With almost $3 billion in client assets, San Diego-based Mammini Company plans to double in size over the coming decade and has chosen Commonwealth Financial Network to support its three-pronged approach.
Previously affiliated with Lincoln Investment, Mammini was founded in 1990 by President Mike Mammini and has carved out a niche serving corporate and labor union (Taft-Hartley) retirement plan sponsors. The team of eight includes three other advisors—one of whom is his son and eventual successor, Mitch Mammini.
The team left Lincoln on “extremely good” terms, according to father and son. They had simply outgrown the RIA/broker/dealer platform and were looking for a larger partner that could provide better technology, more resources and a larger community.
“We had to make sure we had a lot of the core foundational pieces in place to transition from the size of firm that we are now,” said Mitch Mammini. “And we just felt like we needed to go externally to get that level of technology and internal service support that Commonwealth provides, and the network of advisors that we can lean on for thoughts and ideas.”
He said the support they received throughout the transition has only reinforced their confidence in the decision. “Our expectation is there's probably not many questions that we wouldn't be able to find a Commonwealth employee to help us out with,” he explained. “And I think that's a really powerful thing, because it allows us to grow and maybe even expand into different markets.”
Current plans for growth include focusing on three core areas—expanding corporate retirement plan services for West Coast businesses of all sizes, positioning to better compete with Taft-Hartley plan providers nationally, and working to bolster personal wealth management services for clients who may be a little further down on the wealth pyramid and without access to financial advice. (There are also intentions to build on existing trust fund capabilities, according to a press release.)
The focus on labor unions and working Americans was inspired by the Mammini patriarch, Robert Mammini, who was president of Sheet Metal Workers Union No. 104. He shared some areas of opportunity upon his retirement 27 years ago, including a lack of education in the space.
“He let us know what was happening and what wasn’t happening—and we looked at what wasn’t happening,” said Mike Mammini. “It was just a bunch of investment people and we saw if we could provide education to members and apprentices, that would be a good opportunity.”
With bicoastal headquarters in San Diego (eight miles from the Mammini offices) and the greater Boston area, the Commonwealth network now comprises more than 2,100 advisors overseeing more than $242.9 billion in assets, around two-thirds of which is managed under its RIA.
Privately owned since its founding in 1979, the platform offers a flexible affiliation model and wide array of resources to its partner firms, including access to capital, practice management expertise, investments and research, marketing and compliance support, and a menu of outsourced services.