Wealth Enhancement Group (WEG), a national independent wealth management firm headquartered in Minneapolis, has acquired family-owned Sadoff Investment Management, a Milwaukee-based independent registered investment advisor (RIA) managing $1.6 billion in client assets, the company said.
Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Sadoff serves clients nationwide, with about half of their clients residing in Wisconsin. Founded by Ronald Sadoff in 1978, the Sadoff Investment Management team includes Sadoff’s sons Bryan and Michael Sadoff, and their team of three support members.
“It’s been 44 years since we opened our doors, but this is the beginning of a new, exciting chapter for our firm and our clients,” Ronald Sadoff said in a news release. “They will benefit from the massive network of specialists and resources at Wealth Enhancement Group while receiving the same care we’ve promised and delivered from the beginning. As we have always said, people come to our family because they want to protect the future for their family.”
Led by current owner Michael Sadoff, the practice serves high-net-worth business owners and professionals who are near or in retirement, guiding them through each major milestone of their financial lives.
In an email, Michael Sadoff discussed why the family-owned venture has been so successful for so many decades.
“Two things set us apart from others in our industry,” he said in the email. “One is our time-tested strategy of picking individual stocks breaking out of long-term down trends. The other is how we protect our clients during periods of economic uncertainty and instability, such as the aftermath of the technology and housing bubbles.”
Sadoff said that during recent turbulent times, including the collapse of the tech bubble two decades ago and the 2008 financial crisis, he and his team reduced their allocation to what they deemed risky stocks, even if they offered the potential for a higher return on investment (ROI), opting instead for safer picks that generated a more modest ROI.
“Bryan and I grew up with our father as an investment advisor while we were little,” he said. “Investing is in our blood and was something we grew up around. I think we both always wanted to become financial advisors, too.”
Sadoff said his practice grew over the years primarily through word of mouth, with many clients being referred to it by professional sources, such as attorneys and CPAs, as well as business and personal referrals.
“We are a family business that serves other families,” Sadoff said. “Many of our clients are professionals, such as doctors, lawyers or people in the business world. We work with them up to and through their retirement.”
Jim Cahn, WEG chief investments and business development officer, said in the news release that good succession planning was important to his firm, just as it was to the Sadoffs and their firm.
“Look at the way Ron built the family business, brought Bryan and Michael in, and set up Sadoff Investment Management for many decades of success,” he said. “They’re not just taking care of clients today. They’re making sure they can take care of clients tomorrow."
In an email, Cahn discussed the importance of advisors having a succession plan.
“It's hard to find the right fit, and it takes an investment of time and money," he said."Most advisors have the intention, but few have the fortitude to build a robust succession plan.”
“A lot of succession is about culture,” he continued. “Families can maintain that culture easier than bringing in someone from the outside. Also, often children of founders have grown up with the business, the clients, and the relationships, so it makes it easier. Not all children of founders are natural successors, but that tends to weed itself out pretty quickly.”
This is Wealth Enhancement Group’s ninth acquisition of the year; last week, the firm announced the addition of Burlington, Mass.-based hybrid RIA Pinnacle Private Wealth with over $660 million in client assets.
David Selig of Advice Dynamics Partners advised Sadoff on this transaction. Legal counsel was provided by Chris Frieden of Alston & Bird LLP.
Founded in 1997, Wealth Enhancement Group and its registered investment advisor, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, reported having $55.7 billion in client assets on July 31. With the addition of Sadoff Investment Management, Wealth Enhancement Group now has more than $57 billion in client, advisory, trust and brokerage assets as of August 30.