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TRANSCRIPTION WITH SPEAKERS
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[00:00] SPEAKER_01: It's Toronto's podcast on the Canada's podcast network.
[00:18] SPEAKER_00: Hi everybody, I'm Phil Bliss and I'm a business visionary. I'm also co-founder of Canada's podcast
[00:26] SPEAKER_00: and host of Toronto's podcast. Today I'd like to introduce you to Steve Beatty. Steve is the
[00:35] SPEAKER_00: founder of Culture One which in May 2015 merged with Front Row Insurance Brokers and created Canada's
[00:42] SPEAKER_00: largest insurance brokerage specializing in entertainment and media, arts and culture. It has
[00:55] SPEAKER_00: over 25 years experience in arts and entertainment and insurance. Everything from the performance arts
[01:03] SPEAKER_00: to TV to movies. As a theater manager himself for many years and then an insurance entrepreneur,
[01:11] SPEAKER_00: Steve's heart is firmly in the arts and he is a valued supporter of many cultural initiatives.
[01:18] SPEAKER_00: Steve knows what it takes to bring an artistic vision to completion as well as make sure the
[01:24] SPEAKER_00: risk back to the skip covered on the way. So welcome Steve. Thanks Phil, it's nice to be here.
[01:32] SPEAKER_00: First thing I want to do is what do you just tell everyone a little bit more about yourself
[01:37] SPEAKER_00: away from some details on your current business? Just who is Steve Beatty? What did you
[01:44] SPEAKER_01: encounter? Sure, I'd be happy to do that. So I grew up in Toronto and I still live in Toronto
[01:52] SPEAKER_01: today. I live outside of Toronto actually now but in Burlington but I first got into the insurance
[01:57] SPEAKER_01: business about 30 years ago and I had kind of gotten into it with a bit of resistance because
[02:05] SPEAKER_01: really what I did want to do is do something more creative in terms of the arts. I played guitar,
[02:13] SPEAKER_01: I loved creating woodworking things and doing different things with my hands and so I was sort of
[02:19] SPEAKER_01: trying to get into that world but my dad was in the insurance business and he always would say to
[02:27] SPEAKER_01: me it was a great business and I would resist that a little bit because I couldn't really see my
[02:31] SPEAKER_01: self being in it but then as I learned a little more about it and I was in my early 20s at this point
[02:36] SPEAKER_01: I started to understand that it had a lot of different elements of things that I liked finance,
[02:42] SPEAKER_01: law, it was heavily based on relationships and I sort of went into it and as I got into it I was
[02:50] SPEAKER_01: more in the world of commercial insurance and then over time I started to migrate my business
[02:56] SPEAKER_01: interests from commercial insurance and then more focused on the arts and interestingly enough
[03:03] SPEAKER_01: now I've ended up working with creative people and really feeling like I've been able to bring
[03:11] SPEAKER_01: two parts of my world together and build this kind of cool successful business out of it.
[03:18] SPEAKER_00: Okay, so the next thing I want to say is you moved into insurance but what was your
[03:25] SPEAKER_00: stock moment as I term when you decided hey I want to become an entrepreneur.
[03:33] SPEAKER_01: Yeah that's a great question I think it was probably around the time when I started to do more
[03:40] SPEAKER_01: and more entertainment insurance. For years I had been involved as I said in commercial
[03:46] SPEAKER_01: insurance doing everything from food processing companies to paper mills and as my career and my
[03:52] SPEAKER_01: portfolio was growing I was getting more and more exposure to the arts and what I realized is that
[03:59] SPEAKER_01: there was an opportunity to really become an insurance broker that wasn't just selling insurance
[04:07] SPEAKER_01: to the arts but to be an insurance broker that was in the world of arts and it was at that point
[04:12] SPEAKER_01: I knew I was giving a different experience to my clients but I really wanted to build something
[04:18] SPEAKER_01: that had a brand that the people in the arts are clients could feel comfortable with and would
[04:25] SPEAKER_01: feel like there was a great fit and it was then that I started to create my own brand and I created
[04:32] SPEAKER_01: culture one and then ultimately as you said in the introduction I a few years ago emerged
[04:37] SPEAKER_01: that company and with Front Row who was doing what I was doing but they were more focused on
[04:46] SPEAKER_01: film and television production and I was doing a lot of live entertainment so we were able to bring
[04:50] SPEAKER_01: them together and today we're continuing to build on that brand so it was really that opportunity
[04:54] SPEAKER_01: to feel that I felt like I could do something different than what a lot of our competitors were doing.
[05:02] SPEAKER_00: It all sounds kind of easy so you saw a gap, you thought about it. What kind of focus was needed
[05:11] SPEAKER_00: to build it into a business when you build it into a big enough business that you
[05:16] SPEAKER_00: know you merged with Front Row insurance so how did you get it to that point when others just
[05:22] SPEAKER_01: don't get there? You know our business model was like a lot of businesses and that we built it
[05:30] SPEAKER_01: I built it my part of it and then ultimately well I was doing that now my partners and my colleagues
[05:36] SPEAKER_01: at Front Row were doing it as well very much building it one client at a time finding that we were
[05:42] SPEAKER_01: springboarding from one opportunity the next and that word would get around that we were
[05:49] SPEAKER_01: able to provide a much different service than what a lot of our competitors were but also then
[05:55] SPEAKER_01: people could find with more generalists and I think by us doing what we did
[06:03] SPEAKER_01: you know really was as I say it was really about having our clients see and we had to demonstrate
[06:09] SPEAKER_01: to them that when it came to the the type of service they needed or the when they got into a claim
[06:13] SPEAKER_01: that was really challenging we had to show them that we understood these these coverages these
[06:19] SPEAKER_01: really unique insurance coverages we knew the policies we knew how to get them through
[06:24] SPEAKER_01: and that we were going to stay very very committed all the way through the process that we didn't
[06:29] SPEAKER_01: we just didn't disappear when they needed us the most and that's a thing with insurance it's not
[06:34] SPEAKER_01: until you really need it you might be at a point of crisis when you're you're really dependent on
[06:41] SPEAKER_01: your broker and our reputation really has been built very much on that that responsiveness and that
[06:49] SPEAKER_01: sort of long-standing commitment to the clients no matter what's going on so you know what's a typical
[06:55] SPEAKER_00: day look like for you you know how do you keep the focus needed to succeed and still have fun
[07:05] SPEAKER_01: yeah the the discipline to it I think really that is a lot of that gets driven for me by the
[07:12] SPEAKER_01: relationships I have with the with my clients with our clients and for me I mean these are
[07:20] SPEAKER_01: relationships that are going back 10 15 20 years and you know I feel a strong strong commitment
[07:28] SPEAKER_01: to these people to do to be there for them to help them with their insurance my days I tend to
[07:36] SPEAKER_01: start it really early I tend to be up you know usually around five in the morning and I take that
[07:42] SPEAKER_01: time to to sort of organize my day a little bit to be able to to to get some quiet time to think and
[07:52] SPEAKER_01: problem solve because our days are pretty hectic I mean our once once things start to happen like
[07:58] SPEAKER_01: so many people in business there's sometimes not an opportunity to sit down and think so I use
[08:04] SPEAKER_01: that early part of my day to do that and that's that's that's really my routine and then I I
[08:11] SPEAKER_01: regroup the next day and off we go and do it again I asked just to people we do some of our best work
[08:17] SPEAKER_00: outside the office in other words you know this place is we go that help us to think is there a
[08:26] SPEAKER_00: place in Toronto or you know greater Toronto because you're in bed now where you like to reach out
[08:32] SPEAKER_00: get inspired or just think about what you're up to that's a great great thought I don't know I
[08:41] SPEAKER_01: mean I do a lot of that kind of thinking as they in the early mornings and often I'm I'm at
[08:47] SPEAKER_01: often I'm at home at that point I do take the train in and then into the city in the in the
[08:52] SPEAKER_01: mornings now and home at night and that tends to be a good opportunity to sit and reflect on the day
[08:59] SPEAKER_01: um in Toronto I mean I love walking through Toronto Toronto's such a great city to
[09:05] SPEAKER_01: to be able to go and um said there's a great park down on front street um which is interesting
[09:13] SPEAKER_01: because it's where I first started my insurance career 30 years ago right in that area at Wellington
[09:17] SPEAKER_01: Street and by the flat iron building there's a great fountain and that's a great park to just kind
[09:23] SPEAKER_01: of go and sit and they reflect I'm also a big fan of airports I tend to travel a lot so I
[09:29] SPEAKER_01: I find I do some of my best thinking it seems maybe it's funny maybe we were maybe we're
[09:36] SPEAKER_00: across the road from each other I began my career in Toronto at the same park oh did you really
[09:43] SPEAKER_01: tell you what you're talking about it's a great one they've just reded it and it's so
[09:48] SPEAKER_01: I know I like quite something yeah well this is this is the fun thing is that front row we've
[09:54] SPEAKER_01: ended up recently moving our office within the city and we've moved as I say a bit of block away
[10:00] SPEAKER_01: from where I uh I started my insurance career and interestingly enough where my father started
[10:05] SPEAKER_01: is his insurance career in the in in 1946 I think is when he started his his business career and
[10:12] SPEAKER_01: insurance so I kind of feel like I came full circle back to where it all started do you think
[10:20] SPEAKER_00: entrepreneurs have to be weird or unique in a positive way are they wired differently I mean
[10:25] SPEAKER_01: what do you think I think that yeah I mean I think entrepreneurs you know they possess a certain
[10:33] SPEAKER_01: grit and certain resilience and they're undaunted you know they're not discouraged they have set
[10:41] SPEAKER_01: backs um they feel those setbacks but they don't let them prevent them from getting up and moving
[10:48] SPEAKER_01: forward again and I think when I look at all of people I know that run businesses and that are
[10:56] SPEAKER_01: entrepreneurs um that seems to be the characteristic that always is there you know um and I wouldn't
[11:05] SPEAKER_01: say a lot of them are blind optimists either I think a lot of them see the reality you know they do
[11:11] SPEAKER_01: see the downsides the things they're not daunted by those risks the greater vision and their passion
[11:17] SPEAKER_01: and what they're trying to accomplish is um is what keeps them motivated you know and keeps them moving
[11:22] SPEAKER_01: from you know perhaps one business to the next or just continually growing a business
[11:28] SPEAKER_00: uh what what books do you read it's very books that you'd like to recommend that you've read recently
[11:34] SPEAKER_00: made you uh hmm maybe I should look at things differently oh yeah I've always got it's funny I've
[11:40] SPEAKER_01: always got probably four four to six books on the go at any given time I don't really read much
[11:47] SPEAKER_01: fiction but so I'll tend to read um you know I like reading biographies and autobiographies about
[11:54] SPEAKER_01: business leaders or just leaders in general um I I have an interesting book um that I'm reading right
[12:03] SPEAKER_01: now and I guess because so much of my um so much of my work is on building relationships and I mean
[12:11] SPEAKER_01: people do view and I think all of us are in an element of sales right as entrepreneurs we're always
[12:17] SPEAKER_01: promoting we're self-promoting we're promoting our business we're always selling whether we like
[12:21] SPEAKER_01: to think of ourselves as salespeople or not we need we need to build relationships and we want
[12:27] SPEAKER_01: people to listen to our story and there's a book called the science of selling right now that I'm
[12:33] SPEAKER_01: I'm working my way through and I was really intrigued by um this fellow the author and he
[12:40] SPEAKER_01: was interviewed on the Wharton School of Business which is something on the satellite radio that
[12:45] SPEAKER_01: I like to listen to yeah does talk a lot about entrepreneurs and marketing and branding and his
[12:52] SPEAKER_01: his approach to selling I felt was really consistent with mine and what mine has been over the years
[13:00] SPEAKER_01: and what resonated with me on that was the fact that there's no magic to selling there's no
[13:06] SPEAKER_01: magic to getting somebody to come and use your service or buy your product um relationship
[13:15] SPEAKER_01: committing and investing and and being available early on through building that early relationship
[13:21] SPEAKER_01: with a client as when they're a prospect that to me is what the magic of closing is right there's
[13:28] SPEAKER_01: no magic I don't think there's any any magic word or formula for getting a new client I think
[13:35] SPEAKER_01: respecting their needs addressing those needs speaking to those needs and trying to find solutions
[13:42] SPEAKER_01: and giving them options for those problem you know giving them solutions which are options is really
[13:48] SPEAKER_01: what makes them come along and um you know that's the way I've always viewed what I do I I try to give
[13:56] SPEAKER_01: a good information to people so they can make sound solid decisions so that at book the science
[14:04] SPEAKER_01: of selling I think is great because it helps people understand the process of how people look at it
[14:09] SPEAKER_01: and um another one I it's funny I put down for a while but is the daily stoic I'm quite enjoying that
[14:16] SPEAKER_00: because it's you gotta read there's a book called the the Hilux Millie allergy
[14:24] SPEAKER_00: oh yeah and it's it's written by like I call JD Vance who's actually an investment
[14:30] SPEAKER_00: okay uh but it's it's this generally thought of is a very good perspective on American culture at the
[14:40] SPEAKER_00: moment so oh cold it's really it's really yeah anyway uh I think I know this answer if you want
[14:47] SPEAKER_00: to do what you do now what would you like to do for a profession well I would probably find myself
[14:54] SPEAKER_01: in uh in the arts to be honest as I sit there twirling away and you know playing blues guitar
[15:05] SPEAKER_01: and jazz guitar I'm like oh this is I'd love to do this but I might that ship me a sale for me but
[15:11] SPEAKER_00: do knows maybe not what's your favorite word or few words in business things you like to use
[15:18] SPEAKER_00: and maybe maybe the corollary watch your least fate well I will say in the insurance business is um
[15:27] SPEAKER_01: is I I will often remind and this came from one of my dad's mentors um is that we're in the business
[15:36] SPEAKER_01: to pay claims when insurance companies look at me a little dumbfounded because we've presented a
[15:42] SPEAKER_01: large claim you know this was the reason that these people bought this policy so we are in the
[15:54] SPEAKER_01: business to pay claims and and I think that's something that we I have to take very seriously
[15:58] SPEAKER_01: every day when when we're looking at things and I got to admit you know we deal with very very
[16:04] SPEAKER_01: good insurance companies but you know sometimes even they forget that yeah that was the reason for the
[16:10] SPEAKER_01: tools to be purchased um what other things oh my goodness I have so many of them that
[16:15] SPEAKER_00: I told that was that was good that's okay that was the top three things on your inspired
[16:23] SPEAKER_00: lifeless in other words the things that that really inspired the top three things that that
[16:30] SPEAKER_00: inspire Steve you know oh gosh that's a tough one yeah I mean honestly um right now
[16:42] SPEAKER_01: I'm finding myself super motivated with um finding even more innovative ways and products
[16:50] SPEAKER_01: and solutions for clients I find myself really really inspired to um to change some things the way
[17:00] SPEAKER_01: that insurance policies are written at least the ones that we have for our clients and I'm really
[17:08] SPEAKER_01: working hard right now to find new ways to deal with clients issues I mean the landscape is
[17:16] SPEAKER_01: changing a little bit you know we do get involved in some interesting uh claims obviously and
[17:24] SPEAKER_01: trying to find innovative solutions not the same old language not same old policies um I would say
[17:31] SPEAKER_01: that's one thing from a professional standpoint um really really unique solutions that other people
[17:36] SPEAKER_00: can't offer personal standpoint personal they're all the lack they mean they all yeah what you're
[17:44] SPEAKER_00: inspired life what you know what what gets you up in the morning makes you go to bed happy what's
[17:50] SPEAKER_01: that inspired thing that that you've got there I was a very I was I've always been very
[17:58] SPEAKER_01: all in when it came to my professional life you know um I spent a lot of hours working and um
[18:07] SPEAKER_01: you know doing what I do right and um and I have a great family and I mean right now I'm
[18:14] SPEAKER_01: finding more and more that I have and I know balance people talk a lot about balance work life balance
[18:22] SPEAKER_01: but I'm finding right now that I I'm feeling like I've got a better sense of of a blending as
[18:29] SPEAKER_01: opposed to balancing you know I'm looking at life a little more my work life a little more like a
[18:35] SPEAKER_01: music composition whereas that you know when you look at uh when you look at an orchestral piece for
[18:41] SPEAKER_01: instance not every instrument is playing at every given time and and what's happening is that one
[18:48] SPEAKER_01: will come in and even if it's just a little touch one note um it adds to the complexity and the harmony
[18:57] SPEAKER_01: and so I'm starting to look at life a little more that way that there's not a beginning and an end
[19:02] SPEAKER_01: to my work day and my family day but that if I if I respect both sides of those I can make it work
[19:11] SPEAKER_01: and I'm feeling I'm feeling like now in my fifties that I'm I'm actually starting to get a sense
[19:17] SPEAKER_01: of how that works um and you know I love traveling I love seeing different cultures I just got back
[19:24] SPEAKER_01: from a wonderful trip in Morocco like I love being out of my my comfort zone and being in different
[19:30] SPEAKER_01: places and I want to do more of that and that I find really really inspiring okay so here with
[19:35] SPEAKER_00: traveling mind here's one of my fun questions I ask everybody so there's a small tropical island
[19:42] SPEAKER_00: just off VG um it only has one phone booth remember what a phone booth was
[19:47] SPEAKER_00: there's no internet we drop you off there and you won't have a computer or a smartphone or tablet
[19:54] SPEAKER_00: or anything like that you can use the phone booth located there anytime to call the boat
[20:00] SPEAKER_00: and we'll come and pick you up how long would you last before you made that call what would you do
[20:06] SPEAKER_01: there while you were there if I can I have an acoustic guitar
[20:16] SPEAKER_01: I wonder about it isn't like and sit and you know sometimes mindfully sometimes mindlessly
[20:25] SPEAKER_01: strumming on a guitar I can lose hours pretty quickly so the call may take a while
[20:32] SPEAKER_00: wow that's a amazing question I love that um well you just said give me music and I can stay there
[20:39] SPEAKER_01: yeah you know I think that the ability I like people though so I mean that would be my only
[20:47] SPEAKER_01: thing is I find myself I love meeting people and talking to people and learning about them
[20:54] SPEAKER_01: the big the funny thing about what people say with me is I've been having this conversation recently
[20:59] SPEAKER_01: about whether you're an introvert or an extrovert and or an ambivert I think it's in between one
[21:06] SPEAKER_01: I'm not sure if that's the right word or not but um I find that I think I would miss people pretty
[21:12] SPEAKER_01: quickly um more quickly than uh I like that in between overt yes and in between overt there's a very
[21:20] SPEAKER_01: interesting book I'm reading right now called I think it's called quiet it's about people and
[21:24] SPEAKER_01: who are introverts but it does talk about these people who are in between so you know I think
[21:30] SPEAKER_00: just so we're gonna close up a little bit now is do you have any advice that you've received or
[21:37] SPEAKER_00: you know just your own advice that you could pass on to entrepreneurs in Toronto Ontario Canada
[21:43] SPEAKER_00: that you think you know someone that may just beginning to go down the road or of hit
[21:49] SPEAKER_00: hit a wall or whatever some advice that you can pass on to them that you think would be valuable
[21:56] SPEAKER_01: yeah you know I something that always I remember and I I remember it all I've remembered it
[22:03] SPEAKER_01: so many times through my career was there was a wonderful insurance broker in uh in Toronto
[22:11] SPEAKER_01: and he uh his name is Fred McLean and Fred was uh was a long time associate of my dad
[22:18] SPEAKER_01: they worked in the same insurance company I worked for an insurance company that Fred was of his
[22:24] SPEAKER_01: firm was a large broker for and I early on I was a junior underwriter and I was learning the
[22:31] SPEAKER_01: insurance business and I want but I wanted to be a broker I really felt like that was something
[22:35] SPEAKER_01: that I wanted to do because it was going to get me in front of people and meeting people
[22:40] SPEAKER_01: and Fred um I remember sitting in his office it was on Toronto Street um which isn't very far
[22:46] SPEAKER_01: from where my office is right now I'm just one short lock over and Fred locked at me and he sits
[22:53] SPEAKER_01: Steve he goes if you always put your client ahead of your own financial needs in this business
[23:03] SPEAKER_01: you will do well you will do so well he goes all of the commission all of that will take care of
[23:09] SPEAKER_01: itself the revenue will come in if you just always put them ahead of yourself
[23:14] SPEAKER_01: and I remember that all the time Fred unfortunately passed away a number of years ago
[23:20] SPEAKER_01: um at a very young age but man I remember that and you know I remember when I'm sitting and I'm
[23:26] SPEAKER_01: trying to do something and I'm trying to represent might get something from my client I just always
[23:32] SPEAKER_01: remember that if I take care of them first you know the universe has a way of taking care of me
[23:37] SPEAKER_00: okay so so that's that is absolutely terrific Steve really enjoyed it uh and just you know people
[23:45] SPEAKER_00: listen to the podcasts um how can our listeners get hold of you and is there any light to add
[23:51] SPEAKER_00: I missed out um before we kind of uh call it the day today well I mean obviously email
[23:58] SPEAKER_01: there if anybody'd like to connect with me um would you like can I should agree?
[24:03] SPEAKER_01: yeah yeah so it's Steve at frontroinsurance.com that's my email probably my best best way
[24:12] SPEAKER_01: to reach out to me and I'd love to hear from anybody I'd even love to have these kinds of
[24:17] SPEAKER_01: conversations with people who are managing and running businesses I think that entrepreneurship
[24:23] SPEAKER_01: and um people who are founders of business it can be a lonely place at times right um you
[24:29] SPEAKER_01: sometimes need to have groups of people that you can talk to people who are struggling figuring
[24:35] SPEAKER_01: it out hearing other people's successes so I'd love to carry on a dialogue with anyone who's
[24:41] SPEAKER_00: building a business Steve thank you very much I think we thanks for having me on maybe I understand
[24:47] SPEAKER_00: a little bit more the entrepreneurship in the insurance business and uh you know welcome the
[24:55] SPEAKER_00: Canada's podcast and thank you it's been great being here I really enjoyed it really enjoyed your
[25:00] SPEAKER_01: company okay thanks very much okay bye bye
