Brightway Insurance presents national awards at annual conference

PR Newswire

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Feb. 10, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Brightway Insurance, one of the largest Personal Lines independent insurance agencies in the U.S., named Chris Cole and Billy Wagner, as its 2019 Agency Owners of the Year. Cole won the award for earning the highest revenue in the Brightway system, while Wagner won the award for selling the most policies. The two own the top-producing stores in the Brightway system. Today, there are 203 Brightway stores across 22 states.

"Chris, Billy and their teams do phenomenal work, and I look forward to this time each year when we recognize our top Agency Owners and Agents," said Brightway President and CEO, Michael Miller.

Cole's stores in Palm Springs and Boynton Beach added another 2,737 policies to their book in 2019, driving the stores' annualized written premium to more than $28 million by year-end 2019. Wagner's store in Ponte Vedra Beach added 3,752 policies to their book in 2019, driving the agency's annualized written premium to nearly $20 million by year-end 2019.

Additionally, Chris Huebener, who has been with Wagner's store since it opened in 2008, became the first Agent in the company's history to earn the $3 Million Producer award for selling nearly $3.3 million in written premium last year. This is the fourth year in a row he has earned an award for exceeding $1 million in written premium.

Brightway's Executive Team presented the awards to Cole, Wagner, Huebener and many others during the company's annual awards celebration Thursday, Jan. 23, at the Hilton Bonnet Creek in Orlando. A complete list of Brightway's award winners is provided below.

Agency Owner of the Year, Revenue
Chris Cole, Owner of Brightway, Cole Agency (Palm Springs, Fla. and Boynton Beach, Fla.)

Agency Owner of the Year, Units
Billy Wagner, Owner of Brightway, Ponte Vedra Beach (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)

$3 Million Producer
Chris Huebener, Brightway, Ponte Vedra Beach (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)

$1 Million Producers
Timothy Yarbrough, Brightway, The Fernandina Beach Agency (Fernandina Beach, Fla.)Justin Thompson, Brightway, The Carlucci Agency (Jacksonville, Fla.)Erika Broom, Brightway, The Canty Agency (Jacksonville, Fla.)Josh Hicks, Brightway, The Pihl Agency (Jacksonville, Fla.)Alexander Cull, Brightway, Boca North (Boca Raton, Fla.)Brent McNally, Brightway, Boca North (Boca Raton, Fla.)
Kim Zanfini, Brightway, The Vincent Zanfini Family Agency (Stuart, Fla.)Mark Bouchard, Brightway, The Sterner Agency (St. Cloud, Fla.)Trevor Menear, Brightway, The Ryan Collins Agency (Sunrise, Fla.)Rachel Farmer, Brightway, Bonita Springs (Bonita Springs, Fla.)

New Agency Owner of the Year
Ryan Collins, Owner of Brightway, The Ryan Collins Agency (Sunrise, Fla.)

Rookie of the Year
Jessica Wilson, Owner of Brightway, The Wilson Agency (Safety Harbor, Fla.)

Mover and Shaker
Ryan Collins, Owner of Brightway, The Ryan Collins Agency (Sunrise, Fla.)

Home and Auto Multi-Line Award
Dimitri Apostle, Owner of Brightway, The Dimitri J. Apostle Agency (Waxhaw, N.C.)

90-day Retention Award
Kevin and Mary Feuser, Owners of Brightway, Englewood (Englewood, Fla.)

Homes Sales Award
Billy Wagner, Owner of Brightway, Ponte Vedra Beach (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)

Auto Sales Award
Joshua Hite, Owner of Brightway, The Hite Agency (Boynton Beach and Lake Worth) and Brightway, The Dissel Agency (Bluffton, S.C.)

Flood Sales Award
Billy Wagner, Owner of Brightway, Ponte Vedra Beach (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)

Commercial Sales Award
Jodi Rankin, Owner of Brightway, Regency (Jacksonville, Fla.)

Life Sales Award
Danny Sands, Owner of Brightway, The Sands Agency (Jacksonville, Fla.)

Quality Award
Steve Trout, Owner of Brightway, The Steve Trout Agency (Rockledge, Fla. and Indian Harbour Beach, Fla.)Diane Haas and Debbie Hubicki, Owners of Brightway, Fort Myers South (Fort Myers, Fla.)

Referral Rock Star
Kandie Landers, Owner of Brightway, The Landers Agency (Glendale, Colo., and Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)

Regional Sales Leaders
Northeast - Julio Ramirez, Owner of Brightway, The Ramirez Agency (New Rochelle, N.Y.)
Midwest - Brian Lambert and Kelly Ufnal, Owners of Brightway, The Lambert Family Agency (Muskegon, Mich.)
West - Brandon and Jenn Kolk, Owners of Brightway, The Kolk Agency (Colorado Springs, Colo.)
Southwest - Chris Schmidt, Owner of Brightway, The Schmidt Family Agency (Harahan, La. and Pace, Fla.)
Southeast - Billy Wagner, Owner of Brightway, Ponte Vedra Beach (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)

Corporate Office Employees of the Year
Augusta Roueche-Storey, Personal Lines Renewal Specialist (Jacksonville, Fla.)Matthew Lossmann, Agency Development Specialist (Jacksonville, Fla.)

"Congratulations to all of our winners on their achievements," Miller added. "We're thrilled to see our Agency Owners, Agents and employees reach their potential by leveraging the holistic platform of support that is key to the Brightway system."

Click here to view video highlights from Brightway's 2020 conference for franchisees, held Jan. 23-24, in Orlando.

Brightway's corporate office provides expertise in areas including Customer Service, Accounting, Marketing, Distribution, Business Analytics, Carrier Appointments, Licensing, Onboarding, Training, Hiring and Retaining personnel. The company's signature after-the-sale service empowers franchisees to focus on new business sales and provides their customers the personalized service they deserve.

About Brightway Insurance
Brightway Insurance is a national property/casualty insurance distribution company with more than $645 million in annualized written premium, making it one of the largest Personal Lines agencies in the U.S.

Brightway's focus is on producing Win, Win, Win outcomes for consumers by offering customized insurance solutions and for people wishing to sell insurance by providing business opportunities that span from single Agent to multi-unit enterprises. Regardless of the path taken, Brightway provides the support necessary to consistently outsell other insurance agents.

Brightway got its start in 2008 and has since grown to nearly 900 people in 203 offices across 22 states serving customers in all 50 states.

Consumers seeking a better insurance buying experience may visit Brightway.com, and people wishing to learn more about franchise ownership with Brightway may visit BrightwayDifference.com.