• COVERSTORY

BERKLEY AND
FAMILY FIRST
IN2005:

"Great!" The word aptly describes the journey so far of Berkley International Life and Plans and Family First, Inc. after 8 years in the Philippine financial services industry.

The three firms, all fully-owned by multinational and Fortune 500 company, the US-based W.R. Berkley Corporation, entered the Philippine market at what many considered as a most inauspicious time during the big Asian financial crisis of 1997.

Proving that huge opportunities can indeed rise even from the most daunting of debacles, the Berkley group showed faith in the Philippine economy and the Filipinos and went on what could only be described as a most bullish growth and expansion mode, employing close to 600 people at any given time.

Eight years and six branches later, the Berkley companies are prospering extremely well, rewarded in their efforts and their faith with the trust of more than 150,000 planholders, a record that could only have been attained through a strategy that clearly blazed new trails and revolutionized the marketing scene.

Known now for bringing people en masse to the product instead of the other way around, Berkley International Plans, in particular, through its sole distributor — Family First, Inc. — rocketed from being at the tail-end when it entered the industry to being a consistent Top 5 placer in new business, i.e. the sale of educational plans.

Despite the controversies that naturally hound all trailblazers, Berkley and Family First have remained steadfast in their commitment to serve as many Filipino families as they could through accessible and easy-to-understand information about the need to invest for the future.

Sale or no sale, the companies have, without doubt, enormously raised the awareness of countless Filipinos and started them on the initial step of securing themselves and their loved ones.

Through innovation and integrity in service, Berkley and Family First will continue to work at securing the future of Filipino families, providing them a better quality of life with a view towards building a stronger nation.