Lichfield insurance broker joins forces with national brand

A family business, CGI was founded in the late 1960’s by Tamworth businessman, John Barker, and together with his son Luke and close family friends Stan and Paul Bell, they grew the business to a team of 40 members of staff with three offices, in Lichfield, Nottingham and Stow on The Wold. They offer commercial insurance broking advice to local and national businesses and have specialist knowledge of the waste management/timber, construction, life sciences and renewable energy markets.

Partners& is a leading insurance and employee benefits advisory business, with 250 people and 11 offices across the UK, controlling approximately £70 million GWP (Gross Written Premium). It is headed up by an experienced team including chief executive Phil Barton (former chief executive of Jelf and director of Marsh UK Ltd) and Stuart Reid (former chief executie of A J Gallagher and Bluefin).

Partners& recognises that the insurance sector is ‘ripe for a re-set’ and has designed a model that combines the best traditions of broking, such as technical advice and client service, with modern thinking and intelligent use of technology, to enhance the client experience and create a dynamic workplace for its talented team.

Luke Barker, said: "We were delighted to join forces with Partners& last year, to be part of a bigger organisation and be able to offer wider services to our clients, such as personal insurance and employee benefits. We’re all looking forward to completing the process by rolling out our new brand. It’s been 11 months since the sale and I can honestly say, hand on heart, it has been absolutely the right thing to do for our people, for our clients, for the business and for Lichfield. In such uncertain times, we were able to secure the jobs of all our people, without risk of redundancy or furlough, for which we are very grateful.

"We sold the business in March 2020, right at the beginning of the Covid crisis and without the resources and support from Partners&, it would have been an incredibly challenging time, as it has been for many businesses. Partners& has provided amazing support, not least by caring about our team’s mental health, with online Pilates classes and ongoing, regular communications to keep everyone engaged. This is something we would never have had the resources or knowledge to offer ourselves."

Commenting on the reaction of clients to the sale, Luke said: "We’ve always prided ourselves on building strong personal relationships with our local clients, be they the ones we’ve met through sponsoring Lichfield Football and Rugby clubs, or at Corporate Golf Events, and I’m delighted to say that the response we’ve received is that they’re all delighted with the enhanced breadth of services we can now offer them and their businesses.

"We are now part of an organisation with over 250 colleagues with new areas of expertise ranging from cyber risk management and business protection to employee benefits and a dedicated inhouse claims consultancy team. We’re looking forward to introducing companies in the Lichfield and Staffordshire areas, along with our national clients, to our full range of services."

Phil Barton, CEO of Partners& said: "We could not be more pleased to have Luke and his team from CGI on board. They joined just before the pandemic took hold, and I’m proud that we could offer the hand of partnership and friendship to them, their staff and their clients. CGI already has a great reputation for excellent client relationships and so was a perfect fit for us as we build our innovative and class-leading advisory business. For us, clients and people come first and if you get those aspects right, all else follows. We’re at the start of an exciting journey together."