Advisor Confidential | Martine Cunliffe

Martine Cunliffe, CIM, CFP

TITLE: Director, Wealth Management, Portfolio Manager, Stenner Investment Partners, Richardson GMP Limited

CITY: Vancouver

IN BUSINESS: 17+ years

BOOK SIZE: 31 relationships; net worth from $15 million to $750 million

Investment philosophy

Buy and hold. “I sniff out opportunities among out-of-favour asset classes or regions that can drastically turn due to a catalyst event. But I’m not looking for a Google. I seek companies that are fairly priced, less volatile, and capable of generating consistent cash flow.”

Bank to boutique

“During my seven-plus years at UBS Wealth Management, I saw exponential growth in my clients’ wealth, most of whom were business owners. This stirred the desire to be more entrepreneurial. So I resigned as regional head of UBS to join Stenner as partner and co-equity owner.”

FEMININE EDGE

“I balance my male partners’ acuity in complex financial concepts with my ability to translate concepts into simple scenarios. When my partners get tangled in jargon, I remind them to stop talking at clients and start talking to them.”

DEVIL’S IN THE DETAILS

“If my colleagues walk into a client meeting with Starbucks or a water bottle, I go nuts. We encourage them to use proper china. We also make sure everyone carries leather folios, not tattered pads. When you can’t get the small things right, clients question your ability to handle the bigger things.

“During our KYC process, we find out clients’ likes and dislikes—from beverages to reporting formats—and record them in our customized CRM database. We format reports the way each client prefers—visual, consolidated, broken down—and present what’s most important to that client, first.”

EDUCATED CLIENTS ARE GREAT CLIENTS

“During the meltdown, all our clients hung on; some added capital. That’s because we educate them about our investment philosophy, the market and products. We meet with spouses and children so they understand what’s going on. Clients shouldn’t abdicate their financial responsibility to us. Educated clients are better stewards of their capital.”