OUTLET: Inside Business
Sandra J. Pennecke, 757-222-5356, sandra.pennecke@insidebiz.com
Towne Insurance has expanded into South Carolina with the recent acquisition of The Angel Insurance Agency, a Nationwide Agency.
Dudley Fulton, president and chief executive officer of Towne Insurance, said the acquisition is a significant milestone for the company and accelerates the achievement of its key strategic objectives.
“Towne Insurance has experienced significant growth over the past several years as we expanded our insurance footprint outside of Hampton Roads and moved west to Richmond and now throughout the entire state of North Carolina,” Fulton said.
Towne Insurance, a wholly owned subsidiary of TowneBank, expanded into Charlotte, North Carolina, in 2018 with its acquisition of another Nationwide Agency, The Bare Agency. To date, there have been 24 acquisitions by Towne Insurance since 2001.
“We have significant growth ambitions for our bank, insurance and our mortgage company in North Carolina and most likely South Carolina at the right time,” Fulton said.
The Angel agency serves businesses, individuals and community organizations.
David E. Angel Jr. leads the agency, which has five offices in Rock Hill, Lancaster and Spartanburg, South Carolina, and Raleigh and Charlotte, North Carolina.
“Joining forces with Towne Insurance will provide our clients and dedicated staff new opportunities,” Angel said. “Most importantly, our customers will continue to receive the same great service from the same folks in our office, only now we will have many more options to serve their needs – it’s a win-win.”
Angel has had the business for 29 years. It was started by his father, the late David E. Angel Sr., 20 years before that.
“Towne just fit us well because we pride ourselves on being a community agency and we’re extremely involved in all our communities where we have offices,” Angel said.
He said it went right along with how Bob Aston, TowneBank’s founder and executive chairman of the board, built the company and how it promotes involvement in the communities it serves.
The agency’s name will stay as is, but will add Towne Insurance Company to its title.
“We want to retain the local identity for a while,” Fulton said, noting all but one of the 28 of the employees from The Angel Insurance Agency will stay on board. The employee who is leaving was already set to retire.
Towne Insurance provides insurance coverage to businesses, including property and casualty, workers’ compensation, bonding and employee benefits.
The company has also announced new executive leadership positions and promotions.
Those include: Jamie Fuqua, regional president of Hampton Roads; Joe Harrow, regional president of Richmond and Williamsburg; and Jim Clement, regional president of North Carolina.
Chris Rogerson was promoted to chief operating officer, and Boyd Griffin, who is chief financial officer and will remain in that role, was also promoted to executive vice president.
Headquartered in Suffolk, Towne Insurance was ranked 51st of the Top 100 largest brokers in the U.S. by revenue by U.S. Business Insurance Magazine in its July 2019 issue.
