One Pennsylvania based advisory firm is so dedicated to improving the lives of its clients that it is constructing a fully operating 4,000-square-foot fitness institute as part of its new headquarters in Wyomissing, Pa. The Good Life Fitness Institute will be open for use by employees, clients and the general public in April -- and is being constructed to model the innovative offices of Google.
Conor Delaney, financial advisor and CEO of The Good Life Companies, says the fitness institute will be constructed as a part of a $3 million rehab of a Lazy Boy warehouse purchased and owned by the firm for its new headquarters, which will include 35 advisory offices. The institute will include a gym with its own hours of operation, business structure and leadership, and will offer clients a comprehensive wellness experience, including nutrition and wellness courses.
Clients will be able to enter The Good Life Companies via the advisory firm or the fitness institute. Healthy food alternatives will be available at the onsite juice bar.
“Two out of three kids my children’s age (ages 5, 3, and 11 months) will get type 2 diabetes in their lifetime,” says Delaney. “Many are considered obese or overweight before they are in fifth grade. We are the only country in the world that the poorer you are economically, the more overweight you are. Why? Lack of knowledge, lack of leadership, and lack of opportunity. I think we will find the parallels that show the correlation between the desire to be healthy and the desire to be financially independent, and we will make sure there is a path and a curriculum to both.”
Delaney’s commitment to health and to help people lead better lives dates back to his youth. He was only 17 when his father died, and he remembers what it felt like being a severely overweight “dorky” teen from a modest background while delivering the eulogy. Delaney’s father was cherished by his community, which included 1,000 students from his 30-year teaching career. Delaney says his father was most concerned with bettering his community and believed this to be the true measure of success. The Good Life advisors lead with the same premise.
"What drives me? Where is my passion? Disrupt the industry to dig my heels in and give Americans, like my father, a place to invest without quantifying that relationship solely on how much money he made as a fifth grade teacher,” Delaney says.
Good Life is also showing a commitment to its Berks County community by including in its new headquarters a multi-functional meeting space where local non-profit organizations can meet or host events at no cost.
Delaney founded The Good Life Companies in 2012 with Courtney Nein, the firm’s president. They expanded beyond a traditional advisory firm to offer turn-key services to other independent advisors using LPL Financial as their broker-dealer. Those services include real-estate build out, technology integration, staff training, infrastructure needs and ongoing support. Good Life now provides services to more than 70 other independent advisors.