Family Owned Companies: Moody Insurance Agency

For this issue’s Family-Owned Companies feature – an annual ColoradoBiz staple we’re focusing on family businesses that are at least 50 years old, a fact that, by itself, makes them exceptional: According to a study by the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, the average lifespan of a family-owned business is 24 years.

The five companies profiled below stand out for another reason: They’ve all survived beyond the original founder to ownership by subsequent generations. In fact, two of them – O’Meara Motor Co. and Warneke Paper Box – are now in their fourth generation. How rare is that? According to the Small Business Administration, only 30 percent of family businesses in the U.S. survive into the second generation, only 12 percent to the third generation, and only 3 percent into the fourth and beyond.

If these Colorado businesses have one trait in common, besides their longevity, it’s their adaptation to changing times, and the ability of new generations of ownership to see the business through fresh eyes and new possibilities, while paying heed to what has worked for previous generations.

Moody Insurance Agency

Founded: 1972

Second generation

Denver, CO

Website: www.moodyins.com

Evan Moody founded his namesake agency in Denver with his wife, Karen, after tiring of corporate jobs. “She did the bookkeeping up until eight years ago, then she retired,” says VP and COO Troy Moody, Evan and Karen’s son. “My dad is still active.”

Troy and his brother, President Brad Moody, manage day-to-day operations for the company. With offices in Denver, Grand Junction, and Colorado Springs, Moody Insurance now has 140 employees up from about 20 when the brothers joined in the 1990s.

Construction accounts for half of Moody Insurance’s business, and has long been a tentpole industry for the agency. “My dad, a strong work ethic was a big thing for him, and he had a lot of construction relationships,” Troy says, noting that the company’s big growth spurt coincided with a construction boom in Denver.

READ: How the Construction Industry is Building a Better Future for Colorado

Family ownership makes for stronger, more transparent business relationships, he adds. “You know who’s making decisions. They’re in the office with you, they’re not at a home office somewhere.”

Moody Insurance also strives to provide career paths for employees by “promoting from within and advancing their career and training them and moving them up in the company,” says Troy. “We’ve had receptionists move up to management positions and do really well in the agency.”

Evan has led by example over the years, and that has informed Troy’s approach to the job. “You can’t sit back and watch everybody else work,” Troy says. “You’ve got to be showing the same work ethic that you’re expecting from your employees. That’s been my dad’s number-one thing that’s carried through.”

He adds, “A lot of our clients are family, too. We’ve seen them grow a ton. We’ve seen the transition of their kids coming in and slowly moving in. Brannan Sand and Gravel is a great customer of ours. That’s a great story. They’ve become huge.”