Small Business Month

7 S M A L L B U S I N E S S M O N T H - S U P P L E M E N T T O T H E W I N N I P E G F R E E P R E S S - T H U R S D A Y , O C T O B E R 1 9 , 2 0 1 7 VALUE PARTNERS INVESTMENTS COMMIT TED TO CLIENTS, COMMUNITY "We are certainly looking forward to the opportunity when we can say that we've created $1 billion worth of wealth for our clients — that would be an amazing legacy." - Gregg Filmon, president and CEO, Value Partners Investments By Jennifer McFee for the Free Press A big part of the secret to success at Value Partners Investments is putting their money where their mouths are. That means investing their own money in the same mutual funds as the company's clients. After all, if your financial professional wouldn't put their own dough in a particular investment, why should you? "We think having a commitment to accountability and transparency is essential because you need to trust the person who's managing your money — and we don't think that's possible unless they're investing their own money alongside you," says Gregg Filmon, president and CEO of the 12-year-old company. The company's expert portfolio managers aim to invest effectively and grow client money for the things that are really important to them. "Since we started Value Partners, our clients have $600 million more than what they originally gave us, which is something we're enormously proud of. We're grateful to our clients and to the advisors that recommended us — and we feel that we're rewarding that faith." The company is confident additional milestones will be met in the future. "We are certainly looking forward to the opportunity when we can say that we've created $1 billion worth of wealth for our clients," Filmon says. "That would be an amazing legacy." While market downturns and the Bernie Madoffs of the investment world seem to get most of the headlines, the professionals at Value Partners take pride in their disciplined approach. "I don't get the sense that there's a lot of positive discussion about the investment world — and we feel the exact opposite," Filmon says. "We feel that investing is a wonderful opportunity to grow your wealth and to allow you to do the things that really matter to you." Value Partners offers a number of options to suit the unique needs of each client. The company manages six different mutual funds, which are available from investment advisors across the country. And just a few weeks ago, it expanded its offering with Value Partners Investment Counsel, a new platform serving high-net- worth clients with at least $1 million to invest. "This will be a great opportunity for us to be able to help more people and to grow our business," Filmon says. Indeed, the company started off with four employees and zero assets. Today, it has a team of 32 and $2.3 billion in assets under management. In addition to helping people achieve their financial goals, Value Partners believes strongly in giving back to the community. "It's really important to us that we're huge supporters of Winnipeg. Most of our employees are from here and graduated from the University of Manitoba or Red River College. We feel fortunate to be able to run our business and to attract world-class talent right here," Filmon says. "When we host meetings, we bring people from across Canada to Winnipeg. Last year, we hosted an event at the Journey to Churchill exhibit. We've also taken people on the Hermetic Code tour at the legislature and we've held events at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and the Winnipeg Art Gallery. We think that Winnipeg has a tonne to offer as a home for a successful national investment firm." The team at Value Partners is proud to have hammered, drilled and sawed alongside other volunteers for Habitat for Humanity to help build five homes over the past three years. They have also volunteered countless hours and energy to amateur sports in Winnipeg. "Since we started the company, many of us have been raising families while we built the business. We've continued to give back to the community throughout that whole period of time. For me, that's really important," Filmon says. "There are so many wonderful Winnipeg success stories. We've always believed that if you're accountable and you do a great job, then you're going to get introduced to other people and you're going to be successful. That's what's happened for us and we're continuing to grow as a result." For more information about Value Partners Investments, visit valuepartnersinvestments.ca or call 204-949-0059. ❚ (From left) Paul Lawton, Steve Norton, Gregg Filmon and Dean Bjarnarson say the team at Value Partners Investments aims to invest effectively and grow client money for the things that are important to them.

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