Five Questions With: Ben Cavallo

DESPITE THE STILL poorly performing economy, Ben Cavallo, co-owner of Cavallo & Signoriello Insurance Agency, sees opportunity for a firm that educates clients about what products they need and how to get the most value out of them. / COURTESY BEN CAVALLO
DESPITE THE STILL poorly performing economy, Ben Cavallo, co-owner of Cavallo & Signoriello Insurance Agency, sees opportunity for a firm that educates clients about what products they need and how to get the most value out of them. / COURTESY BEN CAVALLO

Ben Cavallo is co-owner, secretary and treasurer of the Cavallo & Signoriello Insurance Agency, commonly known as C&S Insurance. The Mansfield-based company has made news in 2012 with its acquisitions of Colonial Insurance of Mansfield and the Kevin J. Slattery Insurance Agency of Attleboro.

PBN: Has your company felt the pinch of the economy over the last few years, and how was business in 2011?

CAVALLO: Of course, like everyone else, we’ve felt the downturn in the economy. However, we really believe in making the most of any situation, and firmly believe that there is plenty of opportunity out in the market. The economic pinch has caused the average small business owner to take a much closer look at his/her expenses, due to decreases in revenue. Five years ago people perhaps didn’t pay attention to each individual expense. Now, however, they see the value in making certain that they are fully insured at the best pricing available. This has afforded us the opportunity to educate business owners on the different types of insurance available, and what a business owner must have to cover himself/herself.

PBN: What does the acquisition of Colonial Insurance do for C&S Insurance?

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CAVALLO: It helps us expand our footprint in the local area, and it provides access to a handful of new products and carriers. The more carrier relationships an independent agent has, the better pricing we have available to us and, in turn, our clients. Another significant benefit to the Colonial acquisition is that we were able to retain four of Colonial’s key employees. This is crucial, in that our business is only as strong as the people we have working with us.

PBN: Why acquire the Kevin J. Slattery Insurance Company?

CAVALLO: A few years ago, we purchased an office in Attleboro, which has been a great success for us. The Slattery agency was located right down the street from our Attleboro office, so we saw an opportunity to consolidate the two locations. Not only were the two locations geographically convenient, there was significant overlap in the type of business each locations was writing, so we saw this as a natural fit.

PBN: That’s quite an ambitious expansion plan. Will you be expanding your footprint over the next year or two?

CAVALLO: We certainly hope so. We are always looking for ways to improve our business, and are actively looking for new opportunities.

PBN: What are your goals for the rest of the year?

CAVALLO: We are in the process of renovating our main office in Mansfield, and we are just completing the renovation of our Attleboro location. We are really concentrating on the expansion of our sales staff, as we just hired our fifth producer. This puts our agency at 30 employees, more than triple our staff from five years ago. It has been an exciting few years for us, and we are anxious to see what is possible in the years to come.

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