Higginbotham Acquires Houston’s Iscential

Higginbotham has acquired Houston, Texas-based Iscential, an independent insurance agency, risk management and financial services firm and one of the largest writers of Nationwide property and casualty insurance in the country. This strategic move allows access to enhanced services for Iscential clients and adds a second Houston team to the Higginbotham roster.

“Iscential fits perfectly into our national network of firms,” Chairman and CEO Rusty Reid Reid said. “I could not be more pleased to bring them into the fold. They are a firm with impressive growth and an incredible reputation for client service. Our partnership with Iscential will allow both of us to better provide enhanced services to our clients for years to come.”

Warren Barhorst, CEO of Iscential, said looked to the future as he searched for a company that could bring long-term organizational continuity to the business he founded 30 years ago. But his search was complicated by what he found in the marketplace.

“There were a lot of agencies to choose from,” said Barhorst. “But when we started taking a closer look, we realized that so many companies are driven by stock price rather than customer and employee care, and they’re not run by insurance people.

“Then we looked at Higginbotham,” Barhorst continued. “Not only do they have the long-term, proven performance we needed, but they also have the right culture. They’re employee-owned. They’re sales-driven and customer-focused. And best of all — they’re run by insurance people. With Higginbotham, we found a partner that values what we’ve built, values our culture and associates, and wants more than a financial transaction.”

Barhorst noted that he was particularly excited to now be able to offer Higginbotham’s wide array of services to Iscential clients: “When we looked at the Higginbotham services, there was no question — they’ve done what we were trying to do on a smaller scale, and they’ve done it right.”

Dowling Hales acted as exclusive financial advisor to the sellers in this transaction.

Topics Mergers & Acquisitions