In 2022, LCM celebrated 20 years together. We’re proud to say that even after two decades, we are still thriving—and evolving to meet the ever-changing needs of our client family. One recent change that deserves celebration is Avery Wenck’s promotion to Investment Advisor. This change is an important testament to the growth of our firm. In the four years since Avery joined the team, LCM’s billable assets have risen an incredible 60% (amid the pandemic, no less!). It was clear we needed another Investment Advisor, and Avery proved to be the perfect fit.
Since his college days, every step paved the way toward his newest role. Though he earned his degree in communication rather than finance or economics, he had become keenly interested in the world of investing. And after finishing his studies, he was thrilled to be offered a position in his hometown of Omaha as an associate at Mercer Advisors, a national wealth management firm with more than $38 billion in assets under management.
“I felt lucky to be there, and though my role was largely administrative, I worked with advisors who invited me to sit in on every client meeting. It was there that my interest in helping people invest wisely really took off,” says Avery. But while he was able to experience the client interactions first hand, what was missing was exposure to how and why investment decisions were made. “At my prior firm, every client was placed into a single family of funds, so the advisors were restricted on investment options. Though the funds were great for many investors, some of the clients didn’t like the lack of control and flexibility. I also saw that the advisors didn’t have input into the details of the portfolio, and because their options were limited, they didn’t have the freedom to customize their clients’ portfolios.”
When he was offered a position in Newport Beach (a place he had never even heard of), Avery decided to leave home and head West. Of course, it didn’t take long for him to see that he had landed in a pretty wonderful spot! Less than a year later, he met Patrick through a mutual friend, and the rest is happy history. And while it may be true that cocktails and butter cake at Mastro’s helped seal the deal (!), Avery was particularly interested in LCM’s concrete focus on investments. “Not only were three of the partners CFA Charterholders, but I was also asked immediately to sit on the Investment Committee, a role I knew would give me direct exposure to the in-depth process of investment selection—something I’d been working toward for years.”
Once he had a taste of the investment details, he knew he’d found his passion. Patrick remembers watching it unfold soon after Avery joined the team. “Before long, Avery was in the office on the weekends researching individual stocks, doing mutual fund searches, and exploring municipal and treasury bonds—all the pieces of the puzzle that make a diverse portfolio so powerful.”
Avery sits at the Bloomberg terminal in the office
Avery continues to spend many hours each week investigating and dissecting investment options, but he is thrilled to be in a new role that puts him back in front of clients. “What I’ve missed most over the past 4 years is hearing stories from clients. How they created their wealth, the stories of their amazing lives, and their goals for their own lives and the lives of their children and grandchildren,” says Avery. “Interacting with individuals and understanding how we can help them achieve their investment goals gives me a shot of energy that makes every day interesting.”
In his new role as Investment Advisor, Avery will be actively taking on his own set of clients, many of whom are the adult children of our existing clients. “It makes great sense for our next generation of clients to work with a younger advisor who is especially in tune with their challenges, concerns, and goals for the future,” says Marr. “And clients working with Avery get the best of two worlds: the perspective of an advisor who ‘gets’ them, and the decades of experience and continuity of service offered by our entire team.”
Congratulations, Avery. We look forward to your continued success in a role where your passion for investments and your love for helping our clients come together so well. Cheers!
