Money Matters: Holly Baroway

Cherry Creek North is flush with financial institutions and services that pepper the neighborhood, sometimes out of sight from the retail shopping, restaurants, art galleries and gyms.

So, who are they? What do they specialize in? And how can they be helping you with your money and investments?

In our first installment of Money Matters, we sat down with Stifel’s Holly Baroway to learn more about the woman who has just been named to Forbes/Shook Best-in-State Wealth Advisers for 2021.

What made you want to get into this business?  

I have always enjoyed investing, ever since I started a Roth IRA at the age of 19. It intrigued me  how saving and planning could provide life options. So after a 17-year career as a professional ballet dancer and an MBA from The University of Denver, my brother suggested I consider investment planning since it had been a hobby of mine for so long. It has been a wonderful career.  

How is business?  

Business is great. Trusted advice is still needed. There is real value in getting to know a client’s  personal financial goals and challenges. We continue to work with multiple generations of families, which is truly a joy. We are gratefully very busy.  

What’s trending these days?  

The focus has always been on diversification, navigating volatility, and using risk management strategies. We do this using traditional investment options as well as other less common investment choices. We are also active in considering options for Socially Responsible and ESG investments. We believe this area of investing will only continue to grow. While diversification does not ensure a profit and may not protect against loss, it can play a key role in establishing a sound investment strategy and reducing risk.  

Where do you see the markets going this year?  

I am optimistic for the pandemic to abate and the vaccines to be more widely adopted and available. As a result, we expect improved GDP growth going forward. We are already seeing  areas of the market that were hurt the most by the pandemic, begin to recover.  

What are you excited about for 2021?  

 My daughter will be picking a college to attend in the fall, which is exciting, and I can’t wait to travel again!  

Walk me through a day with you at the office.

Once I can get through all of my overnight emails and catch up on the latest financial news,  every day is different. It might involve two-to-four Zoom calls with clients, proposal creation, running a financial plan, answering a client’s immediate need or attending a board/committee meeting. No two days are the same, which is what makes this career so interesting.  

What’s the last book you read and why? 

“Rising Out of Hatred” by Eli Saslow. The author happens to be the son of my daughter’s middle school English teacher. It is a timely and powerful true story.  

What’s your favorite movie about your industry and why, i.e. Wall Street, Wolf of Wall  Street, Boiler Room?  

Unfortunately, I really don’t love the movies about our industry. They portray the negative aspects of our overall industry. After having lived through the global financial crisis in 2008, watching The Big Short made my stomach turn. I did not want to relive that part of my career.  

You propose what you believe is a very strong investment opportunity to your client, but they balk. What do you do?  

If a client is opposed to a specific recommendation, I will dig in and find out where the bias comes from and how I can address it. However, there are so many investment options available  to clients, I consider it my job to find an option the client is comfortable with and will provide the desired outcome.  

Your client wants to do something exceptionally ill-advised, like pouring all of their money into a company that is, at best, a high-risk venture. What do you do?  

Stifel is a very thoughtful firm and strives to protect the client and the advisor. In addition, our industry is highly regulated, if a client wants to take exceptional risk, they may not be able to execute that at Stifel. It all begins with communication and education. In the end, I would advise against an investment that I don’t believe to be in the best interest of the client or outside their risk tolerance. We have to consider every action for each and every client as individuals.  

Your favorite spots to do business in Cherry Creek are where?  

For business lunch I like Hillstone, Blue Island Oyster Bar or North. For happy hour, Sol and Obar. I am not big on business dinners right now, but that might change when I become an empty nester in six months. 

Obar in Cherry Creek

*To learn how to work with Holly and Stifel, click HERE or call 720.409.5337.