A Conversation with Evan Silverio, President & CEO of Silverio Insurance Group
Agency Checklists recently had the pleasure of speaking with Evan Silverio, President and CEO of Silverio Insurance Group. From its beginnings as a small local tax service in Lawrence to its current status as a rapidly growing insurance agency, Silverio Insurance Group embodies a true American success story. Evan shared insights into the agency’s history, its impressive growth, community involvement, and its vision for the future.
Evan, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. Could you introduce Silverio Insurance Agency and share a bit about its founding story and core mission?
Absolutely. Silverio Insurance Agency was founded by my mother, Julia Silverio, in 1986. She was a young female entrepreneur who had already opened her office doors two years prior to fill a need in the community of Lawrence. Her business initially offered tax consultation, immigration consulting, airline ticketing, and justice of the peace services. Insurance was the last service added, and it’s the one that grew the most over the years.
My parents immigrated from the Dominican Republic; my mother completed her high school here, and my father came when he was a bit older. They eventually settled in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Both my parents worked various jobs and eventually tried to go on their own, opening different businesses.
Silverio Insurance is the one that survived and flourished. Julia’s focus on trust, honesty, and good customer service is still the foundation of which the agency stands on today.
Our mission statement reflects this:
- Our Mission: Deliver excellence in Insurance through our services.
- Our Commitment: Put our clients and each other at the heart of everything we do.
- Our Duty: Stay sharp, Stay driven, and build something GREAT together.
My mother retired around 2019, which is when I took over as president. My father, who assisted my mother with bookkeeping after his own business ventures and factory work, also retired around the same time.
That’s a wonderful family history. It sounds like your mother was quite the entrepreneur. You mentioned starting at the agency in 2006. How did you get into the business?
Yes, I’ve been with the agency for going on 20 years now, since 2006. After graduating from Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts, in 2003, I initially worked as a loan officer for about nine years. My parents sat me down and talked to me about the business. I was already somewhat involved in real estate and knew a bit about home insurance from my work as a loan officer. When my mother first brought me on, she couldn’t afford to pay much, around $20,000-$25,000 a year with no commissions. So, I continued working as a loan officer while learning the insurance industry. My realtor connections as a loan officer were invaluable in helping me gain early success as an insurance producer. If you can get the home insurance, the auto insurance often follows due to the opportunity for discounts.
Can you provide insights into Silverio Insurance’s market share within the Lawrence area and any significant growth trends you’ve observed in recent years?
Honestly, I don’t know exactly how much of the Lawrence market Silverio Insurance has. This isn’t something we’ve necessarily focused on. We are a well-known and respected business within the city, but there is also plenty of business not insured with us, leaving plenty of opportunity to still grow in our territory. If I had to guess, I’d say we are the largest independent agency in Lawrence specifically.
What has been the trend in total premium volumes over the past few years, and what factors do you attribute to these changes?
We’ve seen our premium volumes exceed 35% per year for the last three years running. We just crossed the $40 million mark in premium. I attribute the increases not only to our acquisitions but also to our organic growth month after month. Our focus on hiring and training for service and sales has led to high retention rates and the constant flow of new business. Carrier rate increases have undoubtedly been another factor in these recent years.
You mentioned acquisitions. Have those played a significant role in your growth?
Yes, definitely. In 2019, right after I became president, we had the opportunity to purchase Woodcome Insurance Agency in Leominster, Massachusetts. Interestingly, they were about the exact same size as we were at the time, around a million dollars in revenue. So, with that acquisition, we doubled our agency size overnight. That was our first acquisition, and it was a learning process. Since that first one in 2020, we’re now on our eighth acquisition.
Here’s a list of our acquisitions:
- Woodcome Insurance Agency of Leominster, MA – 2020
- Miranda Insurance Agency of Woburn, MA – 2021
- Berube Insurance Agency of Haverhill, MA – 2022
- Instant Agency of Allston, MA – 2022
- Alpha Travel & Insurance of Worcester, MA – 2023
- David E Zeller Insurance Agency of Lynn, MA – 2024
- Broadway Plaza Insurance Agency of Lawrence, MA – 2024
- Secky Insurance of Plainville, MA – 2025
That’s quite a list. How many offices does the agency currently have?
We have five offices: Haverhill, Lawrence, Lynn, Leominster, and our most recent acquisition in Plainville, Massachusetts, which we just closed in April.
What specific sectors or types of insurance does Silverio Agency specialize in, and how have these choices impacted your business strategy?
Although I consider Silverio Insurance Agency to still be a generalist, we do have certain producers that specialize in different sectors such as Real Estate, Condominiums, Contractors, Garage Keepers, and Trucking. When we have different producers specializing in different areas, they become great resources to the rest of the staff members. For individual producers, we definitely promote finding a niche that they can truly focus on and build upon. We’ve built a very big trucking business, and we have a couple of producers with a really good trucking book. Because of how quickly they built it and their experience, we’ve added specific account managers trained solely on trucking. So, I guess that’s our really big specialization now. Being a generalist is great because when we purchase agencies, we mostly know their whole book of business.
How does Silverio Insurance maintain its customer-first philosophy in daily operations? Could you share an example of this approach in action?
Our customer-first approach is felt in every “how can I help you today?” that is uttered by any employee. It’s a phrase that implies we are here to be of service and that we believe in treating everyone with respect and kindness. As simple as it sounds, this is now an agency policy. It allows the person to be of service and to fully focus on that particular person in front of them. The feedback from customers and staff has been positive; it really focuses attention and puts us in a place of service. From our sales producers who take their time to go over coverages and guide clients through the bind process, to our account managers who can be counted on for any inquiries or changes our customers might need, this philosophy is central.
Another key aspect, especially in our Lawrence office and most of our other locations, is that our staff is bilingual, primarily Spanish-speaking. However, we strive to give the best customer service first, and then we do it in their language. It’s not good enough to just speak the language; outstanding customer service is paramount.
As a local agency, what roles or activities does Silverio Insurance undertake within the community to foster relationships and support local development?
Silverio Insurance Agency’s founder, Julia Silverio, was very involved in her community. She was a city councilor for many years, sat on various boards, contributed to various non-profit organizations, was very involved in her church, and was a vocal activist for underrepresented people. Most recently, the city recognized her years of community service by dedicating a park in her name.
Today, I and other staff members continue that tradition. I’m on the board of trustees for Northern Essex Community College, the board of the Boys and Girls Club of Lawrence, the executive board of the Lawrence Partnership, and the board of the Merrimack Valley Chamber of Commerce. Our VP of Sales chaired the board of the local YMCA.
We also continue our involvement through participation in local events, volunteerism, and monetary contributions to various organizations that are involved in the constant pursuit of improving our communities.
In what ways has Silverio Insurance embraced technology or innovative practices to enhance service delivery and customer satisfaction?
Although I am a firm believer that nothing currently can replace a knowledgeable and skilled employee, we still invest in and utilize tons of technology within our agency. We are not afraid to try new technologies if we truly feel it will make our staff more efficient and add value to our customers. Technology is huge in our business, but it doesn’t always mesh as well as you want it to in insurance. We think twice about what we add, but we feel we’ve added the right ones to create automation. For example, emails, notices to customers via text or email, renewal checklists, and post-sale information often go out automatically. This automation is very helpful, keeps us upfront, and takes a lot of stress off the account managers. We also utilize our AMS system and texting capabilities. However, we also stress caution, as too much technology can overwhelm an agency and could actually cause more work for staff members than intended. You really have to find what works for your particular agency and customers. One thing I stress, especially with younger staff used to texting or emailing, is that there’s nothing better than the telephone or in-person meetings for building relationships.
What are some of the significant challenges facing your agency today, and how are you addressing them?
The challenges we face today are some we’ve never seen before in our agency, such as the ongoing hard market and carriers exiting certain markets, causing books of businesses to be moved. But we now look forward to any challenge that arises and the opportunities that come with them. Our agency has excelled because of the challenges that we’ve tackled along our journey. Like many small agencies, we too suffered from employee turnover, financial difficulties, low retention rates, lack of markets, competition, and much more. What we’ve learned is that every single obstacle has presented us with an opportunity for us to solve that issue so that we can continue to grow… and that’s exactly what we’ve done and continue to do. With time, effort, and the right team… we can find a solution to nearly any issue.
How would you describe the team culture at Silverio Insurance, and what do you look for when bringing new members into your team? You currently have 45 employees, correct?
Yes, a total of 45 employees, with about 15 licensed producers. I’d say that our biggest asset is our people and the great working environment that we’ve created together. Using our mission statement and our core values as our guide, we are able to identify what type of people we are looking for and hire accordingly. We then onboard them with a detailed description of the expectations we have for them and review it with them 1-2 times per year. At the top of those expectations are treating each other with respect and being held accountable.
My trajectory involved learning insurance from the ground up. My mother sent me to a three-week course, but practical experience was key. Initially, it was just my mother and me as licensed producers. A pivotal moment was when I pushed to hire another producer, which my parents were initially reluctant about. We brought someone on around 2013, and seeing him succeed, after he was on the verge of leaving the business, got me addicted to helping others become successful. We developed a formula for training and using our influence in the community to feed leads to our producers, creating a machine that just needed hands on deck.
Looking forward, what new goals or initiatives is Silverio Insurance excited about pursuing in the near future?
Our plan is to continue to grow both organically and through strategic acquisitions of both agencies and talent. We understand the potential that we have given our age and experience, and we plan on capitalizing on it.
What advice would you give to someone seeking insurance for the first time or looking to better understand their coverage options?
Contribute to your local economy by using a local and reputable insurance agency with great customer reviews. Choose one that speaks your language and that takes the time to explain coverage options or any other inquiries you might have.
How do you view the ongoing consolidation in the Massachusetts insurance industry, and what impact do you think this will have on local agencies like yours?
I think that it will have huge upside to the agents that believe in staying local. Consolidation for the agencies makes sense for resources and cost savings on the agency side, but it often involves closing agency locations. The local agent will also see an upside as insurance remains a relationship-driven business.
Your agency is a part of the SAN Group. Could you speak to your agency’s experience working with this Alliance?
We are members of SAN, yes. SAN was critical in making carrier connections for us when MA became a competitive state nearly 20 years ago. Servicing the urban areas that we do, I can confidently say that we would not have been as successful as we are today without our alliance with SAN.
It’s quite a journey from your mother’s original multifaceted business. Do you still offer any of those other services like tax help or justice of the peace?
No, those all kind of fizzled out. When I came in, I just focused on insurance. Although, people still come into our office asking if we can still marry them or if Julia is around for immigration help! My mother continued doing taxes for her private clientele and justice of the peace services, more as a community service, until she retired. Many people we meet tell us my mother married them. But the agency has long since focused solely on insurance, probably since around 2009 or 2010.
Evan, this has been incredibly insightful. Your agency’s story is a testament to hard work, community focus, and strategic growth. Thank you again for sharing it with Agency Checklists.
Thank you for having me. I appreciate you saying that. Sometimes you wonder if your story is just like everyone else’s, so it’s great to hear it’s interesting.
Editor’s Note: This interview has been edited for clarity and length, drawing from both written responses provided by Mr. Silverio and a recorded conversation with Agency Checklists.
