Imagine getting bestselling finance author Diane Francis to speak at a client appreciation night, or taking your top four clients out to lunch with CTV’s Lloyd Robertson. Well, thanks to an advisor-specific online charity auction, now you can.
The auction, which started Monday morning, was dreamed up by Dan Richards, president of Strategic Imperatives Ltd., and Mark Newsome, investment advisor at CIBC Wood Gundy, after they visited a home that helps street kids and AIDS orphans in Tanzania.
The two took separate trips to the African country to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, and discovered Amani Children’s Home at the foot of the mountain while they were there. Richards and Newsome were so moved by what they saw that they returned to Toronto with plans to raise money for the under-funded hospice.
Now the fundraising duo hope to raise $100,000 between the auction and a sold-out dinner on September 4.
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Richards says that while an online auction is nothing new, an auction geared toward the advisor community has never been done before. People across the country can bid on everything from financial planning software and admission to a number of conferences, to Raptors tickets, a client presentation by Gordon Pape, and lunch with demographics guru David Foot. In total, there are 51 items from which bidders can choose.
The idea to do an online auction came up after the dinner sold out. “We were planning to do a little auction at dinner, but you’re limited in terms of how much time you have and the number of people in the room,” says Richards. “So we thought, what if we did an online auction that gave advisors across Canada the chance to participate?”
So far some bids have been placed, but there’s a lot more money to be raised.
The auction will remain open until September 4 at 5 p.m. — an hour before the dinner starts. You can place your bids here.
Filed by Bryan Borzykowski, Advisor.ca, bryan.borzykowski@advisor.rogers.com
(08/25/08)