Something Special

"The marina owners would always be the guy who tied up your boat and made you breakfast," Stuckey says. "Anyway, we struck up a conversation. The owner asked what we did, and I told him. Then he told us about the limited availability of complete insurance coverage for his business.

"He had very high deductibles and policy exclusions for damage caused by wind and wave actions. My dad and I immediately perceived a market opportunity."

Branding Irons
Similar market prospects beckon across the business landscape. According to the Insurance Information Institute, growing industries like health care, transportation, energy and technology present opportunities for the intrepid agents and brokers willing to do what it takes to become specialists in these industries' respective risk management and insurance needs.

How does one become a specialist? In many cases, the process begins with an understanding of one's own interests and expertise. LeConte Moore majored in art history in college. Today, as managing director of New York-insurance brokerage DeWitt Stern's entertainment and media division, Moore specializes in the fine art risk management and insurance needs of predominantly high-net-wealth collectors, those with art holdings that can exceed $200 million.

He essentially took what he studied and loved, and turned it into his specialty to the advantage of his clients. His knowledge of the risks confronting fine art ownership is of great value to the brokerage's clientele. "When someone buys a $20 million sculpture by Alexander Calder and has it shipped from a New York gallery to their home in Connecticut, they ask us to check if the contracts are correct, the shipper is experienced, and the security and insurance is in order," he says. Moore and Steve Pincus, another of Dewitt Stern's seasoned art brokers, explained that there are a lot of details involved with insuring art. "Collectors know this and will seek out expertise," he says.

Among these details is whether or not the company transporting the work of art has experience and adequate insurance. "You don't want to learn after an accident that the trucker moving a two ton sculptural piece by Richard Serra didn't have adequate auto liability or umbrella coverage," Count says. "Dewitt Stern's art brokers are experts in insuring these risks. Perhaps more importantly, we know the other experts involved in shipping these works, in art restoration, packaging, security and so on." Pincus adds, "We have contacts throughout the art world that we can call on when needed. We've built our brand at Dewitt Stern based on this specialization."

Stuckey also brought up the marketing power of developing a brand identity as a specialist in a particular industry's risks or in a certain type of insurance product. "We're known as the marine insurance guys," he says.

Following the launch of Stuckey & Co. in 1991, he and his father assembled a package of insurance policies targeting the specific risk transfer needs of marinas. They became MGAs and have the underwriting pen for more than half a dozen specialty insurers. The Stuckeys subsequently purchased an RV and traveled from one marina to the next, trumpeting the insurance program. "We'd go fishing in the morning, and at breakfast chat up the marina owner," Stuckey says. "We'd be eating and notice a marina on the other side of the lake, and then visit that one the following morning."

Word of mouth spread and, before long they had built up a sizable book of business in every U.S. state except Alaska and Hawaii. The father-son duo then branched into related markets, putting together insurance programs for the proprietors of dock owners and the owners of private pleasure boats and yachts.

To promote the agency's brand, they joined the National Marina Association and other trade groups and membership societies. They went to an untold number of industry conferences and seminars.

Then, one day Stuckey decided that if one specialty can be so enriching, why not delve into another? As a teenager, he had spent hours tearing apart computers and putting them back together again. He had studied computer engineering in college, before changing course and joining his dad's agency. "We decided 17 years ago to do what we did in the fishing business for the technology industry," he says. "We've added a specialty in offering professional liability coverage for technology firms through our SafetyTek program."

His advice to other agents: "Specialize in something you love."

Special Service
Specialization is more than just putting together a customized insurance program, however. As Moore pointed out, clients also expect a fair degree of specialized service. "You've got to be there 24/7 for them; there's no 9-to-5, no turning off the cell phone," he says. "This is a good thing, as they come to think of you as an adviser, someone more than just an agent or broker selling insurance."

He adds, "When they ask a question that I don't immediately know the answer to, I turn to the specialty insurers and other partners we work with that do have the answers. The best ones are there for me, 24/7."

Certainly, those agent and brokers that have become adept at serving the insurance and risk management needs of a diverse clientele should not dump three-quarters of their books. Still, the concept of establishing specialty teams, in which producers and other members of the agency staff focus on different industries and products, has appeal. Not everyone is a jack of all trades.