Business Owners

[Classical music playing, as a ships horn sounds off]

[Wealth Management Dominion Securities logo]

[Greg Cochrane]

I'm the President/CEO of fourteen hundred-fifty Souls.

Not a lot keeps me up at night, except for fourteen hundred-fifty souls.

It's my job. My job to take care of you and your families.

We emigrated from New Jersey in the fifties.

My dad and mom were Canadian and my dad was a crazy entrepreneur too. So, we started with Royal bank back in the fifties. You can imagine it was our go-to bank.

When I got into my own business, the bank was always there for me.

I got into my first full-time business when I was twenty-nine.

Our Banker was World Bank, and I remember bouncing paychecks and going to our commercial Banker in London.

The fear of just, closing down was the most important thing. I would have done anything to keep us open because, I believed we could turn this around.

I felt embarrassed because I had screwed this up.

He gave me the best advice.

He said “so we could call your loan now, but I believe you're going to turn this around with your partners. Now, I need you to do two things.”

I said, “What’s that?”

He said “give me your credit cards,” and I open up my wallet. He cut them right in front of us! Our Royal Bank credit cards, cut them, right in front of us!

He said “no more credit. It's all cash.”

It was the best advice I ever got.

When we sold that business in ninety-seven, while we had accomplished a lot, we realized the material gains that we were looking for, we were looking for security for ourselves, and our families.

The bank and the team that we have, it's a complete team. Think about this, it's like a mini family office you have.

Those folks, they know, they know what our goals are.

Our private bankers, and our folks at PH and N, and at DS they know about our family nucleus.

The bank has become simplified for me because I just hand over most of the challenges we have, whether it's a trust, my will, my RCA, to extensive loan portfolios.

They give me peace of mind.

It allows me to do what I'm good at. I can't/I don’t want to run money. I want to build businesses.

In 1994, I wrote down my purpose in life, and my roles of my responsibilities. And I figured out what my purpose was.

I was help helping others get what they want.

I'm here to serve fourteen hundred-fifty people at DCM.

I'm here to serve my partner's.

I'm here to serve my family.

Sometimes you screw up, but if you have that North Star that says, okay, that's what makes you happy.

I think that’s important.

[Wealth Management Dominion Securities logo]