Here we talk to Lisa Campbell, founder of the business behind the London Investor Show on how the brokerage industry can attract more active female traders and investors.
Personally, I’ve attended the London Investor Show many times, both as a guest and as an exhibitor. We recently highlighted it as one of the key investor events in the UK.
So, firstly to kick things off… Who are you, what do you do and how long have you been doing it for?
I’m Lisa Campbell, founder and managing director of Investor Conferences – a business dedicated to supporting private investors and active traders through live and online educational events.
I started the London Investor Show, our flagship event, in November 2010, and we added the London Forex Show in 2011, The London CryptoCurrency Show earlier this year, and the Manchester Investor Show also this year (2018).
My interest in working with, and helping, private investors, stretches back to one of my early jobs – as a marketing manager with Edinburgh Financial Publishing, and charged with promoting The Inside Track – the directors dealing newsletter, giving private investors notification when listed company directors were trading in their own shares.
This led to my first business, launched in 1998, Training for Profit – delivering one-day workshops around the UK for investors.
Having sold that business in 2002, I spent some time in the City, with St Helen’s Capital, before taking some time off for a long stretch of maternity leave to enjoy my new daughter, born in 2007.
In 2010, it was time to start work again, and I turned to what I know best – creating and delivering first class events for private investors and traders, with a strong emphasis on education and learning.
Out of all the visitors and exhibitors, what’s the male/female divide?
Typically, the split is roughly 80% male, with 20% female attendees since inception. We’re working to attract more female investors to the London Investor Show this year – although the event has always been open to everyone.
Have you seen more women investors and trader attending over the years?
Perhaps a very small increase, although certainly not significant. We hope to change that this year.
What do you think puts women off about coming to investor exhibitions or starting to trade and invest?
That’s a very tricky question for me as I see this industry from the inside, and to my mind there are no barriers to women coming to the London Investor Show, nor to start trading and investing – the same education, tools and support are available to both male and female investors.
Perhaps the lack of childcare has played a part in making live events tricky to attend for parents – so the London Investor Show is providing a complimentary creche, for children aged between 0 – 12 years of age.
What are your top three resources for women looking to start investing and trading?
- attending the London Investor Show to meet and speak to the product and service providers;
- attending the London Investor Show to learn new skills about how to build and maintain a successful stock portfolio;
- attending the London Investor Show to meet like-minded investors, sharing experiences and ideas. There are a multitude of first-class resources available nowadays, from information providers, to portfolio management software, to wealth managers who will do it on your behalf, and a dizzying array of funds specialising in all manner of areas, as well as the tracker funds and investment trusts.
Honestly, although it seems glib, my answer would be to attend the London Investor Show and gather some first-hand intelligence on the products and service providers that have taken the time and effort to come and meet the delegates at the event – those are the ones that are most likely to value new clients.
How do you think the brokerage industry could change to encourage more women to get involved?
I think the brokerage industry is actually doing a pretty good job already – their services are not overly-male-oriented, and they welcome new clients, irrespective of whether they are male or female.
This male/female investor topic is a hot potato! I have never personally understood why some women seem to find it hard to start investing – the same tools and support and education are available to all.
If anything, women are excellent investors – there’s a tonne of research to back this up – but we are a lot more risk-averse on the whole as opposed to male investors. How this pans out for the industry, I don’t know – some risk is good and necessary.
The London Investor Show is a terrific place to start!
Special ticket London Investor Show discount code offer for readers: use voucher code “BERRY18” and book a complimentary ticket, saving you £25 on the door.
Lisa Campbell is the founder and managing director of Investor Conferences. You can contact Lisa via email: lisa@icuk.media or find out more on the website: www.londoninvestorshow.com
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
Richard’s contributions and expertise have been recognized by respected publications such as The Sunday Times, BusinessInsider, Yahoo Finance, BusinessNews.org.uk, Master Investor, Wealth Briefing, iNews, and The FT, among many others.
Under Richard’s leadership, the Good Money Guide has evolved into a valuable destination for comprehensive information and expert guidance, specialising in trading, investment, and currency exchange. His commitment to delivering high-quality insights has solidified the Good Money Guide’s standing as a well-respected resource for both customers and industry colleagues.
You can contact Richard at richard@goodmoneyguide.com