Addidi - Interview with Anna

Interview with Anna

Why did you set up Addidi?
Why do you suppose no one has done anything quite like Addidi before?
What does the word Addidi mean?
What makes you confident you can deliver the Addidi experience to your clients?
Is there a typical Addidi client?
How much of a link do you see between happiness, money and achievement of certain goals?
What sort of key areas of help and advice can a client expect from the Addidi service?
Do you think generally women feel guiltier about being relatively rich, than men who just enjoy that money?
Do you want Addidi to leave any kind of legacy or philosophy behind?

Why did you set up Addidi?

There were many reasons, but I had two main key motivations:

First of all, an unprecedented number of women now have success and wealth, and yet this has not translated into happier or more balanced lives for many of us.

Secondly, for many women, the management of their wealth becomes yet another task they have to juggle, another burden they carry.

I want us, as women, to understand what makes us happy, what our core values are, and to use our wealth to deliver happiness and inspiration in our lives. I call it inspired living – that lovely place we all have in our heads where we are in perfect balance and harmony. I want to help our clients take that picture out of their heads and make it a reality.

Why does this matter? Because women are at the heart of society and of their families and it’s vitally important that we are happy and healthy.

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Why do you suppose no one has done anything quite like Addidi before?

Well, there are services which have elements of what we do – financial advice, wealth management, lifestyle concierge. What isn’t out there is one service that brings it all together.

Addidi has had a wealth management proposition for many years and that’s worked really well. And there are concierge services that cater for almost everything you can think of. There are even some wealth management companies which offer concierge style services as a perk. However, it’s the combination of the two under one roof and the focus on needs of women which is different and rather unique.

I want our clients to have one central source they can trust to manage their wealth and to delegate to all the tasks they do not have the time or the inclination to do themselves. They can turn to Addidi for anything to do with their personal finances.

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What does the word Addidi mean?

Literally it means ‘to add’ in Latin, and in a wider sense it means ‘we inspire’. The word really struck a chord because we look to add value in our members’ lives, and to inspire them and be inspired by them.

The other reason I really liked the name because Didi (part of Addidi) actually means an elder sister in Hindi. And the idea behind having a one stop financial services boutique was that you had somebody that you could totally trust, someone who knew you almost as well as yourself, to deliver what you need them to and to do it in a way that you would want to do it yourself. In a way that’s what an elder sister in the Hindu culture is – very supportive, non judgemental and just there when you need her.

So it seemed to fit on all counts.

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What makes you confident you can deliver the Addidi experience to your clients?

Well, the independent financial advice and wealth management side of Addidi is tried and tested; we have been doing that for many, many years. So that’s a given.

The financial concierge side actually is an extension of understanding our members really well, and it’s gathering that knowledge and understanding on the wealth management side, but applying it to the lifestyle side. We have been now delivering this for 3 years and it works.

We are not a quantitative business; it is a business for women with similar values to ours and looking for a high level of personal service. They can rely on us to deliver whatever they need. It’s bespoke and personal.

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Is there a typical Addidi client?

One of the things I refuse to do is to put a monetary value on our clients; I find it insulting because I think people’s values cannot be translated into monetary values.

Of course, there is an economic truth that people have got to be able to afford our services. But we have some quite modest clients who really value what we do for them and they pay more in proportion to their wealth than some of our very well-off clients. It’s up to the clients to decide whether the service we provide is of value in their lives.

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How much of a link do you see between happiness, money and achievement of certain goals?

Money doesn’t equate to happiness, but I do see it as a tool for happiness, and certainly Addidi is about enabling women to use it as a tool for happiness and inspiration. I see wealth as a great enabler. We all have this picture in our head about how we would live our lives “if only this, or if only that”, and I want women to use their wealth to get that picture out of their head and to live the life they want to live today. If they do that, then they are likely to be happier whatever the level of their wealth. Life is too short to put off the really important things.

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What sort of key areas of help and advice can a client expect from the Addidi service?

It’s very bespoke so we focus on what our clients want and need from us, as well as the key drivers in their lives. Having said that, our core services are structured round 2 services – Addidi Wealth provides independent wealth management and Addidi Personal , is a one stop personal finance service for women and their wealth.

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Do you think generally women feel guiltier about being relatively rich, than men who just enjoy that money?

I don’t think they necessarily feel guilty per se, particularly if they have earned their wealth. But there is a definite make-up difference between men and women. Addidi acknowledges that difference, and seeks to encourage women to tune in and understand their softer, caring, nurturing side because it’s such a core part of their DNA.

I have come across many women who have moulded themselves to the environment around them, particularly in the workplace, and then at some point they come to recognise that actually it’s not making them happy.

That’s one of the key reasons why more and more women are setting up their own businesses; to determine their environment and operate in a way that they feel comfortable with.

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Do you want Addidi to leave any kind of legacy or philosophy behind?

Addidi is very much about adding value and I believe that you come into this life for a purpose and you should attempt to leave it an improved person. So I focus on myself, rather than what others are doing. It’s important to me that in every relationship I have, I show compassion and generosity of spirit and I look to add value rather than just take. If I manage to do that, then actually, that is an added value in my own life.

So if Addidi can help women lead more balanced lives, and to focus on making their own little world happier and healthier, then I think that would be a big plus and we will help to make the world a much better place in our own small way.

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