A broker has set-up his own specialty insurance brokerage on the back of what he calls 'boring insurance' with the goal to make insurance 'sexy.'
SpokeInsure, launched just over two months ago in Brisbane, Australia, is a speciality brokerage in the entertainment, sports and leisure space and was started by Al Dart, ex-Lead Contingency Underwriter for
Beazley Australia.
“Spoke’s mission is to deliver value to the industry through specialist insurance products that not only help secure their clients annual income, but also to promote financial growth," said Dart. “We’ve questioned every part of the insurance process and we’ve found that our clients love the idea of using insurance to drive revenue, rather than just being an expense.”
Dart sees a definitive gap in the market for creative industries.
“Insurance is boring. A grudge purchase from people in ties. Spoke was started to declare war on boring insurance. Having worked in the events and entertainment space for over a decade, we all too often hear of the frustrations experienced by our clients," he said. “These clients felt that their existing brokers simply didn’t get them. You get a stiff guy in a tie applying the same templated risk strategies they use in every other industry, and it just doesn’t meet their individual needs."
Dart revealed what he calls “the ultimate challenge” for SpokeInsure whilst noting that the business hopes to set-up an underwriting agency in 2015 designed to “provide a full, localized service” for clients.
“It’s the ultimate challenge, to make insurance sexy," he said. “They say it can’t be done, and maybe they’re right, but we’re very serious about it. We feel there is a great opportunity for Spoke to provide a personal and specialized service to an industry which all too often gets overlooked in exchange for ties, suits and the odd comb-over chasing large corporate accounts.” (continued.)
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Dart noted that since the launch, SpokeInsure has developed a client base outside of the expected event space.
“Surprisingly, we have also had a lot of interest from real estate agencies looking to increase listings and car dealerships looking to generate more sales," said Dart. “The biggest surprise for most clients is discovering how insurance can be used to stretch a small promotional budget into big results.
“For example, a $1,500 budget can be leveraged to $100,000. Broadcast media has used this approach for years. The attention-grabbing listener and viewer prizes are actually insured, so the media company only pays a modest premium rather than the full prize value," continued Dart. "Spoke is now advising a range of businesses how to leverage a small promotional spend in the same way."
