MASTERS talks to prominent figures from the business world, including Jasper Annink, director-owner PRTNRS.Text: Bart-Jan Brouwer | Online Editor: Fleur de Jong
Image: John van Helvert
"I grew up in Zeewolde. My mother used to be employed by an insurance company. At one point she started an insurance agency from home. Four years later a brokerage was added. I started there in 2001, at the age of seventeen: posting signs, taking pictures, scanning construction plans, organizing policies... In 2006, the company was sold, partly because I didn't have the intention and financial ability to take over. I went to intern at several real estate agencies and did rentals in Spain, among other things. Until the crisis broke out, which was especially felt there, and I decided to return to the Netherlands. During the years I had built up a nice basis, I only missed the papers. I took a real estate training, became a broker-appraiser. And because the housing market was on its hiatus, I immediately got all my papers for the Wft (Financial Supervision Act; ed.). That made me both a non-life and life insurance advisor. Because it was all easy for me, I also took the courses for mortgage advisor and certified mortgage advisor in one go. With all the experience and knowledge I now had, I felt the time was right to start my own business: Financial Advice Netherlands. I always thought big, nationwide."
"With Financieel Advies Nederland, I mainly purchased leads that other offices didn't want. Usually these were people with overdraft facilities or mail order loans they had once taken out. If it was an amount of 10,000 euros, you could quickly get 40,000 euros less in financing - that's how much of a difference. I bundled those credits into one new credit for a ten-year term, so the fixed monthly costs were lower. Once the financial alley had been cleared, the space arose to be able to buy a house, which I then went looking for. So first I did the financial inventory, then the purchase counseling, and finally the insurance. That trilogy became my specialty. My clients were so grateful to me! From a difficult situation, they were able to afford a home through me, which moreover grew significantly in value in the following years. They all became relationships for life. I had started from home, but with two small children around me and a third on the way, it was quite difficult to operate professionally. I started renting a basement space, literally with one stripe of daylight. Soon I got extremely busy and was going all over the country."
"My wife joined me; the basement was exchanged for a professional office; with our first employee, Sandra van Klijnenbreugel, we had someone who was going to focus on insurance. And I started focusing mainly on appraisals and home sales regionally. In that we are now the market leader. Meanwhile, we were twice voted best office in Flevoland. It became so big and there were so many colleagues that I changed the business strategy. With marketing agency BlackDesk, I established the brand identity PRTNRS: 'We are your partner in housing and financial services.' All disciplines under one roof, that's the strength of PRTNRS. We are a one-stop shop with Brokerage, Mortgage Case, Insurance Case and also Luxury INS, which offers customized insurance solutions for supercars, vintage cars, art, yachts, villas and exclusive valuables. How that came about? There are many entrepreneurs in my network and if business is good, they sometimes want to reward themselves with a nice car. I wanted to be able to insure those as well. We had already come up with the name of the label and reserved space at MASTERS EXPO. All we lacked as intermediaries was an appointment with a major insurer. Three days before the fair, we managed to get a Porsche Panamera in Maastricht, which I had borrowed from a friend, placed with an insurer of exclusive products. Just in time, we had entered through the back door and were able to make calculations for interested parties with a laptop at the fair. That first participation immediately got us some great clients, including the largest car wash in the Netherlands and a car collection of nearly three million. That's how Luxury INS was born. By now we are authoritative: even Centraal Beheer refers customers to us."
"We draw up an individual profile of each Luxury INS client by mapping what his or her assets are, including, for example, real estate portfolio, jewelry and car collection, and based on that we offer customized insurance solutions. This sets us apart from regular intermediaries. Based on the customer profile, we can offer excellent conditions as well as excellent coverage. A Lamborghini easily costs between 50,000 and 600,000 euros. With us, the annual premium for such a car, with an amount between 2,500 and 3,500 euros, is relatively low. However, the deductible is often slightly higher, but that is not a problem for our wealthy clients. Another advantage: if you have ten cars, with us you only pay one third-party insurance policy, because we assume that you only drive one car at a time. We have insured a fleet of more than 8 million cars for an annual premium of 'only' 12,850 euros. In addition to Zeewolde, we now have branches in Harderwijk, Amersfoort and, recently, Naarden-Vesting. At the end of 2021, I took over Michiel Koudijs Makelaars there and transformed it into Makelaarschap Michiel Koudijs. With that comes Luxury INS to further roll that out in the Gooi. I am looking at how I can position our labels in certain markets. We never stand still: entrepreneurship gives me energy."
This spring issue of MASTERS celebrates regained freedom after two years of corona. Its value is underscored by developments in Eastern Europe, where the freedom of an entire people is at stake. We live in a new reality, but we can plan again, eat out, meet people. The world is turning again! Only: which way? Time for new bridges, new initiatives. To which this edition of MASTERS offers inspiration.
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