BrokerLink is staying busy with mergers and acquisitions (M&A), with deals still on the way for 2023 and a robust pipeline already in place for 2024, according to BrokerLink president Joe D’Annunzio.
“We're not done this year,” he told Insurance Business. “We have a strong 2024 lined up as well. So, it’s been a very successful year from an acquisition standpoint.”
D’Annunzio said 2022 and 2023 are set to be BrokerLink’s two biggest years from a transaction perspective, adding that their pipeline is full. The brokerage made 24 acquisitions in 2022.
“We’re excited about our prospects going forward,” D’Annunzio added.
Last month, BrokerLink made its largest purchase in Alberta to date, acquiring Alpine Insurance, which offers home, condominium, tenants, auto and commercial insurance.
Alpine specializes in umbrella liability, high-value homes, and specialty coverage for collectibles such as art and antique cars.
The acquisition expands BrokerLink’s operations into Calgary, Canmore, Edmonton, Red Deer, Lethbridge, and surrounding communities.
“We’re well established [in Alberta]. It's a province we want to continue building in different communities,” said D’Annunzio about the deal.
He added that the quality of Alpine’s business, its excellent reputation, talented staff, and strong values made the deal a “no-brainer” for BrokerLink.
As one of Canada’s largest insurance brokerages, BrokerLink’s continued growth through M&A remains one of its priorities next year.
But D’Annunzio also highlighted the organization’s focus on organic growth by strengthening its digital presence.
“We need to continue to grow organically by providing great customer service, and part of that is the digital piece,” he said.
“We want to be able to be there for the customer in the way they want to interact with us rather than how we want to interact with them. If they want to deal with us digitally, we have a solution, and if they want to deal with us locally, in branches, we [also] have the solution.”
Another key priority for BrokerLink is its people. The brokerage keeps about 90% of employees following acquisitions, according to D’Annunzio, and wants to continue this streak.
“We want to be your best employer. We want to be able to have our people grow their careers with us. We want to have a great employee experience,” D’Annunzio said.
“There’s a huge fight for talent today in all industries, so we want to win the key talent. We want to keep the employees we get through acquisition.”
Finally, D’Annunzio named the most significant headwinds for BrokerLink in 2024.
“Catastrophes have been a huge challenge for our whole industry, and the broker’s part is making sure that, if customers have had a loss, you walk them through it and get them back to where they were before the loss,” he said.
This year has been challenging due to the number of extreme weather events in Canada, including a record-breaking wildfire season.
“There have been so many losses, so it’s been a challenge for everyone in the industry,” D’Annunzio said. “We have to help our customers through those difficult situations.”
Catastrophe losses have driven up home and auto insurance rates in Canada. Higher prices coupled with inflation have made insurance unaffordable for many, a challenge that brokers must help address, the BrokerLink president said.
“We need to make sure that we're there for customers, finding solutions for them, and being empathetic,” D’Annunzio said.
“I am not sure these challenges have changed much over the last year. I might be biased, but we have the best team out there, so I'm quite confident we can match those challenges going in.”
What do you make of BrokerLink’s M&A pipeline and its priorities for 2024? Sound off in the comments.
