b"26The withdrawal of the major insurers provided Some people warned Brian that a three-person fertile ground. The opportunities at the time partnership was a recipe for trouble, but he never sawwere abundant, says John. it like that. We had an unspoken thing in those days:if the three of us didnt agree on an idea, we didnt do it.Another by-product of this situation was that the major insurers were rationalising and cutting branchesI always found we got on well, and we just worked,and employees. This left spaces for brokers to movehe adds. 'We didnt live in each others pockets. I think intosometimes literally, as was the case when boththat helped. Everything we did, even when we got Brian and Allan took over the office leases from theirtogether, involved the business.previous employers. That also meant plenty of capable insurance agents were seeking new opportunities. TheOne aspect of this consensus approach extended to insurance landscape was undergoing a major structuralthe board meetings held in the lower Mid North town realignment in favour of brokers. of Tarlee, a midway point between Clare and Adelaide. Brian recalls those meetings fondly and remembersThe South Australian broker market was fragmentedone occasion with a wry smile.except for a few longer-established international players like Lumley. Small independent brokers had sprung up in the past ten years, but now there wasa land grab, and John wanted to lead from the front.Above Old MGA logo, 1980s."