The RHP Story.

From submarines to Wall Street? 

Why was Natalie afraid of having coffee with Michele?

If you have not heard the RHP Wealth Management story, we know you will enjoy Episode 34!

The founding partners are together for the first time on one podcast. Natalie Picha, Glenn Royal, CFP®, and Michele Jones sat down recently to discuss their successful 4-year history and what makes them different from other independent financial advisor firms. 

This podcast is a perfect way to introduce your family and friends to RHP Wealth Management! 

Experience the difference of working with a firm that empowers your life—a firm that focuses on what matters most—you.

Whether you are beginning your financial journey now or have already taken steps toward your ultimate life goals, we are here to guide you.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rhp-market-talk/id1538051530

Transcript

Natalie Picha: 0:00

Welcome to RHP Market Talk , Episode Number 34, produced by RHP Wealth Management, a Wealth and Independent Financial Services and investment advisory firm based in Houston, Texas. I'm Natalie Picha, co-founder of RHP Wealth Management, also known as Royal Harbor Partners. And today is going to be the first for RHP as I'm joined by the other partners in the firm, Glenn Royal...

Glenn Royal: 0:38

Hi, Natalie.

Natalie Picha: 0:39

Michelle Jones...

Michele Jones: 0:40

Hi, Natalie.

Natalie Picha: 0:41

And this is our first partner-only podcast. And I am so excited. This has kind of been a brainchild for us, gosh, over the last few months just talking about celebrating our four-year anniversary and everything that we've been through. And we decided, hey, we should do a podcast on that. And the partners should just talk about what it's taken to get here, all the ups and downs, the fun, the excitement. So that's what we're doing today. I just want to start out by saying that it's been an amazing journey so far, and I will tell you who we have to thank for that. That's our clients. So, first and foremost, I'm giving a shout-out to all of you guys out there who moved with us when we started the firm in June of 2019. It's because of you that we are here.

Glenn Royal: 1:28

Yeah. Thank you for your continued trust and confidence in us.

Natalie Picha: 1:31

Yep. And so now, we want to tell you guys a little bit about how we got here. So I'm going to, I'm going to kind of start it off with Glenn because he has a very unique story just coming out of the Navy. And talk a little bit about your background and your history, and then we'll start with that. And then we'll jump into the timeline of starting RHP.

Glenn Royal: 1:53

Yeah . And I'm going to hear a little , and I think I'm more excited to hear about what Michele has than me . Right . I...you know, the thing is that we're four years old, but there's been so much that's happened in these last four years. It kind of feels like dog years. Doesn't it? Sometimes...about 28 years of age in four years.

Natalie Picha: 2:11

I...you know , I think everybody feels that way about Covid.

Glenn Royal: 2:13

Yeah.

Natalie Picha: 2:14

We don't really know if there was, like, some weird timed capsule that happened right there.

Glenn Royal: 2:18

It was absolutely bizarre. And, of course, it came right in the midst of us starting this out. But I can recall at that time, my background in the first half of my career was institutional investing. I was a buy-side trader. I worked for investment management firms and with all the firms on Wall Street. I got that job because I could drive a nuclear-powered submarine. And I was a battle station helmsman and plainsman for both missiles and torpedos. That was my qualifications, which I thought was pretty cool. So, naturally, I became a stock trader.

Natalie Picha: 2:47

Of course. I mean, stress. Stress...stress on top of stress. He could handle it.

Glenn Royal: 2:51

Cool. Under pressure. How's that?

Natalie Picha: 2:53

Exactly.

Glenn Royal: 2:54

Unfortunately, that's not true. We all know that. Particularly the partners at RHP. But no, but what happened during that COVID timeframe? A little bit, what I thought was really cool was , you know, we all had to go to our homes. And the first thing we did as a firm is we decided to invest in technology to help us through that. We got us , got ourselves a Bloomberg terminal. And for those clients that know about Bloomberg terminals, you know that that's the Cadillac Of what we do with data in our industry. So, having that Bloomberg terminal and then being able to reach out to the resources that I had cultivated in my career from the institutional trading desk of JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs and others that we use, They brought together their research and resources To really help us get through that time. So I think it was, you know, while , while we're this four-year-old firm, And this Has been, In my case, you know, a very, very long time in the industry, same with Michele, same with you. So, when we think of ourselves as an overnight success, Yeah. With a 40-year background. Right . I am trying to get to an overnight success. Right .

Natalie Picha: 4:01

Exactly. I was, I'll say, blessed enough to have worked with Glenn prior to actually working with him in this particular industry. And so we decided to join forces in 2011. So it's been, gosh, it's , it's been a while now. And then, in a subsequent move that we made, we actually met Michele in 2015.

Glenn Royal: 4:26

That was a great move, wasn't it?

Natalie Picha: 4:27

And what was interesting about the journey, really, is that we found that we each had different strengths, which brought us together and allowed us to really give clients more of a suite of talent and insight than they may have if they were just working with one individual. So, I'll go all the way back to 2015 when Michele approached me. Do you remember that day?

Michele Jones: 4:52

I do remember that day. I actually remember the day that you guys moved into Merrill Lynch.

Natalie Picha: 4:57

Oh, my goodness. I've forgotten that. Okay. Tell me about that.

Michele Jones: 5:00

So I was lucky enough to have you come and sit next to me. I got the office next To me, and all of a sudden, all I'd hear was that fun laugh.

Natalie Picha: 5:08

Oh ...

Michele Jones: 5:10

And I was like, wow! She's having fun. What are they doing? So, over time, I got to know you. And, like you said, I was like, wow, we really have a lot of the same values. We want to take care of our clients in the same way. And we all enjoy doing different things.

Natalie Picha: 5:27

Yes. Yes.

Michele Jones: 5:28

So, I was in search of someone who wanted to do the stuff I didn't want to do. And you guys were in search of someone who wanted to do the stuff you didn't want to do.

Glenn Royal: 5:36

That was very good at it, though . That was a qualifier! They had to be very good at it .

Natalie Picha: 5:40

They had to be good at it. That's right. Right, right. That's actually a really great segue, and thank you for saying that so nicely. What she's, what she's saying, what you guys probably all know is I'm the loud one on the team.

Michele Jones: 5:52

And I'm the quiet one.

Natalie Picha: 5:55

Michelle's the quiet one. That's exactly right. And Glenn... Glenn's the smart one. We'll just say...

Glenn Royal: 6:00

No , no . I've become the grumpy old man at the end of the hall.

Natalie Picha: 6:03

He's the one in front of the terminal. Right. He's the one in front of the terminal. He's the one, he's the one...

Glenn Royal: 6:07

... talking the sailor language at that terminal.

Natalie Picha: 6:09

Yeah. There's some, there is some sailor language that goes on. So, you know what , it's funny that you say that. Because I really hadn't thought about what it looked like when we moved in. And we did. We moved in right there near you. And I remember the day you sent me an email and you said, Hey, I'd like to get coffee. And at the time, we shared a client service associate. And I thought, oh no, she's going to tell us we're , you know, we are using too much, or we're this, or we're that. And so we go to coffee, and Michele's like, I really like what y'all do. And I was like, oh really? She says I'm thinking about a partnership.

Michele Jones: 6:47

And that was the beginning.

Natalie Picha: 6:48

That was the beginning. It was. It has been quite a journey. And that was in 2015?

Michele Jones: 6:53

Yes. That was 2015 . Yeah. 2015. And Glenn was talking about those dog years. It feels like a really long time ago.

Natalie Picha: 6:59

It does feel like a long time ago.

Michele Jones: 7:01

But then again, it also feels like...how did it go by so quickly?

Natalie Picha: 7:05

Oh, my goodness. And you know, one of the things that's amazing when we talk about the years, the years just kind of click by. It is the things that we've been through with the clients in those years; some of these clients we've known since they were very young.

Glenn Royal: 7:19

Yeah. That's the nature of the business, is it's...you know, you , you get these strong relationships with clients, and you become an extension of their family. So when the joyful things happen in their family, you're joyous too. And then, on the sad things, you feel that as well. Yeah . That's just our clients and our families. They're important to us.

Natalie Picha: 7:36

Very important.

Michele Jones: 7:37

Absolutely.

Natalie Picha: 7:38

Yeah. So, let's talk about how Michelle joined us in 2015, which was super exciting. And she's exactly right. You know, we all wanted to find someone to do the things that we didn't necessarily want to do. Or that we knew we weren't as good at. So, by putting three people in a room together, you get this brain trust. You really do. That's just, I think, extraordinary in this industry. That was 2015. 2019? And I'm going to throw this out on the table. What were we thinking?

Glenn Royal: 8:12

Yeah. Well, I think a lot of it really had to do with the industry was changing. You had executive management changes that were trickling down from banks to areas that weren't banking-related. Where we were investment people. And I think a lot of those changes that were going on were enough to make us stand up and say, you know, I have now technology. I have resources. I can do all these things where I needed to work at a wirehouse on behalf of my clients. I don't need that anymore. We Have all the resources. So I think what's interesting, you know , we were part of that early exodus out of the wirehouses. We weren't the only ones. There were a number of very qualified financial advisors. Peers that I have respect for, that all pulled out of those wirehouse firms too. They all did the same thing we did. So that's the trend, as I think the brightest and the smartest are leaving the wirehouses. And they're starting their own firms because technology enables it now.

Natalie Picha: 9:14

It's not just technology. I mean, the technology enables it, but let's talk a little bit about what it means to be nimble and what it means to be able to cater to a very specific niche of client. To not have to be basically beholden to someone else's bottom line. And just really focus on the people. I mean that's, that's really our heart and soul.

Glenn Royal: 9:36

It's easier for us, I think, to participate in the community with organizations like Lutheran South or Sanctuary. That means so much and dear to us. I see you doing that quite a bit Michele. I know you're very involved over Lutheran South. How's that been your terms of experience with RHP and life and blending all that stuff together?

Michele Jones: 9:55

Well, I love being a part of it for many reasons. Like you said, I can bring my financial capabilities to them as the treasurer of the PTL and participate in a place where my children go to school and help to educate the students over there. I know we did a big push last year, And we did a starting year financial future for the seniors at both Lutheran South as well as and First Baptist. It was a great experience. Because we got to sit down in a room of seniors and talk to them about everything that they would have to know about starting their own lives. When they go to college. Their own financial future. Everything from opening your own bank account. To establishing credit to thinking long term of, wow, I'm going to get a job. I'm going to have to save from our retirement. And maybe I want to buy a home someday . How do we do that? What does that look like? So, we love giving back to the community. We love educating the next generatio., And we love working...I'll tie this in with our clients...we do a lot of that with our clients, as you mentioned. Um, we've been in the industry a long time. We see our clients who were getting married when we first started out. They were starting their financial futures. They have their children. Their children are grown. They're starting their careers. They're having grandchildren. So it's all about working with the families. The next generation. Educating them and starting off early. And what a great impact that can have for their financial future.

Natalie Picha: 11:24

Yeah, absolutely. It's hard sometimes to differentiate yourself in this industry. Because everybody can do a financial plan. Matter as a matter of fact, you can just google it. Financial plan! You can, and investments, same thing. I think what makes us very different is the fact that it's that relationship. And we don't just look at your finances. There's more to it. We know that in order for people to feel wealthy, and I'll use that word right, it means flourishing in a current environment. Not just, it's easy to come in and say, I want to retire at age 65. I want to retire at age 70. Whatever that is for you. That's a, you know, financial goal. It's different to say, wait, I want my life to be rich. So, we use money as a tool to help people navigate those areas for a rich life. Or an empowered life.

Glenn Royal: 12:16

Yeah. And that, that's something I think is...does set us different from the others. Because all too often, I see the ads and know the industry model to where they just want to get the assets for the end of the rainbow, which is a retirement, typically. End-of-life stuff.

Natalie Picha: 12:30

Right.

Glenn Royal: 12:31

Not about empowering life on today's terms. And living life as you continue. Retirement is important. But I've got kids, I've got parents, I've got all these things. I'm going to go on a vacation to Europe. How do I do all these things? And I've seen both you and Michele work together with the financial plans. To encourage them and show them how they can have a very good life. And know it. Know when they have that comfort factor when they sleep at night—my financial plans are on track. Feel confident having that conversation with RHP...

Natalie Picha: 13:03

And I have to remind you of think I don't even know if I have the exact date, but February of 2020. As we're preparing around here today...just so you know...we're having an open house here at RHP coming up. Our last open house was in February of 2020. So we had planned this way before COVID, right? We moved in June of 2019 to start the firm. And we wanted to celebrate with our current clients, that came with us. And we were so excited, had no idea what was coming. You know, didn't know Covid was coming. Right. Let's talk about February, that open house, all of our screens were up. Glenn's Bloomberg is up. We're all watching the market.

Glenn Royal: 13:45

I think it was down like four...four plus percent

Natalie Picha: 13:46

That day . Oh , it was crazy. That was before we were having the , the market breaks, you know, where they were. Yeah .

Glenn Royal: 13:52

It was just crossing... it was becoming a pandemic.

Natalie Picha: 13:55

Right. We didn't even know that's what it was yet.

Glenn Royal: 13:57

Know exactly. And I had to Google what pandemic meant .

Natalie Picha: 14:02

Oh my gosh. Think about that. That was 2020. We're in 2023, which 23 is almost over. Clients? We had a...first of all, let me just say thank you to everybody out there that came that day. Yeah . It was a wonderful celebration. Albeit we all kind of looked like deer in the headlights. As we were trying to process what was being told to us. What was unfolding? But clients felt really comfortable. And confident. I mean, we walked around, we looked at the screens. We talked about the markets. We talked about defensiveness.

Glenn Royal: 14:40

They got people. Our clients have people.

Michele Jones: 14:42

So they have a guy.

Natalie Picha: 14:42

That's right. I love it. Yes. Yeah . So, if you don't know, we just had a new t-shirt, a team t-shirt made, or a client t-shirt made, and it says, I'm not worried. I got a guy. So, if you want one of those t-shirts, contact me after this podcast, and I'll get you one.

Glenn Royal: 15:00

Just know that I am one of the guys around here.

Natalie Picha: 15:04

Yep . And by the way, guy means all of us. Any of us. Right . All of us. You got, you got lots of guys. You got a whole team. So that day was quite, yeah. Oh, man. February. Most...I probably, if I say February of 2020, everyone on the now on the globe will go, oh yeah, I remember what I was doing then. Right. I Remember the first day I had to go home.

Glenn Royal: 15:29

I'm glad we were able to get through that. And see opportunities where folks were fearful. And, of course, that's the markets . You want to be greedy when markets people are fearful, and you want to be fearful when people are greedy. You know , so's the secret for success there in investing. But we became greedy at that moment using that parlance. And we went in buying fist over fist because I could see the action that the Federal Reserve was doing and pumping money into the system. Right. So there are things that I see as a former institutional trader that allow us to react quickly, where it may not be the case in normal retail channels because you're just not exposed to that.

Natalie Picha: 16:10

Right. Right. Michele, what do you remember about that day? Open house?

Michele Jones: 16:14

Well, I remember I was surprised that we had so many people come because everybody, I mean, that was the new buzzword is Covid. What's going on? And we had a great turnout. And I literally feel like the next day, we had to go home. Close the office., pack everything up, and go home to our own homes. Plug in our computers. And luckily, we were able to continue working as if nothing happened. But the isolation of just being alone in your own home. Not being able to leave it was definitely a weird feeling. I'm glad that today we're back in the office. I'm glad today that our clients want to come and sit down with us. We love sitting face-to-face and meeting with our clients. And love having that personal interaction again.

Natalie Picha: 17:05

We all had to get really good at Zoom...like fast. I mean, we had to get good at Zoom, fast Zoom. Oh. And I wouldn't say good is...

Glenn Royal: 17:13

I'm still not good at it!

Michele Jones: 17:17

We had to pretend we were good at technology.

Natalie Picha: 17:19

Yeah. We pretended we were really good at it. I will say that; I mean, I'll circle all the way back around to what Glenn started with. In our investment in technology. We knew From the beginning that we wanted to have the best of the best. For all of our clients. When we were moving from a large wirehouse, you're like, oh, I have to establish exactly that same model and service level, right? And we did. But we had no idea. You know, those are big ships; they're hard to turn. When that happened, we were completely ready for it. It wasn't, it , we didn't miss a beat. Nothing, nothing changed. No . Except that we did have to go home. And we started meeting clients online. The other thing that I think was pretty telling is that while clients had anxiety around the pandemic. They had a lot less anxiety around the portfolios. And their investments. And their plans. Right . Because our plans had been created to take certain shocks. You never know where the shock might come from. You don't know.

Glenn Royal: 18:23

And that is something we do at the portfolios. We stress-test them quarterly, looking for shocks. From oil shocks to inflation shocks to now pandemic shocks. So That is a big part of our portfolio is really focusing on the downside and participating fully on the upside and but minimizing those big downdrafts when they happen.

Natalie Picha: 18:43

Yeah. Right.

Glenn Royal: 18:44

Smoother ride.

Natalie Picha: 18:45

Right . And then It's also about talking about...for clients, the market and the market performance and how it relates to living that life. Now. Not everybody is trying to hit a home run every day. They don't need to. They don't Need to Take that kind of risk. Right. This is where Michele, what you bring to the table is huge. Because we talk a lot About unseen Parts for clients, like tax strategies that people may not think about. Right . The timing of distributions. All of those little things that play into how a whole life unfolds. Kind of for us. It's, it's a story. We're writing a story for people or helping them write their story. That is what I would say. They're the author. We're maybe the ghostwriters. In the background. Right .

Michele Jones: 19:36

That's so true. I mean, everyone's story is different. Everyone's plan is different. And what I've found being in this industry for 25 years is you have to be surrounded by good partners. There's not one person who can do it all for you. But you have to have a team. Team of advisors. Team of people who understand your situation and can give you the right advice and the right solutions. A team of people who understand tax laws are ever-changing. The Secure Act. That changes all the time. And what I love about what we do for our clients is that they can tell us their stories. They can tell us their unique situations. We can craft their plan, and we can continuously monitor it. Update it. We, you know, update it minimally, annually with all of our clients. But they can enjoy living their life. And they can enjoy and know that they can have their retirement. And that they can have a COVID situation and they don't have to worry. Because their plan is intact, and it's being revisited. Markets are going to go up and down. Things are going to happen in the world that we can't control. But making sure that we're always on top of it and communicating is so important.

Natalie Picha: 20:52

That's very well said. That's very well said. So, before I let you guys go, thank you so much for this conversation. If we had, and I know we do this quite often, we call them fit meetings. When someone comes in and says, I think I'd like to work with you...we call it a fit meeting. Not that we're trying to figure out if they fit us, but it's actually the other way around. Do we fit with them? We don't... It's a two-way street. We don't necessarily fit with everybody. Right? We have that conversation. So before I let you go, what do you want people to know about RHP that you think they might not know?

Glenn Royal: 21:37

For me, I always wanted to reiterate to our clients that, outside of our client and their families, no one is going to care more about their personal financial success than us three here at RHP and our staff. And I really want our clients and those that may be considering us to know that about us. We're very sincere. And we're good at what we do.

Michele Jones: 22:00

I'd also like to add to that this is really focusing on our client's life aspirations. It's not just the numbers. We talked about goals, and goals are very important. But we also talked about how it's so important to live your best life. And we want to help empower them to do that.

Natalie Picha: 22:21

And I want to say how much I appreciate having partners that let me do what I love to do and support me. And in turn, we get to turn around and truly change people's lives. That's what's inspiring for myself, for our clients, and, I think, for our firm. So, with that, I will close this out, and I want to say thank you to all of our listeners. I want to say thank you to all of our clients. And I know I say thank you a lot. I believe gratitude is something that we should practice every day . So you just hear me say thank you a lot. I want to thank all our listeners for subscribing to RHP Market Talk . Please leave us a review, and if you have any questions or you'd like to discuss today's topics, you can contact us at our website, www.royalharborpartners.com. At RHP, we see money as a tool to make a lasting impact on our clients' lives. Experience the difference of Empowered Living.

Disclosure: 23:27

Royal Harbor Partners is a registered investment adviser, and the opinions expressed by Royal Harbor Partners on this show are their own. Registration as an investment advisor does not imply a certain level of skill or training. All statements and opinions expressed are based upon information considered reliable, although it should not be relied upon as such. Any statements or opinions are subject to change without notice. The information presented is for educational purposes only and does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale or purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and, unless otherwise stated, are not guaranteed. The information expressed does not take into account your specific situation or objectives and is not intended as recommendations appropriate for any individual. Listeners are encouraged to seek advice from a qualified tax, legal, or investment adviser to determine whether any information presented may be suitable for their specific situation. Past performance is not indicative of future performance.