Clients who come to see Merrill Lynch financial adviser Susan Acker over the next few months are likely to bring along photos and scrapbooks of their summer adventures.
They are eager to share their stories and memories with Ms. Acker because she probably helped them afford and plan some of those vacations.
She considers it part of her job to make sure clients aren't just building wealth but enjoying it by creating lasting memories with family and friends. The trips she helps clients envision and arrange often aim to connect clients with their next generation and provide them with a gift in a different sense than just writing a check.
“It often starts with a client laying out a concept and saying, 'What do you think? Think we can do this?'” she said.
Ms. Acker is helping one couple see every major golf course in the world. She helps another client pair plan trips to Disney and other spots with their grandchildren.
She doesn't get into the specifics of booking travel for clients, but she talks with them about the best time of year for such vacations and helps them think out loud about the best pace and schedule for everyone they want to include.
Ms. Acker bases some suggestions on her own annual trips she has planned and enjoyed with her own siblings and nieces and nephews.
“Different things resonate with different people based on their family needs,” she said.
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Merrill Lynch executives believe travel is such an important part of retirement for their clients that they have established an agreement with luxury travel company Virtuoso, who they refer clients to for trip planning. Ms. Acker will introduce clients via email to a Virtuoso travel adviser, describing a little about the client's intentions and trip desires.
“Helping clients formulate their hopes and dreams for travel creates a deeper connection,” she said. “It's almost like they are taking me on their trips with them.”
Eric Hutchinson, managing director of United Capital, also assists some clients in planning special trips.
He is helping one couple fulfill their promise to every grandchild that when that child turns 13 he or she can pick a destination to visit anywhere in the world.
He also helped another couple take their eight children — and the families they had each built — on a cruise together.
“These trips create memories of a lifetime, and planning them is a bonding experience with clients,” Mr. Hutchinson said. “It shows a high level of
trust and that we are helping them manage their whole financial life.”
Mr. Hutchinson and his wife do a lot of personal travel all over the world, and that helps give him the knowledge to guide clients.
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Financial adviser Katie Randall of Brighton Jones is a self-described travel bug and enjoys guiding clients on important trips in their lives.
Typically these conversations begin with a broader planning question about what “living a richer life” means to that particular client, she said.
“No one's goal is beating the market or nailing a specific return number,” Ms. Randall said. “It's always something more meaningful than that, and many times it's taking family trips.”
She talks with clients about structuring their portfolios to ensure they have the funds needed for expensive vacations set aside in secure accounts prepared for short-term spending.
The money to cover these trips shouldn't be subject to volatility, Ms. Randall said.
Many of the professionals of Brighton Jones have experience planning their own “trips of a lifetime” because employees who have been with the firm for 10 years receive a three-month sabbatical that many use for travel.
Chief Executive Jon Jones last year traveled around the world for his “long overdue” sabbatical, Ms. Randall said.
