Higginbotham Insurance & Financial Services

Higginbotham is an independent insurance brokerage firm founded in 1948 that provides businesses and individuals with insurance, financial services, risk management and employee benefit services.[1]

Higginbotham
Company typePrivate
IndustryInsurance broker and service provider
Founded1948
HeadquartersFort Worth, Texas
United States
Number of locations
87 offices in 16 states (2023)
Area served
Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas
Key people
President/CEO Rusty Reid
ServicesInsurance, Financial and HR Services
Revenue$450 million (2022)
Number of employees
2,700 (2023)
Websitewww.higginbotham.com

In addition to its headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas, Higginbotham operates in more than 87 offices in 16 states across the U.S. with approximately 2,700 employees. Higginbotham is ranked in the top 20 largest independent insurance brokerages in the U.S and is the largest based in Texas by revenue.[2]

History

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Paul C. Higginbotham founded his namesake agency in 1948 after returning from military service in World War II. It started as a small personal insurance brokerage firm in Paul’s Riverside neighborhood of Fort Worth, Texas.

Paul’s nephew, Bill Stroud, purchased the agency in 1962 from his aunt who inherited it when Paul died. Between 1968 and 1983, the firm moved four times to more central locations in Fort Worth to attract an increasingly diverse clientele.

In 1986, Bill hired Rusty Reid from American General Fire and Casualty Company to broker commercial insurance at Higginbotham. Three years later, Rusty became president and CEO at age 27. He implemented an employee ownership model to engage and reward employees in the company’s growth and established the firm’s Financial Services division to begin offering employee benefits.[3]

Higginbotham’s first geographic expansion occurred in 1998 with the opening of a second office in Dallas and was followed by several others in North and Central Texas. Then in 2007, the firm initiated an aggressive growth strategy, merging with like minded independent agencies that support its business model. As of 2023, Higginbotham has expanded its footprint to more than 87 offices spanning the U.S.[4]

 
Bailey Ave. Building in Fort Worth, TX
 
Race St. Building in Fort Worth, TX

Products and services

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Locations

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Alabama

  • Mobile

Arkansas

  • Jonesboro

Arizona

  • Scottsdale

California

  • Beverly Hills, Irvine, Sherman Oaks

Colorado

  • Colorado Springs, Lakewood

Florida

  • Pensacola

Georgia

  • Albany, Alpharetta, Atlanta, Macon, Marietta

Kentucky

  • Louisville

Louisiana

  • Baton Rouge, Bossier City, Lafayette, Lake Charles

Mississippi

  • Brookhaven, Hazelhurst, McComb, Ridgeland

Missouri

  • Branson, Springfield

New Mexico

  • Albuquerque, Las Cruces

Ohio

  • Avon, Sidney

Oklahoma

  • Oklahoma City, Tulsa

Tennessee

  • Chattanooga, Knoxville, Lebanon, Memphis

Texas

  • Arlington, Austin, Brownsville, Brownwood, Bryan, Cleburne, College Station, Corpus Christi, Cypress, Dallas, Ennis, Fort Worth, Friendswood, Granbury, Houston, Lubbock, Lufkin, McAllen, McKinney, Midland, Montgomery, Mount Pleasant, North Richland Hills, Odessa, Plainview, Plano, Port Arthur, Richardson, Portland, San Antonio, Sherman, Texarkana, Tyler, Universal City, Victoria, Waco, Weatherford, Wichita Falls[5]

Mergers and acquisitions

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Community involvement

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The Higginbotham Community Fund is a donor advised fund that was created in 2010 in partnership with the North Texas Community Foundation. Grants are distributed to nonprofits throughout Texas that are recommended by employees and selected by a Higginbotham advisory committee.[6] The fund is financed by employee donations and pledges with a corporate matching component. As of 2023, the fund has raised $5,697,070 through employee and company contributions and given 1,839 grants totaling $4,508,877.

Honors and awards

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  • Higginbotham has been recognized as an A+ accredited business by the Better Business Bureau of Fort Worth since March 1, 1990[7]
  • Rank #31 in the Business Insurance 2016 list of 100 Largest Brokers of U.S. Business based on 2015 revenue[2]
  • Rank #33 of the largest U.S. employee benefit brokers in a list published by Employee Benefit Advisor and Employee Benefit News[8]
  • Rank #24 in the Insurance Journal 2016 list of the top 100 property/casualty agencies[9]
  • Rank #10 in the Business Insurance 2013 Best Places to Work in Insurance[10]
  • April 2011 Rough Notes Marketing Agency of the Month[3]
  • Higginbotham was one of 35 independent brokers featured on the 2014 inaugural list of Elite Agencies published by Insurance Business America[6]
  • 2014 Best Agency to Work For – South Central by Insurance Journal[11]
  • 2015 Dallas Business Journal Best Places to Work in DFW[12]
  • 2015-2016 Dallas Business Journal Healthiest Employers in North Texas[13][14]
  • 2015-2016 Austin Business Journal Healthiest Employers of Central Texas[15][16]
  • 17th Best Company to Work for in Texas in the large employer category of a list published by Best Companies Group in 2016[17]
  • Named a Platinum Level Fit-Friendly Worksite by the American Heart Association of Tarrant County in 2015 and 2016[18]
  • Received the Worksite Innovation Award from the American Heart Association of Tarrant County for our wellness program in 2016[18]

References

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  1. ^ "Company Overview of Higginbotham & Associates LLC". Bloomberg Businessweek. Archived from the original on January 28, 2015.
  2. ^ a b 100 Largest Brokers of U.S. Business
  3. ^ a b "Rough Notes Benefits Report". Rough Notes. April 2011.
  4. ^ Higginbotham. "Fort Worth-based Higginbotham Celebrates 75 Years". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 2023-04-26.
  5. ^ "Locations Archive". Higginbotham. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
  6. ^ a b "Elite Agencies". Insurance Business America. June 2014.
  7. ^ "BBB Business Review". Better Business Bureau.
  8. ^ "The 50 biggest benefit brokerages in the large-group market". Employee Benefit Adviser. October 12, 2016.
  9. ^ "Top 100 Property/Casualty Agencies". Insurance Journal.
  10. ^ "2013 Best Places to Work in Insurance". Business Insurance.
  11. ^ "Best Agency to Work For – South Central". Insurance Journal. October 6, 2014.
  12. ^ "Announcing the 2015 Best Places to Work in North Texas - Dallas Business Journal". Dallas Business Journal. Retrieved 2016-10-19.
  13. ^ "Announcing the 2015 Healthiest Employers in North Texas". Dallas Business Journal. February 12, 2015.
  14. ^ "The 2016 Healthiest Employers in North Texas - Dallas Business Journal". Dallas Business Journal. Retrieved 2016-10-19.
  15. ^ "Central Texas' healthiest employers of 2015". Austin Business Journal. April 8, 2015.
  16. ^ "Austin Business Journal reveals 2016 Healthiest Employers of Central Texas - Austin Business Journal". Austin Business Journal. Retrieved 2016-10-19.
  17. ^ "2016 "Best Companies to Work for in Texas"". bestcompaniestx.com. Retrieved 2016-10-19.
  18. ^ a b "Fit-Friendly Worksites Honor Roll". www.heart.org. Retrieved 2016-10-19.