As we enter the new year, we can't help but look back at 2019 and what it meant to our business and others' on Commerce Street. There were many celebrations in 2019, but it’s safe to say that three neighboring businesses celebrating milestone anniversaries within just a few months is unprecedented. “We certainly have a lot of longevity and dedication…
As a business owner, it is important to plan ahead and plan for the unexpected. When you hear the word emergency, do you think of a fire, chemical spill, medical accident or some other type of emergency that might occur at your facility? Emergencies happen every day, but despite the type, RiskandInsurance.com says, “First things first – you need a strategic plan;…
The agency entered the current decade with more breadth than ever. We hired three young producers for the future. You have to keep growing to stay relevant. Technology is at a turning point as we’ve gone to a “cloud-based” agency management system in the middle of the decade. This allowed us to be at the forefront of the digital…
The implementation of technology and expansion of the agency in the previous decade brought the agency to a new height. We were one of the first independent agencies to have a website. At that time a website was a big deal and expensive. The Biscuits started in 2004 and our office, which we remodeled in 2006, was a part of…
In the ‘90s, the agency would expand "with confidence" rapidly. Remember the 70’s when the agency’s Gross Premium was close to half a million? At the beginning of the 1990s that number was a lot closer to 9 million—18 times more than just 20 years before. Between 1994 & 1998, The Starke Agency, Inc, bought five other local insurance agencies:…
The ‘80s: The 1980’s brings us to our fourth and current location in downtown Montgomery, Alabama: 210 Commerce St. The building, previously known as the Old Implement Store dates back to 1895 and boasts some of Montgomery’s most extravagant Victorian brickwork. When the agency first moved into the building it shared the ground floor with two other businesses and the…
Bo had been working at the agency for almost 10 years when he decided his father, Bo Sr. was spending more time at the Beauvoir Club than he was in the agency. So, he decided to tell his father he would buy the agency from him. Bo Sr., knowing Bo’s finances, “dared” him to try. Bo took the dare seriously…
In 1962 Bolling P. “Bo Bo” Starke, II, joined the agency after two years of military service. Current President, Trey Starke, recalls being told that at the time the agency profits were split between the three family members—Bo Sr., Bo Bo, and Joe. Bo Sr. would take a set amount and the remainder would be split 50/50 between Joe and…
While the insurance industry and Montgomery continued to expand, the agency hired its first family member. Joe Jordan, Bo’s brother-in-law, began working at the agency as their second producer. By the 1950's Rawlings was no longer backing the agency and hadn’t for years. The Bolling P. Starke Agency was now the agency’s official name. Still located in the Frank Leu…
The decade begins the year after WWII began. Bolling, better known as “Bo”, left the states and went to Germany to serve with the Red Cross during the War. He had tried to enlist but due to his age (late 30’s), he was denied. He used the influence of Senator Lister Hill (a Starke University graduate) to find a placement.…