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Profile Richard “Gordy” Bunch
How do you build an entrepreneur? Nurture him in the warm California sun? Teach him how to face challenges protecting our country in the United States Coast Guard? Plant his family roots in Texas, a land of uncommon opportunity? If this is the formula for success, it would help to explain Richard “Gordy” Bunch III and the remarkable achievements he is scoring in his business and community life. Certainly, his background, experience, and commitment to do the right thing are the guiding force in his life and the key to building a unique and successful professional career. At 42 years of age, Gordy is a decorated U.S. Coast Guard veteran; an EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist for the Gulf Coast; and is a director of probably the most efficient government entity in Texas. With more than 20 years of experience in the insurance industry, he manages a rapidly-expanding national company as founder, president and CEO of The Woodlands Financial Group.
Gordy Bunch did his insurance “basic training” as a Texas Farm Bureau agent, an Associate General Agent with American National, and as Manager of Financial Services and Retail Director with Prudential. In 2001, he launched TWFG, his insurance and financial services company in The Woodlands, with $10,000 capital. Today, TWFG is ranked among the Top 30 of the nation’s 38,000 privately-held Property/Casualty agencies. With more than $337 million in premium sales, TWFG holds the number one position as the largest Personal Lines leader in Texas. TWFG’s 300-plus retail branches operate in 21 states while affiliations with 3,000 independent agents serve 38 states. The company writes policies in 49 U.S. states from its headquarters in The Woodlands. TWFG is proud to have been honored by FEMA as a national award winner in the National Flood Insurance Program. Overall, Bunch credits his personal pledge and promise, “Our Policy is Caring,” for TWFG’s success.
Bunch’s business acumen surfaced as a teenager when he became a manager of Little Caesars and then a McDonald’s restaurant in College Station, TX. At the onset of the first Gulf War, Gordy, age 19, drove with a friend to San Diego where they volunteered for active duty in the U.S. Coast Guard. During his four years of service he improved his unit’s U.S. Coast Guard methods by helping to innovate purchasing and inventory systems. TWFG’s original business model, which combines both wholesale and retail products, is creatively fine-tuned to take advantage of new product opportunities. TWFG’s innovative approach resulted in a 25 percent growth rate in 2013, and Bunch is projecting another 25 percent growth for the current year with a long-term plan of reaching one billion dollars in sales. His entrepreneurial success prompted the University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) to appoint him to the Advisory Council of its Insurance and Risk Management Center serving the UHD College of Business.
Gordy was elected to the board of directors of his local government in 2012 and is running unopposed for reelection in 2014. The Woodlands Township is a community of close to 108,000 people and 2,000 businesses. He has been instrumental in consistently lowering taxes for residents, setting a rate that is one of the lowest in Montgomery County, along with the reduction of $14 million in public debt resulting in a savings of $5 million in interest charges. He applied his expertise to the Township’s insurance coverages enabling an annual savings of $800,000 with expanded protection. His board elected him its Treasurer and The Woodlands Convention & Visitors Bureau board named him its Chairman in January, 2014. Gordy and his wife, Michelle, have been residents of The Woodlands since 1995 where they are raising three young boys while sponsoring and participating in multiple community organizations. As an IronMan participant and sponsor, Gordy believes in physical fitness so TWFG favors the Gran Fondo bicycle race with its support, the Muddy Trails Bash for kids, and a host of organizations including the Muscular Dystrophy Association, the Susan G. Breast Cancer Foundation, Toys for Tots, Texas A&M University, Interfaith, and more. The family attends United Methodist Church of The Woodlands.
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