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Shannon Eusey has had to convince investors to let her manage millions of dollars of their money at Beacon Pointe Advisors, the firm she co-founded with her father.
On top of that, she’s employed a roll-up strategy to make dozens of acquisitions around the nation where she had to persuade savvy registered investment advisors who own their own firms to join Beacon.
“We share with our partner firms this: joining Beacon Pointe means gaining the best of both worlds—the scale and resources of a national firm, with the independence and client focus of a boutique practice,” Eusey told the Business Journal. “Importantly, we don’t ask advisors to give up their identity—we work to enhance it.”
Then the savviest of Wall Street investors—KKR & Co.—decided it would be a great investment to take a 50% stake in Beacon Pointe.
By any measure, Eusey is a star in raising capital.
She’s built her Newport Beach firm to $44 billion in assets under advisement and has 60 offices nationwide that employ more than 600. She heads the nation’s largest female owned registered investment advisor, or RIA. The Business Journal estimates her firm may be valued at more than $1 billion.
For all these reasons, Eusey is on the Business Journal’s OC50 list of Rising Entrepreneurs, which begins on page 32.
Not Even a UCLA ‘B’ Grade Could Stop Her
Eusey’s father, Garth Flint, has a deep background in financial services, having founded Kidder Peabody West Coast Institutional Consulting Services and Newport Beach’s Canterbury Consulting, as well as serving as an investment consultant for Merrill Lynch.
“I grew up around the dinner table where my father discussed how much he loved this business and he loved helping clients,” she said in a previous interview.
Eusey attended the University of California, Irvine, where she played Division I volleyball and earned a degree in social sciences and a minor in business management. She then worked as a senior managing director at Roxbury Capital Management LLC, which was based in Los Angeles.
She didn’t agree with its large market cap-focused investment style and thought instead of a “better, more holistic way to help clients.”
When taking an entrepreneurial class for an MBA at the University of California, Los Angeles, Eusey wrote a business plan for a company she wanted to start.
“I got a B on the paper; the professor didn’t think it would work,” recalled Eusey. “I still have the paper in my desk.”
That professor clearly missed the mark.
Eusey and her father started Beacon Pointe in 2002. They had eight employees before they even had one client. The 2008 financial crisis was its most challenging time, because “everyone thought the world was coming to an end, especially in the financial market.”
The firm’s survival is a testament to its strategy.
“A difficult market is really where you make your money,” she said. “If you can minimize volatility, you’re able to compound wealth at a much higher rate.”
She advises the client to focus less on chasing a specific return number and more about achieving long-term goals with confidence and clarity.
“Private wealth clients are seeking a trusted advisor who can provide institutional-quality investment management, comprehensive wealth planning, and tailored advice across every aspect of their financial life,” she said. “They want peace of mind, clear communication, and a team that understands the complexity of their needs and acts in their best interest.
Ultimately, it’s about delivering results while aligning with the client’s vision for their wealth, family and legacy.”
Carving a Niche: The Female Angle
Eusey, who has four children with her husband Rick, has carved a niche servicing women, saying that two-thirds of wealth is controlled by women.
In 2011, the company began its Women’s Advisory Institute, one of the first formal initiatives in the RIA space centered on serving female investors. It focuses on goal-based planning and supporting clients through transitions such as the loss of a spouse or a divorce. More than 50% of Beacon Pointe’s corporate leadership team is female, making it the largest women-led RIA in the nation.
“We’re doing a really good job of informing our female investors,” she said.
The company also created a Foundations of Finance course for high school students and partnered with the Girl Scouts to teach financial literacy. She co-authored a best-selling book, “Your Dollars, Our Sense: a Fun & Simple Guide to Money Matters.”
The KKR Validation
In 2020, Eusey said her goal was to triple its office count from 15 offices to 50. A big moment came in 2021 when she attracted a 50% stake from KKR & Co. (NYSE: KKR).
“Shannon and the Beacon Pointe team have built an incredibly dynamic, client-centric business, which we are excited to invest behind as they continue to take the company to new heights,” Chris Harrington, KKR Partner who leads KKR’s Financial Services investment team, said in a statement at the time.
Soccer Inspiration
Eusey’s won several awards, including two from the Business Journal, a Women in Business Award in 2017 and an Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award in 2023.
She plans to “absolutely” keep the firm in Newport Beach.
“It’s a community that has supported our growth from day one, and I feel a strong personal and professional connection to it. While Beacon Pointe continues to expand nationally, Orange County will always be home for me.”