Press Release

Strongpoint Partners Continues West Coast Expansion by Welcoming SI Group, Hawaii's Leading Retirement Consulting Firm

Issued by Strongpoint Partners

June 5, 2024

CHICAGO, IL – Strongpoint Partners (“Strongpoint”), a tech-enabled financial services platform focused on third-party administration of retirement plans, recordkeeping, payroll, and HR solutions for SMBs, announced a new partnership with SI GROUP, a service-first retirement consulting firm based in Honolulu that has proudly served the Hawaii small-business community for more than 35 years. With 19 Hawaii-based employees, SI GROUP has built its reputation on understanding the unique needs of its marketplace without sacrificing a depth of regulatory expertise that ensures its clients are at the cutting edge of retirement plan optimization. 

With the addition of SI GROUP, Strongpoint Partners now has over 250 employees across the United States, and serves over 7,000 unique clients across its retirement, recordkeeping, and Payroll & HR solutions.  

“Two things were glaringly obvious from the very first time we met Craig, Ellen, and the leadership team at SI GROUP,” said Strongpoint CEO Danny Hest, “First, they care deeply about their people, their customers, and their community, and second, this is a team with the experience, expertise, and integrity to fit in seamlessly with our culture at Strongpoint.” 

“We had an opportunity to meet the other partner firms at Strongpoint, and it felt like every one of them shared our values and our view of the market,” said Craig Suemori, Founder of SI GROUP. “There’s tremendous opportunity in the retirement services market, but with the constant regulatory change and generational shift happening in this industry, now was a perfect time to partner with an organization with the resources, talent, and vision of Strongpoint Partners.  

“This was a 10-month courtship for us that we started back in June of 2023,” continued Suemori. “What really changed things for us was when we attended ‘A Day with Strongpoint’ in November of 2023 and got to meet the Strongpoint platform team, the other founders, and the business unit presidents. The quality of the people blew us away, we left saying this was one of the smartest and most talented rooms we’d ever been in. We were very impressed, and it was after that event that we decided to move forward full-steam ahead and see what was possible together, and we couldn’t be happier with the decision we made.” 

Retire Easy Enters a New Phase 

In May, Strongpoint also proudly announced the rebranding of its ‘Retiring Practitioner’ partnership option for small TPA firms under the new title ‘Retire Easy.’ Jenniver Takeuchi from TSP & Associates is the latest retirement practice founder to work with Strongpoint Partners on its client conversion program. 

“I’ve loved every minute of leading TSP & Associates,” said Takeuchi, “but it was time for me to enjoy my retirement. The options for small practice leaders like myself are limited in this industry. My firm wasn’t big enough to go through a full partnership process or justify the costs of selling my business, but I have over 160 clients I care deeply about. I wanted a way to ensure I was compensated for what I’ve built, but equally important for me was that my clients could continue to get the high-quality retirement service and guidance they deserve. Strongpoint Partners gave me that.” 

“Having a dedicated conversion lead on the Strongpoint side made this process so much smoother than I initially anticipated,” continued Takeuchi “and our clients have felt the certainty and confidence created by our communication and transparency through this process. Our Strongpoint leads have been a tremendous ally to myself and our clients, and we thank them and the entire team at Strongpoint for everything they’ve done.” 

To learn more about Strongpoint Partners, please visit www.strongpointpartners.com or email info@strongpointpartners.com.  

About Strongpoint Partners 

Strongpoint Partners is a fast-growing, tech-enabled financial services platform that provides third-party retirement administration (“TPA”), recordkeeping, and integrated payroll and HR technology solutions for small and medium businesses. Strongpoint’s suite of services prioritizes accuracy, compliance, and reduction of regulatory risk for its clients, delivered by local client success teams that understand the nuances of the markets they serve. With a coast-to-coast network of leading firms including HowardSimon, Jocelyn Pension Consulting, Retirement Strategies Group (“RSG”), Retirement Planners and Administrators (“RPA”), Pension Financial Services (“PFS”), Pollard & Associates, Carlson Quinn, and SI GROUP, Strongpoint Partners combines a relentless passion for service and innovation with the experience and expertise required to make retirement work for everyone. For more information, please visit: www.strongpointpartners.com.  

About SI GROUP 

SI GROUP was founded in 1985 by Craig Suemori and Hester Inouye. With the passage of tax legislation including the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility ACT (TEFRA) of 1982, Craig and Hester predicted that there would be a need for independent, fee-based plan administration and consulting services for tax-qualified retirement plans. That predication turned out to be accurate with a myriad of tax law changes over the past four decades. SI GROUP has built a solid reputation for high-quality, personalized services for plan sponsors and their advisors. SI GROUP’s staff includes an ERISA attorney, Enrolled Actuaries, Certified Public Accountants, and several ASPPA credentialed Certified Pension Consultants, Qualified Pension Administrators, and Qualified 401(k) Administrators. SI GROUP has been a Certified TPA with the Centre for Fiduciary Excellence (CEFEX) since 2009 and is one of only 43 TPA firms in the nation to have achieved this designation. 

About Shore Capital Partners 

Shore Capital, a Chicago-based private equity firm with an office in Nashville, is an investor in microcap companies in the Healthcare, Food and Beverage, Business Services, Industrial, and Real Estate industries. Shore’s strategy is to support management partners to grow faster with less risk, through access to capital; world-class board and operational resources; and unmatched networking, development, and shared learnings across the portfolio. From 2020-2023 Shore received recognition from Inc. Magazine as a 4x Top Founder-Friendly Investor and by Pitchbook for being the global leader in private equity total deal volume. Shore targets investments in proven, successful companies with superior management teams, stable cash flow, and significant potential to grow through industry consolidation and organic growth to generate value for shareholders. Shore has approximately $6 billion of assets under management through various investment vehicles. For more information, please visit www.shorecp.com. 

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