Hawke’s Bay appears to be one of the most attractive provincial markets for wealth managers these days.

Building on a ‘virtual’ presence in HB since 2009, this month Milford Asset Management opened an office in Havelock North, aiming soon to have a team of 4-5 locals serving on their ‘Wealth Management’ team. New Zealand-owned Milford manages over $30 billion in funds for more than 200,000 clients.

Milford joins a crowded field in Havelock North, already populated by JBWere (formerly Jarden), Craigs Investment Partners (which recently purchased local firm Somerset Smith Partners), and Forsyth Barr – all within a stone’s throw of one another. That’s a heap of wealth advice!

If boutique Stewart Financial were to relocate to Havelock North from Hastings, Havelock North might claim to be the financial capital of Hawke’s Bay! Who needs BNZ Partners?

Milford’s CEO Blair Turnbull was in town to launch the new office. Although the local team will focus on high-net-worth clients (as do the others mentioned above), he took pains to emphasise Milford’s strong presence and reputation as a KiwiSaver manager. In this space, Milford has outperformed its competition financially over the past ten years.

And they have been unbeaten in terms of service recognition, winning Canstar’s KiwiSaver Provider of the Year in 2025 for the sixth year in a row; Canstar’s Outstanding Value – KiwiSaver Award, also six years running; and Consumer People’s Choice – Milford KiwiSaver Plan for eight years running.

That’s the ‘retail’ side of their business, where portfolios average $35,000 (NZ average, online sources indicate Milford’s average is twice that). But if they can bring the ‘secret sauce’ of their retail consumer service to the personal relationships involved in wealth management for the ‘rich and famous’ of Hawke’s Bay, the established players might have some serious competition on their hands.

Meantime, us poor folk will await our Lotto ticket to turn the tide!