Florida Agent Bucks Trends With Growth, Recruitment Strategies

Riemer’s on a collecting spree that includes new employees, green offices, Rolex watches and cookie jars

When Fireman’s Fund introduced its Green-Gard program covering environmentally sound commercial building practices, Stephen Riemer, president of Florida-based Riemer Insurance Group, said he “jumped all over that like a fat boy on a cupcake.”

The entrepreneurial Riemer says he practices this philosophy in every aspect of his professional life, cultivating mutually beneficial business advances and partnerships wherever he can find them.

“Our goal is to always immediately respond to market demands and to stay on top of industry trends so we offer our customers the most up-to-date, comprehensive insurance available,” Riemer said. “Green-Gard enables us to do just that.”

He has even turned the slumping economy in his favor by tapping into an emerging pool of talented individuals who have recently joined the ranks of the unemployed. On the cusp of opening a new office in Tampa, Riemer said the city’s recent economic downturn “plays into our hand.” Riemer said he hired five producers to start, and plans to hire one additional person per month thereafter.

Holding his agents to a high standard, Riemer requires a minimum production of $10,000 per month of new business. He said if that goal can’t be achieved, it’s not a good fit for the company.

But when the fit is right, Riemer says he does everything he can to keep agents in his employ. Five-year employees receive a $1,000 bonus, with the next two five-year intervals netting his workers Rolex watches: a silver/gold Rolex at 10 years; a gold Rolex (price tag, $18,000) at 15 years. If a producer reaches 20 years with R.I.G., Riemer ponies-up $20,000 toward the price of a new car and at 25 years, he funds a week-long round-trip vacation to anywhere in the world the employee wants to go.

“We have an employee that has been here 28 years so we’re trying to figure out what to do for the 30-year mark,” Riemer said. “The theory behind the incentive program is simple: I can give money to my employees or I can give it to the headhunters. If I go with headhunters, then we’re dealing with degradation in customer service as we lose continuity.”

Continuity seems to be serving Riemer well. He reported significant growth in recent months, specifically 70 percent in January and 67 percent in February. In a market where some property and casualty insurers are non-renewing, or leaving the state altogether, Riemer said he is unfazed by Florida’s current environment.

“We have high growth,” he said. “We’re running fast and growing – and it’s pure organic growth. The markets want to grow with us because we can deliver.”

Growth Strategy

The firm’s client base is broken down into 85 percent commercial, including over 25 financial institutions and publicly traded companies; 10 percent residential and 5 percent employee benefits.

Product offerings include: developers, builders risk, real estate, hotels, nursing homes medical and truck insurance, financial and contractor institution, pest control, jeweler’s block, art, personal lines, professional liability, and Main Street insurance programs.

Riemer, 60, founded the company in 1978 as Tri-County Insurance Agency. He established R.I.G.’s wholesale division in 1984, and has since grown the firm to more than 8,000 clients.

Riemer has developed what he calls a two-pronged corporate growth strategy, whereby he expands the retail agency through strategic acquisitions to develop the company’s product offerings; and provides “high-octane sales training” for the professional development of producer teams in various niche markets.

The numbers speak for themselves, he said. Premium sales in 2005 reached $56 million, $68 million in 2006 and $88 million in 2007. With a string of new acquisitions over the next year, Riemer anticipates reaching the $100 million mark in 2008.

As a U.S. agent for Lloyd’s of London since 1986, Riemer said approximately 34 percent of his business comes from the affiliation. R.I.G. has binding authority with Lloyd’s.

R.I.G. currently has offices in Hallandale Beach, Fla., and an affiliate, Aspen Insurance Agency, in Atlanta. In June 2007 Riemer purchased Empire Insurance, an independent insurance agency in Miami with reported annual premiums of $3 million.

Riemer said he is also in the process of acquiring agencies in Marco Island, Melbourne and Jacksonville.

Going Green

Going “paperless” is the latest multi-purposed practice Riemer has exploited. For R.I.G., going paperless meant eliminating 3,000 square feet of filing cabinets while facilitating remote access for agents working with clients outside the office.

The increase in efficiency yields growth in revenues, Riemer said. This increase has compelled the company to expand by developing 20,000 square feet of new office space in an adjacent building with plans to add 80 more employees. The state-of-the-art, green building will house a generator system, which will allow the company to service clients without interruption in the case of an electrical outage due to a windstorm, he added.

Riemer said applying new technologies promotes efficiency and productivity while also being respectful of the environment. But there is even more to it than that.

“Most significantly, it fosters a healthier, more positive and more forward-thinking culture because the paperless approach indicates that we are investing in our employees by investing in the future,” he said.

Riemer has a life beyond his business.

An avid collector, he has been amassing warehouses full of antiques since 1971. A 1912 Ford model T touring car and a 1925 model TT one-ton pick-up truck stand out among a fleet of vintage vehicles in his collection.

He also owns more than 200 antique slot machines, Mutoscopes (hand-cranked precursor to today’s movies) dating back to 1921 and more than 100 antique ceramic cookie jars with an average value of $1,500. He said he recently sold one duplicate cookie jar for $5,000.

Over the years Riemer has also collected real estate in Hallendale Beach. He said he owns more than 100 properties totaling over 40 acres in the town’s commercial section. As the town’s fourth largest property owner, Riemer said he is “sandwiched between two casinos.”

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