Flying Colours Advice client, Huw
Huw was in his late 50s when he decided it was time to get a proper financial plan in place. With multiple pension pots accumulated across different employers, savings scattered in various places, and friends around him beginning to retire, he knew he needed expert guidance. Working with Billy Ambler, his adviser at Flying Colours Advice, transformed not just his finances but his entire outlook on retirement.
Recognising the need for a plan
Huw’s story will resonate with many people approaching their late 50s. After decades of building a career in finance and technology he found himself with pension pots from multiple employers, along with some savings and investments scattered across different providers.
“It was a bit all over the place, to be honest,” Huw recalls. The trigger to seek advice came from a combination of factors: a redundancy in his late 50s, the realisation that friends around him were already retiring, and a growing desire to understand whether and when he could stop working. “I was thinking: how come they’re all retiring and I’m still working? What’s the process? Can I stop, should I, and when?”
He turned to the government website listing independent financial advisers and, finding Flying Colours Advice, made an initial enquiry. From the very first meeting with Billy, he felt at ease.
The first meeting with Billy reassured us quite a lot. It was always very easy — never a case of thinking ‘oh, not sure we’re going to get on here.’ From day one we just clicked, and that’s why we were happy to carry on.
The reassurance of professional financial advice
For Huw, the single greatest value of working with an adviser has been the ongoing reassurance. Stopping work and beginning to draw down on savings is a profound psychological shift — and one that many people find surprisingly difficult.
“It’s quite an odd thing, which I still find difficult — and my wife would say the same,” Huw admits. “The biggest help Billy has given is the reassurance. I wasn’t confident about stopping work in the first place. Do I have enough money? It’s a strange feeling — going from saving to actually spending the money you’ve built up over the years.”
That reassurance extends to times when world events create uncertainty. When asked how he feels about his financial future, Huw is candid: “Our investments have dipped a bit recently with everything going on in the world, but generally they’ve been going up, even as we’ve been drawing money out. There’s always that feeling that something could be around the corner — but genuinely, I feel OK. I know I can just talk to Billy and we’ll sort it out.”
If anything comes up, I just get in touch with Billy and we sort it out. He’s very calm and considered — and very knowledgeable. That reassurance is the biggest thing he gives us.
The benefits of working with a larger, established Firm
When Huw found Flying Colours Advice, he was conscious of the difference between working with a well-established firm versus a smaller, one-person operation. This was something that factored into his decision.
“I quite liked the fact that Flying Colours were a reasonably sized organisation, rather than a solo practitioner.” he explains. Knowing that his adviser is backed by a broader organisation — with the support structures, compliance frameworks, and continuity that brings — provides an additional layer of confidence.
Achieving an early retirement
With the financial foundations now firmly in place, Huw has been able to retire at 62 — a milestone he considers himself very fortunate to have reached. His wife, a physiotherapist who works for herself, is also winding down towards full retirement.
Billy has actively encouraged them to enjoy their money during what Huw calls the prime years of retirement. He has told them to book an expensive holiday; while Huw admits they haven’t quite managed that yet, now that they have a dog, the plan is to enjoy more frequent shorter breaks.
Billy told us to go and spend money on a really good holiday this year. We’re working on it — we’re trying to go away more often, have more breaks. We haven’t quite done what he said yet, but that’s the plan.
For Huw, having a financial plan means he can live the retirement he actually wants — not one constrained by financial anxiety or uncertainty.
Beyond retirement planning
Like many clients, Huw came to Flying Colours focused on one specific need — consolidating his pension pots so he could retire. What he discovered was that financial planning encompasses far more than he had ever considered.
Estate planning was not something that had crossed his mind at all when he first made contact. ‘When all I was thinking about was how we could stop working, I hadn’t considered any of that,’ he says. But Billy introduced the topic and helped Huw and his wife think through how they could better pass on their wealth to their children and grandchildren.
Not in a million years would we have thought about estate planning, or even contemplated it. Billy brought all of that to us — things we simply wouldn’t have known to consider.
The scope of advice has extended to pensions for Huw’s wife, contributions for their adult children, and decisions around endowment policies — areas that, left unadvised, would never have been considered.
In Huw’s own words
Asked whether he would feel the same about his retirement without having worked with Billy, Huw is unequivocal:
Without Billy, I’d probably still be working — just thinking I’ve got to keep going, keep going. I feel very fortunate that I stopped at 62. I’m not sure my children’s generation will have that option, which makes me appreciate it even more.
Please note: This case study is based on the experience of one client. Individual circumstances vary and past outcomes are not indicative of future results.