After century of service, it’s time for name change

Feb 20 2008 by Graeme King, The Journal

CENTURY-OLD stockbroker Wise Speke is set for growth as it announces a rebranding and prepares for a move to prestigious new offices.

The historic firm is now to be known as Brewin Dolphin – the name of the London company which bought the respected Newcastle brand a decade ago.

And the change in identity will be marked with a move to 40,000sqft new offices in the Time Central development, close to St James’s Park.

The 300-strong staff of Brewin Dolphin will move to Time Central over two weekends at the end of April.

With a third more floor space than the firm’s old home in Commercial Union House on Pilgrim Street, there will be sufficient scope for director Ben Speke and his senior colleagues to expand the team. Mr Speke said growth was on the agenda under the Brewin Dolphin name, but he was primarily concerned with maintaining the service ethos with was the pride of the family firm.

He said: “We are taking space to allow us to grow further. With a broader service offering, we are no longer pure and simple stockbrokers.

“This is an evolutionary step rather than a revolutionary one. The decision to move to the Brewin Dolphin name is part of a long-term strategy to continue to develop our business. Our clients will still receive the personal service they have always enjoyed.”

Brewin Dolphin has grown substantially since buying Wise Speke from Ockham Holdings, mushrooming from 21 offices to operating from 39 offices with sales now over £200m.

Mr Speke, the third generation of his family to head the Wise Speke business after grandfather Herbert and father Neil, admitted he was a little sorry to see the company name change. He said: “There is a tinge of sadness. Wise Speke has been a first-class name for 105 years now, and I have to thank my grandfather and my father, among many others, for keeping it going all this time.

“The group has never told us to do this. The decision to change our name was taken by the Newcastle directors and was one that I encouraged.”

Mr Speke acknowledged that his firm now has competition from several directions in the North East market, but said he was confident the firm’s size, ethos and independence from its parent, would help maintain the business’s position as it grows to offer a wider range of investment services.

He said: “There is competition out there, but we won’t be driven by that. If we thought it was the right thing to remain as a pure stockbroker, we would have done that.

“The most important thing to us is the client – whatever happens, we will approach a client with a truly bespoke service.”