Mr.Rakesh P. Parekh & Mr. Jayant Doshi
True Value Investment Services Private Ltd. - Bharuch

Mr. Rakesh Parekh started his career in the year 2006 as a Stock Broker and that was his first step in his journey of wealth creation for his clients. He said the time period : 2006 to 2008 had given a best lesson of his life. He experienced how the stock market washed out hands of his clients. He and his clients understood the fact about equity investing and learning from it made him to go for Mutual Fund product. After addition of MF into his product offering he has never look back in the business.

Later he partnered with his friend Mr. Jayant Doshi and bring him on the board into this journey. Both are the firm believer in the asset allocation principle for portfolio management. A thorough professional approach and a visionary, it comes as no surprise that the company's vision is to have HAPPY Families. We are currently managing an AUM of Rs. 50 cr. and want to reach at Rs.150 cr. mark by 2020.

We wish our best for True Value Investment Services Private Ltd. and are also glad to bring this interview.

ES: Please introduce yourself and also share your vision and mission or goals in life.

Rakesh:Hello e-Saathi readers !, I am Rakesh Parekh from Bharuch and running a investment advisory firm under the name

Later my friend Mr. Jayant Doshi joined with me in this business as we shared the same vision and understanding about the advisory business. We came under one roof to offer the best in class services to our clients and both working with vision to make healthy financial families as many as we can.

ES: What inspired you to choose the career of a financial advisor / distributor?

Rakesh:In the year 2006 I have started my carrier as a sub broker with leading stock broking firm in India, and started acquiring clients area surrounded around the cities Ankleshwar & Bharuch. I used to get new client day by day easily because stock market was in bull phase at that time, clients were also too aggressive for investing in stock market via Intra-day Trading, F &O with a very short time horizon. But in 2008 bear phase started and stock market collapse due to global issues particular in US due to many reasons. That collapse in market made so many clients - stop trading forever and also investors who have invested without so much understanding have lost money and for many others money stuck. At that time I realize that stock market is not a casino and I have to educate my clients that equities are for long term and buying an equity shares is like buying a business, if u don’t understand how to choose right stock or right business then invest through equity mutual fund.

ES: Do you promote the idea of savings through MF SIP in your clients?

Jayant: I think systematic investment Plan (SIP) is an eight wonder of the world, it’s a wonderful idea to create wealth in long run.

ES: Client communications is an integral part of your business. Please share any best practices / services related to communications adopted by you.

Both: Do meeting with client on regular basis. Use technology to upgrade them. We always appreciate technology backbone provide by NJ to its Partner and clients. NJ's technology initiatives for clients in terms of desk & mob apps are mind blowing and it is a need of the time. Say for e.g. NJ E-Wealth Account – it is the need of the time, NJ brought it to the market at very right time - a platform provides commendable benefits to investors with hassle free investing life. One should leverage these initiatives as a part of communications & marketing strategy.

ES: How do you educate your clients for MF, Insurance and a topic like asset allocation, especially the first time investors?

Both: We always recommend SIP to new mutual fund investor, and educate them how SIP will benefit in long run, its help to bet an inflation , rupee cost averaging in long run, you can start with small monthly installment , Profit earn on investment is tax free, investor can invest additional amount anytime. We also give understanding of the insurance. Life insurance is very important for the human life. We believe that each and every human having economic value must have life insurance so we do advice our clients to have it.

As far as asset allocation is concerns we believe it's a very important task. Risk profiling is a first step towards financial planning, after risk profiling you can suggest products and also you can share your view on asset allocation.

ES: Do you follow client segmentation practice. If yes, also share any differentiation made in service offerings to these client segments.

Rakesh: Yes, I am classifying my client base as per the criteria like Aggressive, Moderate and conservative and sell product accordingly,

“Client segmentation is must for every partner, you cannot sell every product to each client.”

ES: How do you assess /see the future of financial advisory business in India? How can we as Partners be ready / prepared to make the most of it?

Jayant: Everyone has a need for future and everyone has to plan, our role is to identify customer need and advice them accordingly. Now a day’s interest rate on savings is big concern in our country, so day by day our role as an adviser is getting bigger. There is a huge opportunity available in India though regulator environment is not so flexible for IFA but I believe we can grow easily and can increase our market share.

ES: According to you what one should look to win the trust of clients?

Both: Many people think and believe that it is not that easy to build the trust of client but we believe that its an easy task. You just need to do your business very sincerely. Having said this if we highlights some of the parameters that one should follows to achieve and maintain the trust of client from the perspective of business, building relationship and providing services. Below is the list of few parameters:

• Following Ethical Practices,
• Regular Client Meeting,
• Giving Solution According To Their Need,
• Giving Good Services For Non Financial Transaction,
• Frequently Review And Re-Balancing Existing Portfolio

ES: Suggestion / advice you would like to give to new Partners?

Both: Congratulation to all new partners for choosing carrier as IFA. Mutual fund industry is very big and its going to be bigger and bigger in next few years, come with a long term business vision and stay here with focus and don’t take it as a part time job.

The most important thing is giving your 100% to the business. Sell more & more SIP, Set long term targets – for e.g. How you see yourself after coming 10 years?. Attend monthly meeting and motivational program regularly organized by NJ. Use tools and mobile application provided by NJ.

Mr. Sadruddin A Khetani ,
K-Mint Financial Services LLP, Pune

Mr. Khetani – A Chartered Accountant by Education is practising Wealth Advisory as a profession since 2004. He started working as a sub broker with Kotak Securities in the journey of wealth creation, but later he turned for Mutual Fund advisory when he and his partner gained an experience during stock market crisis in the year 2008. Mr. Khetani is passionate about educating clients on personal finance related issues and that passion also one reason - that brought him into this noble profession. He thinks Education is a Great Tool to bring awareness among clients however its not a one-time process and hence requires consistent efforts from advisor in this direction.

Mr. Khetani with his partner working with a single minded vision to act as a coach for their clients in wealth creation journey. He believes that this profession will give an immense satisfaction and material benefits in the long run to every advisors. He also pointed out about the lesson they learnt and must be a learning for every advisor is that "Communication with the client during the market downturns is the most important and its always going to remain a differentiating factor in client relationship".

Team e-Saathi gladly presents an interview of a Partner who believes that "when we advisors advise investors to have patience; We advisors also need learn to have patience with ourselves in the process of growth in the business."

ES: Please introduce yourself and also share your vision and mission or goals in life.
Answer: Having completed my education and having gained some work experience in Mumbai, I decided to shift to Pune to slow down the hectic pace of Mumbai life. I initially worked in a Manufacturing Company at Pune for some years. Post which, I decided to put my education to use for myself and started as a sub-broker for Kotak Securities in 2004. The period between 2004 and 2008 was a heady period for the stock broking industry. We made obscene amount of money from the broking business during this period.

We had never imagined that the happy days were ever going to come to an end. But to our utter shock and disbelief, the broking business became almost zero and we lost out all the money in double quick time. During this period, the mutual fund advisory business was not on our radar at all. Whatever little corpus we had accumulated was done by default by clients themselves.

In 2006, Shailesh Agarwal had joined me as my business partner. Post market meltdown in 2008, Shailesh and I sat together to take stock of the situation, analysed what had gone wrong and came to a decision to immediately discontinue the speculative broking business and instead focus on long-term wealth creation for the clients through the mutual fund route.

Based on the ongoing training of NJ, we kept refining and evolving our business model and strategies. Today, we are very clear that our mission is to act as a coach in our clients' long-term wealth creation journey.

ES: What inspired you to choose the career of a financial advisor / distributor?
Answer: We started as a stock broker first. Over a period of time, we realized that in the broking business, our interest was not aligned with the clients' interest. As such, the business model was not sustainable and more importantly ethically acceptable to us. Hence we took to mutual fund advisory for the clients' long-term wealth creation.

ES:Setting the financial advisory business takes some time. How did you handle the challenges on the financial front in the initial period of the business?
Answer: In fact, this was one of the factors which attracted us to this model. As the clients make money only in the long term, so do the advisors. This acts as a big entry barrier for the new distributors thus limiting competition. Our meetings with Mr.Swapnil Admane and Mr.Sarfaraz Patel had prepared us to be ready for the long haul. The inputs provided by Mr. Sarfaraz Patel and Mr.Swapnil Admane proved invaluable and helped us to create a clear long term road map for the advisory business. These two gentlemen act as our mentors and keep us focused on our long term goals.

ES:What made you to join NJ as NJ Partner ?
Answer: The technology platform, continuous training and business support, focus on long term, ethical business practices, putting the clients' interest first, accessibility of the top management - These values and principles were aligned with our own values and hence it has been a mutually rewarding relationship with NJ all through. Whatever we have been able to achieve would not have been possible without NJ's support.

ES: Do you promote the idea of savings through MF SIP in your clients?
Answer: Certainly. We strongly believe that long term wealth creation, with least amount of volatility, is possible only with the SIP route. If an individual has to plan for his financial goals like children's education or his own retirement, he has no choice but to go through the SIP route. SIP investments are also the most appropriate investment tool as most of the clients generate income on a monthly basis. Also, the investments done through automatic route (like SIP) are likely to continue consistently and for a longer period.

ES:How client communications is integrated into your business strategy. Please share any best practices / services related to communications adopted by you.
Answer: Our clients mostly comprise of HNIs who are owner/directors of SME industries. We have also segmented our clients and we stay in touch with the top 25 families (our platinum clients) on a regular basis (once a month or once every two months).

In addition, we keep sharing some nuggets of information / NJ MCS images / Market Gyan through WhatsApp on a weekly basis with all the clients.

Most importantly, whenever there is a sharp correction in the market, we make it a point to call (and if possible personally meet at least the platinum clients) and advise them to top up their investments. Such hand-holding and communication during the difficult times, we have experienced, are invaluable experiences and create great confidence amongst the clients.

ES: How much importance do you give to Insurance in you advisory practice?
Answer: We are infinitely grateful to NJ for providing us an additional source of business through Insurance. Not only we have been able to cross-sell insurance to our existing clients, it has also opened up a relatively easier entry to acquire new clients. Since our clients are basically industrialists, providing them factory fire insurance, staff health insurance etc opened up an additional revenue stream for us which is more steady, predictable and attractive (at least in the short term) compared to mutual fund practice. Through this, we have been able to build a decent premium book which is growing at a fast pace.

ES:How do you educate and convince your clients for mutual funds, especially the first time investors?
Answer: "Education is a great tool". But its not a one-time process. The message has to be consistent and has to be ongoing if one desires a lasting mental impact on the client. In the end, it's the clients own experience which convinces him. However for this, he has to stay invested for atleast five years.

"I think communication with the client during the market downturns is the most important differentiating factor."

ES:How you evaluate NJ's technology initiatives such as various On-line Desks & Mobile Solutions ?
Answer: The technology tools provided by NJ are invaluable. The clients come to appreciate them over a period of time. The recent addition of Financial Tools App is something we cannot do without now. It provides all the info on our finger tips. These can also be very easily shared with the clients immediately. MCS images and videos too are a great value addition and help to spread our message and build our own brand image in the minds of our clients.

ES:How do you assess /see the future of financial advisory business in India? How can we as Partners be ready / prepared to make the most of it?
Answer: First of all, our own confidence in the Indian economy and equity markets. Secondly, consistent communication and message content to the clients. Third, ongoing updation of knowledge and skills. Fourth, putting the clients' interest first. I think, these qualities will help a partner to grow his practice irrespective of the regulatory challenges and changes.

As we advise investors to be patience, the advisors too need to be patience. This is a business which will give an advisor immense satisfaction and material benefits in the long run.

Ms. Jigna A Shah
Anand - Gujarat

Ms. Jigna Shah - A Lady who hails from the milk capital of the India - Anand (Gujarat) had cultivated dreams of becoming an entrepreneur since her childhood. She started her career as a school teacher after completion of B.Sc. Home Science. Later she shifted to work in the insurance industry and finally into the full fledge financial advisory business.

The defining moment came into her life when she went to pay a premium for her two wheeler in nearest branch of United India Insurance Co. The branch manager gave her a proposal to join the company as an Agent. She started thinking on the proposal; with the initial hiccups in taking decision and after discussion with her husband she took a life changing decision to join UIIC as an agent. She said the decision was very difficult as she was about to approach a work area which was totally new to her and she is about to leave a profession in which she was doing good. (She said, Motivation from her husband and his belief in her has made all difference. He asked her to accept this as a challenge and grab it as an opportunity). Also the helping nature was remain a reason for her to chose a career in the field of insurance.

"Struggle always remains a part of every Success Story" - The same is true in the case of Ms. Shah. In the beginning of the business she had to move to the new location (Anand City) as a part of her husband's relocation plan. She struggled like anything when she started off as an Agent. But this was just a beginning for her, as more is yet to come - The biggest setback in her carrier. When she was at the peak of the carrier, she met an accident. This accident made her to go through multiple surgeries in the period of last seven years. She continued her work from the bed. All these problems have never made her down.

Team e-Saathi with immense proud presents an interview of a Lady who did not leave the field even though passed through many problems while establishing the business and is still here on the path of creating wealth for her clients. We also appreciate her efforts that she is putting up in the direction of bringing financial awareness among women Investors.

ES:Please introduce yourself.

Answer: After completion of graduation in B.Sc. Home science, I started my carrier as a school teacher. From my childhood days I was an ambition of doing my own business, which creates my own identity. I was also inclined towards helping people in different ways.

ES:What inspired you to choose the career of a financial advisor / distributor?

Answer: We know that opportunity always knocks the door in everyone's life in any form. I still remember the days, when I used to travel around the city on my Moped (Luna). After my marriage, One day I went to UIIC office to pay a premium for my moped. I don't know why but the branch manager suddenly asked me a question (A question that has changed my life dramatically) - why don't you join us as an Agent / Advisor?

I started thinking about his proposal and talked to my husband about the same. At that time, I was not at all aware about insurance or finance field. Initially, I felt apprehensive as it was totally new area for me and also no one from my family/relative was associated with this field. However my husband motivated me to accept this as a challenge and convinced me to shift to this profession. Finally I joined UIIC as an advisor in the year of 2002 and this is how I took a first step in the field of financial advisory.

ES: Setting the financial advisory business takes some time. How did you handle the challenges on the financial front in the initial period of the business?

Answer: During the initial stage, I had to settle in Anand due to my husband's job. Here, I had to start my carrier from ZERO as I don't have much contact. I started canvassing Health Insurance to my neighborurs and their references etc. and soon the result started coming-in positively. Later In the process, I realize the need of adding life Insurance in my product boutique, so I started LIC advisory in the year 2003.

ES: What made you to join NJ as NJ Partner ?

Answer: I must thanks to NJ's Anand branch Manger Mr. Manish Gadhvi, (who is presently Zonal Sales Head for Mumbai, Andra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu) for encouraging me to start MF advisory with NJ. With his guidance & support, I cleared my AMFI Exam and start Mutual Fund Advisory business in the year 2006.

ES:Do you promote the idea of savings through MF SIP in your clients?

Answer:

"The best thing about SIPs is that they take emotions out of the investing decision"

One can't time the market every time on his own.I promote the SIP idea by focusing on Triple P benefit which SIP offers: Power of compounding, Power of averaging & Peace of mind.I always sell SIP linked with GOAL, be it retirement, child marriage or higher education.

ES : We heard that you have done remarkable job in educating and bringing financial literacy among women. Say something about it.

Answer: Being lady advisor, I felt that financial literacy among both working & non working women is very low. In most of cases, women don't have any role/idea about investments done by their husband. Even working lady also remains dependent on the advice of male member(s) of the family for Investment decisions. I always prefer to conclude client's investment/insurance deals in the presence of spouse so as to promote her involvement in financial matter of the family.

Going ahead I am planning to organise a meet in association with DSP Blackrock MF on the agenda of promoting & bringing Financial Literacy among women.

ES: Client communications is an integral part of your business. Please share any best practices / services related to communications adopted by you.

Answer: I use various mode of communications like sending personalise email/SMS containing birthday wishes useful articles related to finance/ insurance etc. to tap potential clients. I do use social media like facebook, Whatsup to share MCS video/images & also update the MCS Video/Images on my website www.shrijinvestment.com regularly. Message & themes of MCS video is crystal clear and easy to understand & helped in creating my own brand name.

Beside this, every month I am dispatching courier containing LIC/GIC policy premium due reminders/ Mutual fund valuation reports, MCS leaflets etc which helps me to stay connected with clients. I also conduct client's meets regularly wherein I invites official from AMC/Insurance company & NJ to share their knowledge and update on the latest happening in the industry.

ES:How much importance do you give to Insurance in you advisory practice?

Answer: Beside Mutual Funds, NJ has helped me in taking my insurance advisory business to new heights. "SAMPOORNA SUREKSHA" concept is one of the unique products in my product basket, which is not available with other Advisors. I also give focus on Personal Accident & Term Insurance.

ES: How do you educate and convince your clients for mutual funds, especially the first time investors?

Answer: When a new investor approaches us for investments in Mutual fund, first of all I understand his/her existing investment pattern, risk taking ability and future goals. I explain them pro / cons of investing in mutual funds vs. traditional investment products such as Bank FD/PPF/MIS etc. I make them aware about the various products offered by mutual funds and suggest the plan which suits best as per their requirement.

ES : What advantages do you feel TADA offers to both Clients and Partners?

Answer: On behalf of all NJ's partners, I must thankful to Shri Niraj bhai, Shri Jignesh bhai & entire NJ team for developing this user friendly, simple & hi-tech technological platform of E-Wealth, which no-other competitors has offered. Since last one year, for all new clients I open E-Wealth account & than after carry out purchases & SIP through E-wealth account. E-Wealth A/c's has changed the way of my working & saved lot of time in filing the forms, collecting the cheques from clients & most importantly it has removed geographical barrier of doing business by bringing entire world in our reach.

I am regularly conducting clients meeting specially for E-wealth A/c holder to show live demo n benefit. I get new inflow of Rs. 45-50 lac through E-wealth A/c during recent downfall.

Other Advantage of E-wealth account is activation of online equity platform Now-online, which I am using for direct investment in shares.

ES: Can you share any incident /event which has had a lasting impact on you or your business as a financial advisor /distributor?

Answer: Up & down is part of life & challenge is to face it. I could not forget the day when I met with accident due to slippage of two wheeler. It had ruined my carrier, when it was at peak. Doctors advised me to take complete bed rest for year. It was very difficult period for me & my husband, who always support and give courage to fight in that situation. I was managing office from bed & keeping myself busy in my work. I went through multiple surgeries in last seven years.

ES: How do you assess /see the future of financial advisory business in India? How can we as Partners be ready / prepared to make the most of it?

Answer: In India, Penetration of Mutual Fund & Mutual Fund Advisors is very low. Only 9% of household saving is invested in Mutual Funds. I see ample opportunity for both new entrant as well as existing partners as more n more people preferred investing in mutual fund due to reducing interest rates on Bank FDs as well as traditional investment products like PPF/MIS/NSC/SCSS etc. In addition to this, Tax Free returns, liquidity, transparency, lower expense ratio and professional management, etc are the benefits offered by Mutual Funds only.

ES: How much importance do you give to Asset Allocation & Risk Profile while offering solution to clients need?

Answer: I suggest dynamic assets allocation portfolios of MARS as per risk profile according to the client's needs. Through MARS, Assets allocation and rebalancing is done based on market movement which helps in preserving gain on investment.

ES: Winning the trust of a Client is not an easy task. How do you think you can win the trust of the Clients?

Answer: I always believed in Customer's first approach, advice which suits them most. Dedication towards work, providing regular services/advice, understanding their need & giving solution to it, in depth knowledge of product & regular communication etc are values adopted by me to win client's trust.

ES: What suggestion / advice you would like to give to new Partners who have yet not established themselves in the business?

Answer: According to me, Patience, ready to accept regulatory changes, continuous updation of knowledge, adaptation of technology for faster communication etc. It will helps in creating new partner's own identity. In short term you may see uncertainty due to changes happening in industry. Going ahead, there is an ample opportunity for dedicated advisors.

ES: Can you please share your short term and long term targets for your business.

Answer: My vision for this year is to set up my own full-fledged office and putting efforts on achieving Rs.50 cr AUM & Rs.50 Lac SIP book by 2020.

Mr. I S Phani Kumar
Malleswaram (Bangalore)

Team e-Saathi presents a story of the NJ Partner in his on wards who is celebrating completion of 10 Years being with NJ.

As I had celebrated just recently (22-Jan -2016) the 10 year journey as an AMFI Advisor (ARN Holder, ARN-36744) you must be wondering why did I venture into writing this long post.

My tryst with NJ Group officially started exactly a decade ago (8th Feb 2006) the day on which my code (16329) was made official(though I became an ARN holder officially on 22-jan -2006) and that forced me write this piece.

Having entered the unknown territory of Financial Services through Life Insurance Agency assignment ,the field I was entering presented an opportunity and at the same time many challenges which continue through the years till today.

The journey so far with NJ group helped in every inch of my Advisory career right from the Training provided on the stroke of the exam to the basic training and in the process a right foundation was getting formed I still remember the basic Training provided by the ever energetic Mr Misbah Baxumusa who had flown in exclusively to give the basics of MF industry and the ground realities related to the Advisory career were touched upon in a detailed way (if I remember correctly),for a period of three days.

Since then ,the great journey of working together had started together towards the respective goals i.e. as an Advisor for me to come up in the career and as a National Distributor of repute for NJ (In fact they were a known force by then itself.)

The constant and continuous training sessions arranged exclusively for NJ partners both internally and externally are the things I liked most. Even today the zeal and enthusiasm with which the meetings or the training sessions- arranged by NJ -are of the highest order.

The Data compilation work done and circulated by NJ group through various means like Fundzwatch,Performance watch, the tools& calculators developed had helped people like me to save millions of seconds in analyzing various factors before I present myself to my customers. The SIP calculators, the returns calculators, the Goal based approach (GAP presentation), the Dynamic calculators that help in quick calculations based on different needs and approaches,etc ., are some of the things that helped me a lot and are still helping in my day to day Advisory Life.

The monthly meets,the regular interactions with NJ officials and the AMC personnel help a great deal in not only enhancing the knowledge but also the conviction towards the opportunity that is present in front of us.

The PBC (Partner Business Convention) being conducted year on year is a spectacle in itself and gets conducted in a grand gala manner amidst industry stalwarts and the top class NJ Advisors form part of the convention. Touted as the "Meet of the MF Community" ,"the MDRT of MF Industry ",by many Industry Stalwarts and the established MF advisors, the NJ PBC is a must attend for every aspiring IFA associated

with NJ .The knowledge sharing, the bond that gets created though interactions with Industry personnel and the Co- Advisors, the presence of the celebrity guest and the unwinding that takes place are the unforgettable memories one could carry from the PBC year on year. The mid year event, an event, many of us look forward to be part of, is the most awaited moment in my diary of events. In my Ten years association I am happy to be part of 7 PBCs so far and eagerly looking forward to be part of the 10th NJ PBC and my 8th overall. The addiction of being Part of NJ PBC keeps me on tenterhooks as every year to qualify for the coveted event keeps me focused on the job.

The 10 year Association made us build strong relationships that got converted to personal friendships and the bond formed is so strong that it would require a super human effort to break the same.

The challenges that became part of our Industry -starting from the entry load ban in 2009 to the unending regulatory measures -are well handled by NJ as a whole and helped us stay focused despite many difficult situations surrounding us in the market space.

The NJ innovations, initiatives like TADA (E-Wealth) Account,MARS,PrintShop/NJ BIZMALL , the MF PMS ,the RAP Points,etc , are unique to NJ and exclusive to NJ Partners.

As the industry looks at awe the growth and the philosophy with which NJ group runs its business model ,it indeed is a satisfying moment for people like me to conduct our business through our Association with them.

The tremendous support from each and every member of the Management team locally and from NJ Top Management team, the helping hand from the support staff locally and the customer care support we receive are very difficult to be inked and measured in quantity and the support continues through .

I am thrilled to be part of a conglomerate of Advisors and Employee team of NJ group and I could say with lot of Authority that this is one of the unique Associations I am part of and I had enjoyed being part of this togetherness.

As I step into my 11 th year of Association with NJ Starting today I thank each and every member of NJ group right from the Support staff to the Management team , my Co Advisors for the helping hand extended towards me with folded hands and look forward to many years of fruitful Association with the NJ Group and the people Associated with them(NJ Group).

Thanks !