Catching Lightning in a Bottle in Small Town Ohio
Phelan Insurance Agency in Versailles, Ohio is a tale of success for attracting and developing young talent in a small, rural town. In a small town like Versailles, sourcing and retaining young talent at a local business is a challenge, but Phelan Insurance has figured out its own secret formula. About ten years ago, the […]
Valuation Views: 2025 Q3 Marketplace Report
The New Competitive Edge: Attracting and Developing the Next Generation In today’s competitive insurance landscape, staffing transcends routine hiring; it’s a strategic imperative. IA Valuations’ 2025 Q3 data shows that agencies with a higher proportion of younger producers significantly outperform their peers. Agencies with 41% of producers under age 35 (among those over $5M in […]
Is Now the Right Time to Transition Your Agency? 10 Critical Factors to Consider
Transitioning ownership of your insurance agency isn’t a decision you make lightly. It’s the culmination of decades of work, relationships, and strategic planning. Yet many agency owners struggle with the fundamental question: When is the right time?
Building Value Through Talent Acquisition – A Case Study for Independent Insurance Agencies
Today’s insurance landscape is facing a “talent desert,” and agencies that want to thrive are shifting their focus from chasing revenue to acquiring growth-minded professionals. These sellers, often younger, ambitious, and hungry for scale, are the oasis in this dry terrain. When you find one, the impact can be transformative. A well-aligned talent acquisition doesn’t […]
Help! Our Agency Owner Passed Away Unexpectedly. How Will it Affect the Agency’s Value?
In almost every scenario, the unexpected passing of an agency owner will have a profoundly negative impact on the value of an agency. With 39,000 independent insurance agencies in the US, sadly, unexpected deaths of agency principals are an everyday occurrence. Particularly when you factor in that 22% of agency owners are over the age […]
Independent Insurance Agencies and the Evolving M&A Landscape
The independent insurance agency (IA) system is in the midst of a significant evolution. In a recent conversation between industry leaders, experts from across the country weighed in on where the IA market is headed, what’s driving M&A activity, and how agencies can better position themselves for growth or exit. Among the featured voices were […]
Benefits as a Tool to Recruit and Retain Talent in the IA System
IA Valuations has worked with hundreds of independent insurance agencies over the past eight years. While working with clients and discussing their pain points, we hear two themes pretty consistently: agencies continue to struggle with growth and talent acquisition. Many owners are actively searching for and recruiting next-generation talent, but the industry and its potential […]
2025 Q1 Marketplace Report
2025 Q1 MARKETPLACE REPORT – AGENT/BROKER M&A ACTIVITY 2024 was the year of the Mega Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A). With four deals accounting for over $35B in M&A activity, 2024 represented another year of consolidation in the independent agency space. The IA system has been experiencing heavy M&A activity since 2014 when Private Equity (PE) […]
The Valuation Rule of Thumb
In insurance industry circles, there is a certain industry parlance tied to what independent agencies are worth. Agency owners have historically thrown out numbers like “I am worth “X” times revenue.” Many buy-sell agreements will incorporate language that stipulates that the value of the agency will be determined in such a manner at the time […]
The Independent Agency System Report Card – 2025 Evaluation
Do you remember when you were a kid and you’d get your report card? It created such buzz and anticipation with your classmates. The nervous energy was palpable as you prepped for opening the report card and thinking of how you were going to explain your school’s progress report to your parents. In this article, […]