Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation joining a very select group of professionals to have accomplished this achievement globally. The CFA was established in 1963 and has only 190,000 holders of the charter globally. The designation takes on average 4 years to attain. Its curriculum spans advanced investment analysis, including security analysis, statistics, probability theory, fixed income, derivatives, economics, financial analysis, corporate finance, alternative investments and portfolio management. It is a huge body of work and JC has proven himself well deserving of increased responsibilities.
Libby Wildman has continued to expand the services and deep attention to detail we bring to each client who chooses to allow us to delve deeper into what each of you specifically need and desire. As our new vision states, we are in the money business, but what is critically important is we are also in the people business.
Given all this change a fresh, new approach to the brand presentation was appropriate and we wanted to share it with you.
Now, about this new brand. You will see that we open with a manifesto - a declaration of our intent, service and philosophy on investment management. And? We Mean Every Single Word. So much so I will present it to you with pride in this letter:
WE ARE DAVIS REA. We are advisors. Which means we give advice, which simply means guidance. Which also makes us guides. All of that is to say that we are here to help show you the way.
Now, there are many ways in which we do that. So, why us?
Well, we have knowledge, deep knowledge. Not just expertise within our core competencies, which make no mistake about it we have in spades, but also in life. We have succeeded and failed, loved and lost, been to the mat and gotten up again and in some cases thought we had seen it all, until something or someone comes along to remind us that indeed we have not.
We know that fundamentally we are a money business. But what we also know, and what is critically important to us, is that we are also a people business. And unlike money, people are not and never will be an exact science.
We, and our partners, execute our responsibilities to our clients with grace, innovation, dignity, courage, consistency and conviction. We are here to serve, and to serve means to honour the commitment we have made to our clients and to each other.
We do what we do because we are in the business of building something successful that lasts. Not only for our clients and partners but for ourselves, to say it otherwise would be misleading and that is one of many things we are not.
We do what we do because human connection is meaningful to us. Exploration of possibility is important to us. The wellness of future generations is important to us.
Our place is found at the many intersections of many lives and events and we are here to take care of our clients, to create for them, to understand their stories and to also create new ones. We will show up for you, and while it is not always comfortable, it is always real, always genuine, always the truth and always with the best ideas, the best plan, and the best team.
We believe strongly in fresh perspective and new ideas. But one thing that will never ever change is our fundamental investment philosophy and our unwavering commitment to providing our treasured clients with the best and most sound advice and support.
In addition to our quarterly calls and reports, we will also be sharing our ideas and opinions and market news and trends monthly with IN THE KNOW - a new communique that will be delivered to your inbox on the first Monday of every month. We are also planning many in person events and experiences that, along with our written thoughts and ideas, are all designed to keep you updated, informed, inspired and well? In The Know - so stay tuned for all of that and more developments.
I would like to close by expressing my deepest thanks to our clients, community, our team and our partners, all who have made the last 13 years unforgettable. I am deeply grateful for every moment and very much looking forward to a bright future for us all.
My very best,
John
