Kelmoore Investments has hired six outside wholesalers and another inside sales representative, bringing the total number of new hires for the firm to over 24 this year.
The firm now has a total of 22 outside sales representatives and 11 inside representatives servicing their accounts, said Michael Loukas, Kelmoore's national inside sales manager.
The Palo Alto, Calif.-based firm offers three domestic funds, one offshore fund, a variable annuity and a managed account product. The firm has approximately $700 million in assets under management.
The company's growth has been fueled by a number of new relationships the firm has developed with large broker/dealers and regional wirehouses, Loukas said. Since January, Kelmoore has signed agreements with Merrill Lynch, Paine Webber, First Union and Raymond James, he said.
The latest round of new hires is the last round of hiring the firm will make in the near future, Loukas said. Kevin Burke and Ken Hanson have been named regional VP's. Burke, who was formerly the president of institutional sales with Monument Funds Distributors, will cover the Kentucky and Ohio region. Hanson, has been hired to build the firm's sales of its annuity product in the Dakotas and Minnesota, where he is licensed to sell Life, Health and Variable Insurance. He will also sell the firm's funds. Prior to joining Kelmoore, Hanson worked for First Minnesota Savings Bank.
Debra Marler, Sean McCloskey, Frank Nespoli and Chad Wickliffe were also added as regional VP's. Marler will cover Northern California. She joins Kelmoore from CDC Nvest Funds where she was a wholesaler. McCloskey will cover the states of Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. Nespoli will cover Texas and Louisiana and worked most recently as a wholesaler for Munder Capital Management. Wickliffe has been hired to cover Kansas and Missouri and comes from J.P. Morgan.
Kelmoore also named Cash Lambin as senior inside sales representative. Lambin will service brokers and clients from the states of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona and Nevada. Prior to joining the firm, Lambin worked for First Southwest Company. The firm also promoted Melissa Wheeler to inside sales representative. She will cover accounts throughout the Pacific Northwest and Minnesota. The firm hired Wheeler last summer as a administrative sales associate and conference coordinator.
Send news of job changes with photos to Andrew Brent, Mutual Fund Market News, 11 Penn Plaza, 17th floor, New York, NY 10001 or e-mail to andrew.brent@thomsonmedia.com.
