Insurer true to Rhody roots

APPLE OF THEIR EYE: Apple Valley Insurance owners Nancy R. Mendizabal and her brother, David A. Brush, are the second generation to lead the family business, which was founded in 1962. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO
APPLE OF THEIR EYE: Apple Valley Insurance owners Nancy R. Mendizabal and her brother, David A. Brush, are the second generation to lead the family business, which was founded in 1962. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Nancy R. Mendizabal says the insurance market isn’t growing like it did 10 years ago, and while prolonged market stagnation hasn’t intrinsically hurt her family insurance company, plans for expansion are on hold.

“If there was organic growth everyone would benefit,” Mendizabal said. “We’ve acquired a couple smaller [agencies], but we’re ready to grow should the economy turn around and we’ve had a plan in place for a while. … We just haven’t quite seen the opportunity yet.”

Mendizabal owns the independent insurance company Apple Valley Insurance Agency Inc., at 528 Putnam Pike in the Greenville Village of Smithfield, with her brother, David A. Brush. The siblings bought the family business from their father in 2004. He started it in 1962.

Mendizabal, a certified insurance counselor, didn’t grow up thinking she would get into the insurance business, but after working in corporate finance at Bank of Boston prior to 1990, she realized there was something missing from her professional life.

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“I really missed the client part of the work,” Mendizabal said.

At the time, Mendizabal’s father was contemplating the acquisition of a Scituate-based agency, but didn’t have anyone to run it, until his daughter came into the picture. A couple years later, Brush came on to help out during the credit union crisis that crippled most state-chartered financial institutions in Rhode Island.

Afterward, he stayed on and Mendizabal says the partnership has been great.

“I think David and I complement each other very well,” she said. “Both of us and all of our employees live and work in Rhode Island and all of our clients work here. It’s rewarding to be able to focus on the community that we live and work in.”

Apple Valley offers a wide variety of insurance products, including automobile, home, life and business. Mendizabal says their commercial business comprises about 25 percent of overall revenue while the rest is made up through personal insurance packages.

An independent agency, Apple Valley represents a slew of different insurance companies, including Travelers, National General Insurance and MetLife.

“The biggest benefit is that you get choice and option,” Mendizabal said, talking about the benefits of running an independent agency.

But there are also some challenges in representing some of the large insurers because a lot of the transition that happens within the industry is outside of Apple Valley’s control, especially if one of the companies they represent decides to move their business elsewhere or leave Rhode Island.

Mendizabal says that even though there’s stagnation in the market, she’s optimistic about the future of her business, adding that Apple Valley is poised to make a move whenever the opportunity presents itself.

“We’re always looking for opportunities along the way,” she said. •

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