Educators Retirement Services

What Educators Retirement Services does

Educators Retirement Services (ERS) is a privately held, family-owned financial advisory firm founded in 1988 by Michael Fahim, headquartered in Orange, California with a second office in Irvine. The firm specializes exclusively in retirement and financial planning for California educators, including active and retired teachers, administrators, and school employees, addressing the complexity around STRS pension choices, 403b-7 tax-sheltered annuities, and complementary investment and insurance products.

The service offering spans retirement planning, investment planning, tax management, estate conservation, risk management, college funding, and charitable giving, supported by access to over 45 mutual fund families and 50+ insurance companies. Securities and advisory services are delivered through a core partnership with GWN Securities, Inc., a registered broker-dealer and investment advisor, which provides the regulatory and execution infrastructure. The firm's digital surface includes a native iOS/Android mobile app for secure messaging and appointments, an online resource center with calculators and educational content, and a financial glossary.

ERS operates on a professional-services, sales-led model with no publicly disclosed pricing. Client acquisition is driven by content marketing and SEO targeting educator-specific retirement searches, supplemented by referral-style relationship building through in-person consultations. The team is small (1–10 employees), with founder Michael Fahim and second-generation practitioner Ramy Fahim as the named professionals. The firm has no disclosed external funding, no parent company, and no M&A activity, making it a tightly held lifestyle practice with deep but narrow vertical specialization.

Name

Educators Retirement Services

Legal name

Educators Retirement Services

Website

https://educatorsretirementservices.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Educators Retirement Services is a privately held, family-owned financial advisory firm founded in 1988 that provides retirement, investment, tax, and estate planning services exclusively to California educators through its partnership with GWN Securities, Inc.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Orange

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Securities and Advisory Services: Revenue generated through securities and advisory services offered via partnership with GWN Securities, Inc., a registered broker-dealer and investment advisor. Services include managing retirement accounts, providing investment advice, and offering various financial products.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Educators Retirement Services is a retirement planning firm that provides personalized financial advisory services for educators, including retirement planning, investment planning, tax management, estate conservation, risk management/insurance, college funding, and charitable giving. Securities and advisory services are delivered through a registered broker-dealer partnership with GWN Securities, Inc., giving clients access to over 45 mutual fund families, 50+ insurance companies, and tax-sheltered 403(b)-7 mutual fund products. The firm also offers STRS (State Teachers Retirement System) Option Projection services tailored to California educators.

Product overview

Educators Retirement Services is a retirement planning firm offering a comprehensive suite of financial services tailored specifically for educators. The firm provides a unified advisory platform with multiple interconnected services including retirement planning, investment planning, tax management, estate conservation, risk management/insurance, college funding, and charitable giving planning. The core offering includes access to Tax-Sheltered Mutual Funds (403b-7), STRS Option Projections, and over 45 mutual fund families plus 50+ insurance companies. Digital tools complement the service offering through a mobile app, financial calculators (retirement, mortgage, compound interest, credit card payoff, student loan), a financial glossary, and a tax resources center. Securities and advisory services are delivered through registered broker-dealer GWN Securities, Inc.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Retirement Planning Full-service retirement planning service for California educators including accumulation strategies, income distribution planning, and retirement readiness assessment. Delivered through personalized in-person advisory consultations.
• Investment Planning Comprehensive investment strategy development tailored to educators' individual risk tolerance, time horizon, and financial goals, with access to securities offered through GWN Securities, Inc.
• Tax Management

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• GWN Securities, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecurities and Advisory services offered through GWN Securities, Inc., Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Advisor located at 11440 N. Jog Road, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33418. Educators Retirement Services and GWN Securities, Inc. are separate companies.
• Fidelity Advisor FundsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInvestment product provider accessible through the firm's account access page for client investments.
• American FundsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInvestment product provider accessible through the firm's account access page for client investments.
• Oppenheimer FundsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInvestment product provider accessible through the firm's account access page for client investments.
• Van Kampen FundsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorInvestment product provider accessible through the firm's account access page for client investments.
• Over 45 Mutual Fund Families and 50+ Insurance CompaniesminorOthersNetwork of mutual fund families and insurance companies providing products offered to clients through the firm's services.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Edelman Financial Services: Edelman Financial Services is a national wealth advisory firm serving many professions including educators; it operates broadly across financial planning rather than specializing in the educator vertical, but competes for the same end client.
• Fidelity Investments: Fidelity operates broad retail wealth management with explicit educator-focused 403(b) products and retirement planning resources, directly competing for the same end-client financial decisions ERS serves while also being a fund partner on ERS's platform.
• Cetera Financial Group: Cetera Financial Group is a major independent broker-dealer and advisory network hosting many independent advisors. As a competing custodian/broker-dealer infrastructure to GWN, it represents the type of alternative ERS could migrate to or lose reps to.
• LPL Financial: LPL Financial is the largest US independent broker-dealer, hosting tens of thousands of advisors across many niches including educators. It is a comparable broker-dealer infrastructure alternative and competing host for the type of advisor practice ERS operates.
• Cambridge Investment Research: Cambridge is one of the largest independent broker-dealer networks in the US, hosting thousands of RIAs and independent reps including many in the education niche; it operates as a competing infrastructure provider to GWN Securities for firms like ERS.

Direct peers

• TIAA: TIAA is the dominant US financial services provider for academic and education professionals, offering retirement, investment (CREF), and advisory services for the same educator vertical ERS serves. Its 403(b) and pension product lines directly overlap ERS's core offerings.
• WEA Financial Advisors: WEA Financial Advisors is a Wisconsin-based financial services company created specifically for Wisconsin public school employees, offering retirement and investment advisory services for a single state-level educator population, mirroring ERS's state-specific, educator-only focus.
• AIG Retirement Services (formerly VALIC): AIG Retirement Services specializes in retirement plans and financial wellness for educators and healthcare workers, offering 403(b)/457 products and advisory services that directly mirror ERS's STRS and 403(b)-7 advisory practice.
• TSA Consulting Group: TSA Consulting Group specializes in 403(b) and 457 plan administration and advisory for K-12 school districts nationwide, sharing ERS's educator-retirement niche with a particular focus on plan design and provider selection for school employees.
• Horace Mann: Horace Mann is one of the largest educator-focused financial services and insurance companies in the US, providing retirement, insurance, and investment products tailored specifically to K-12 educators—the same niche segment Educators Retirement Services serves.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pages/Educators-Retirement-Services/149918495374379
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/educators-retirement-services

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Educators Retirement Services