Fortunately, more and more people are turning to independent counselling, which is, of course, a far cry from the role of an adviser or manager at a financial institution. Those with substantial wealth seek guidance (rather than management) from multi-family offices ad hoc, that’s our core business. But when we consider our work and passion beyond corporate growth, when we focus more on the journey than on the destination, we realise that the work we do for large fortunes can be adapted to most medium-sized portfolios. The only difference is that the applicable cost must be much lower, and therefore it ceases to be profitable for most multi-family offices. Is that reason enough to turn away small and medium-sized investors? Only if we focus exclusively on the profitability of our business. But what’s more, through some small-scale philanthropic or low-cost advisory work, we have received an enquiry from a larger client who does meet our financial expectations. That is one of the great things about enjoying the journey: it takes us straight to the destination without us even realising it.
But recently – in the last few years or even months – some people are realising that things are taking a turn for the worse for many. It is no longer just the cheese that is moving; our compasses are shifting too. It seems we are entering an era where not only will all the virtues of proactivity and constant self-improvement be necessary, but we are also being forced to find our bearings in a global political and economic landscape for which the navigational methods that previously helped us find our way are no longer adequate. Could we say that it is harder to make economic progress today than it was a few years ago? As a Family Office, continuing with the proactivity and the creation of good fortune that we have already made part of our routine, we prefer to think that opportunities are opening up today that we have never encountered before. We are perhaps facing a black swan which we should appreciate in all its splendour and uniqueness, rather than lamenting our misfortune.
Before setting off in search of new cheeses, we must nowadays set off in search of new compasses. And when we find them, they will lead us – though not without effort – to new, unknown and delicious cheeses lost in a exciting a new maze. Essentially, this change of scene is nothing more than yet another shift in the location of traditional cheese. In other words, just as we had grown accustomed to discovering new cheeses through effort and adapting to change, another change has come about. But this time, it is not the location of the cheese that has changed, but rather the
our own search interface. Our current ones will no longer be of any use to us old trainers not only our passion for sport and our enthusiasm for setting out in search of new cheeses, but we must go further still to keep making progress. Is it harder now than it used to be? Only time will tell whether we have found it more or less difficult. I’d say it’s certainly more exciting, so what we must do is enjoy this journey we’ve been given the chance to experience more than ever before.
Through philanthropic counselling, we have observed how, amongst smaller investors, the search for a compass and for ‘cheese’ has become particularly arduous in this day and age. Those with modest wealth – ordinary savers – do not have access to investments structured and designed for small amounts. From our position, we try to tailor these investments to this client profile, but we do not always succeed. Some interesting investment opportunities elude the small investor who has only 25 or 50 thousand euros at their disposal. On the other hand, no one has a crystal ball to guarantee the absence of errors in the event of a crisis in the economic system, not even the Family Office/high-net-worth client partnership. But there is no doubt that sound advice helps to minimise risks and find the path to the compass that will enable us not only to find our way back through the cheese maze, but also to plan our wealth for the long term in the best possible way: without neglecting the enjoyment of the journey, whilst at the same time growing our wealth.
Who’s taken my compass? It’ll surely be easier to find it if someone shows us the way, and once we’ve done that, the search for new cheese will feel like a familiar old path.