MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA, June 1, 2022— Starke Agency is proud to welcome Austin Gaines as its newest hire and principal shareholder. Austin was a senior manager at Jackson Thornton in Montgomery and brings 8 years of accounting experience to Starke Agency starting on June 1, 2022.
“We are excited to have Austin on our team here at Starke,” said Andy Flowers. “Having top talent as Austin join us is critical in our vision to keep Starke as the premier independently owned agency in the River Region. Austin will be joining Starke as a partner. His primary responsibility will be business development and the build-out of our acquisition strategy. Our vision is to have a Starke office in every major metro area in the state in the near future. We know that to accomplish this, we will have to be creative in acquiring individual producers/talent in these areas. Austin will spend a large part of his time making this a reality.”
While at Jackson Thornton, Gaines specialized in tax planning, consulting, and outsourced CFO services for small businesses. He was promoted four times in the eight years there; those positions included associate, senior associate, supervisor, manager, and finally senior manager in August 2020. Starke Agency began talks of an additional principal when its President, Trey Starke announced his retirement. And his shares were purchased by Kyle Drumwright, Andy Flowers, and William Van Hooser, Jr. in January of 2022.
“I am looking forward to combining my technical proficiency and business advisory experience with the risk management strategies of The Starke Agency,” said Gaines. “It is a privilege to join the Starke team and bring another layer of expertise to what is already such a strong agency.”
In 2013, Gaines received his Bachelor of Science and Business Administration from Auburn University with a major in Accounting and a minor in Finance. He received his CPA accreditation shortly after. He is also an active member of the Kiwanis Club, a board member of ClefWorks and acts as the treasurer for River Region United Way.
