Phil Wheat, co-owner of Wheat-Givens Financial, said his investment advisory firm was established in McKinney because he wanted to base his business there to serve the community in which he lived.
He found his way to McKinney through a tragedy.
“I got a call in 1998 from a client who knew about my work and asked me to go see someone who had just lost her husband,” he said. “She was young with two young children and was going to need a lot of attention.”
Wheat said he observed how her friends and neighbors responded during this difficult time.
“Everyone always says, ‘Call if you need something,’ but they didn’t wait for calls; they just started demonstrating love and care,” he said. “Those are the type of people who live in this community, and I fell in love with McKinney. Many cities offer a nice address, but McKinney is a true community. Among other things, we take care of our own—McKinney, Texas, has a heart.”
Since then, Wheat has been serving the community’s financial-planning needs, and because of growth at the firm, longtime friend and client Lori Givens joined the operation in 2013 and is now a co-owner.
According to Givens, there is not a template for financial planning at the company. Services and investments are catered to customer needs.
“We want people to come see us because we like to get to know them,” Givens said. “Once we ask questions and get a good idea of their situation, their stage of life and their goals, we can move forward to help them.”
“It’s about serving the planning and investment needs of our clients in a very personal manner.”
—Phil Wheat, co-owner of Wheat-Givens Financial
One myth Wheat is quick to dispel is the thought that a will is not necessary if one is not wealthy. According to the longtime financial planner, some people assume they can put off drawing up these documents, but he recommends against that.
Wheat-Givens Financial planners aim to inform individuals about money management and investment planning.
“One thing we emphasize is putting a priority on wills and those documents,” Wheat said. “Working with estate-planning attorneys, we provide much of the basic planning, and we don’t charge for our part of this service. It’s just a way to give back.”
Wheat said he wants to use his more than 30 years of investment experience to help others.
“They need to know we don’t have anything to sell,” he said. “We are managing their investments. The consequences of financial failure are too catastrophic to trust anything or anybody other than the very best.”
Both owners said they enjoy their work because of the relationships they build with their clients.
“It’s about serving the planning and investment needs of our clients in a very personal manner,” Wheat said. “Many firms are moving to ‘impersonal’ investment management. Those who do so tend to embrace placing clients in one of several investment models or some form of ‘robo’ investment management. Having personal, professional attention is as important in our field as it is in health care.”
6401 S. Custer Road, Ste. 2000, McKinney 214-385-2415 www.wheatgivens.com Hours: Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sat-Sun. by appointment
