I have exciting news to share. We are expanding our team and geographic reach with a new partner in Nashville, Tennessee. Read the press release here.

We are honored and excited to join forces with Malissia Johnson and her team at Emerald Spectrum, based in Brentwood, Tennessee. From the first time we met Malissia (President and Founder), we knew we were talking to our kind of person, someone we’d like to work with in the future. What did we notice?

They care about serving clients in an unusual way.

They care about clients more than their own interests.

They care beyond a spreadsheet and a quarterly performance report.

They care the way we care at Hill Investment Group.

I know a lot of financial planners and advisors, but few have the character and dedication we see in Malissia’s team. Malissia has helped her clients plan for their ideal future, and we’re thrilled to be a part of her plan for her next chapter.

I’m confident we’ll be better together.

For our current clients, you can be excited about this announcement too, as we are incredibly sensitive and careful with growth. The shareholders of Hill Investment Group will always prioritize our clients over profits. Planned and controlled growth is a critical element of what keeps and attracts top team members at all world-class organizations. Maintaining our values and team culture are equally important. As I’ve previously mentioned, because of our partnership with Focus Financial, we have institutional resources and leverage to bring to our team and clients. A boutique firm with big resources is a winner for our clients and us!

With the addition of any new team members, we always look to enhance our capabilities for you, and we believe the skills that Malissia and her team bring will directly benefit you. In addition to enhancing our existing team, Malissia’s team adds services that were missing in our current offering, including enhanced wealth planning. Stay tuned. 

Finally, here’s Malissia in her own words: 

“My favorite part of the wealth management business is the deep, uniquely personal relationships I have with my clients,” said Malissia Johnson. “As I got to know the Hill team, I found that they had a similar sense of care and an uncompromising fiduciary commitment to their clients, truly living by their mantra “take the long view.” Our shared ethos gave me great comfort that joining Hill was the right next step for my clients and team, allowing them to benefit from Hill’s robust resources and ensuring that they will be well served for generations to come.”

That’s a perfect fit.

Music City, here we come!

Matt

Who is that new voice answering the phone at HIG in less than two rings? It’s Anna Farrell, our latest addition to the team. In Anna’s role as Executive Assistant, she is expertly juggling a myriad of tasks, from managing schedules to ordering supplies to welcoming office visitors. Anna allows our team to focus on what they do best: taking care of our clients. 

We asked Anna to share a little bit about herself. You’ll understand immediately why we are so excited to have her on the Hill Investment Group team!

FAMILY MATTERS

My husband Graham and I were married in November 2016.  We have since added two children to our family, Catherine and Conor.  Our dog, Porter, has finally come around to these small humans after learning they always leave behind a trail of food.  We live in the Shaw neighborhood in St. Louis where you can find us at one of our favorite neighborhood establishments, walking in Tower Grove Park, or hanging out in our backyard with friends and neighbors.

TRAVEL

Prior to working at HIG, I gained my customer service and hospitality experience working in the Travel Industry.  I had the privilege of traveling the world in my twenties when I was a Travel Director at Maritz where I managed onsite logistics for incentive travel programs. My love of travel inspired me to start my own business as a Travel Advisor for Smartflyer where I planned and coordinated the endless details of my clients’ trips.  However, two kids and one pandemic later, I am thoroughly enjoying working outside of the travel industry and instead planning my own trips with my husband and kids.  The answer to your question is: Japan, France, and Croatia.  Those are my top three favorite places I’ve been to.

FRIENDS DESCRIBE ME AS:

Funny, an over-thinker (think Larry David but without the drama), determined, and always equipped with a good story.

IDEAL WEEKEND:

I aspire to be someone who can relax on the weekend, but for now, a good mix of crossing things off of my to-do list and spending time with my family and friends works best for me.  We love to frequent the Tower Grove Farmers’ Market, tackle house projects (I’m the visionary, and Graham is the contractor and pro bono laborer), head out for cocktails and a good dinner, or just hang at home and place bets on how many times we will have to put our kids back to bed.  As our children mature and work is a little less stressful (thanks to HIG), we hope to start adding family getaways to the docket, but for now, life at home feels really good.

INSPIRED BY:

My parents.  My dad was the first person in his family to go to college and then went on to put himself through dental school, working the 5 am shifts cleaning up movie theaters.  He has worked tirelessly to create a purposeful and rich life for his family, balancing hard work while simultaneously coaching all of our sports teams, maintaining a perfect lawn, and restoring cars.  It does not go unnoticed that he was able to do all of this with the support of my mom, who stayed home with us.  She also coached our sports teams, ran the school yearbook, took us on amazing trips, and secretly taught me how to drive a stick-shift.  While raising our family, my mom also managed the finances for my dad’s dental practice and, to this day, is one of the techiest people I know.  It has been a pure joy to see my parents transition into their new roles as beloved ‘Mimi and Papa’ to our kids.

LIFE AT HIG:

I bring a unique perspective to HIG since I am a lifelong client and friend of the firm. I have first-hand experience being on the receiving end of the high level of customer service and attention to detail that is central to the firm’s core values.  As a dedicated Monthly Journal reader, when I saw Katie’s position become available, I knew it would be a good fit since I had known everyone for years and I had a good sense of the team’s comradery and their thoughtful approach to serving their clients.  I feel like I have finally found my people – detail-oriented, genuinely nice, family-focused, and just all-around fun.

We have a long history of outstanding summer interns and this year’s selection is no exception. Samridhi Sureka joined us in June from Washington Univerisity’s MBA program. What’s Samridhi working on while at HIG?  She’s been in a rotational internship program with us where she gets to explore all the elements of the business, from investments and finance to compliance, marketing, and other departments.

Originally from Nagpur, India, where Samridhi spends time helping her family run a sustainable packaging solutions business, she has a talent for supporting large-scale operations and logistics with interest in financial management.

On a personal note, Samridhi loves to cook, and her mission while in St. Louis is to find the best farmers’ market where she can source exceptional ingredients and spices (the hotter, the better) that remind her of home. 

We are lucky to have her with us this summer and have enjoyed adding a fresh perspective to HIG.

*Shout out to the great Spencer Burke at Saint Louis Trust and Washington University for connecting us to Samridhi!