Cooper Associates

What Cooper Associates does

Cooper Associates is a privately held, family-operated financial advisory firm headquartered in Riverside, California, with a branch office in Jurupa Valley. Founded in 1987 with roots in Paul Cooper's financial planning practice dating to 1985, the firm offers fee-based financial planning and investment management to high-net-worth individuals and families (ages 45-75 with $1M+ in investable assets), and maintains a deep specialization in retirement planning for Kaiser Permanente employees and retirees. Its core products include a comprehensive financial planning service, a dedicated Kaiser Employee Retirement Planning line, a complimentary initial consultation, and a personalized Plan of Care framework reviewed every six months.

The firm operates on a hybrid revenue model combining fixed-fee and AUM-based advisory fees with commissions on insurance and investment products distributed through its core partner, Commonwealth Financial Network, a Registered Investment Adviser and broker/dealer with approximately $200.7 billion in total account assets (as of 12/31/2019). Technology, regulatory infrastructure, market research, and trade execution are all delivered through Commonwealth's integrated web-based platform, with National Financial Services handling trade processing. The firm has 1-10 employees (Paul Cooper, Bryan Cooper, and Liz Cooper are identified), and distributes primarily through referrals from existing Kaiser-affiliated clients, supplemented by a multi-channel social media presence and direct consultation-led sales.

Cooper Associates is independently owned by the Cooper family with no venture capital, private equity, or institutional ownership, and is explicitly described as a "We to Them" relationship with Commonwealth rather than a parent-subsidiary structure. Operating geography is limited to California and the broader United States, and the firm appears to be in stable operating mode with a deliberate succession transition underway (Bryan Cooper joined as adviser in 2017, Liz Cooper as Client Service Manager in 2024).

Name

Cooper Associates

Legal name

Cooper Associates

Website

https://coopassociates.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Riverside

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Advisory Fees: Fee-only financial planning and investment management services compensated through fixed fees or percentage of assets under management (AUM).
2. Commissions: Compensation through commissions on investment products and insurance products offered through Commonwealth Financial Network.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Cooper Associates is a fee-based financial planning and wealth management advisory firm that delivers comprehensive financial planning, investment management, retirement planning, estate planning, insurance planning, and tax planning to individuals and families. The firm operates through a structured three-step process (initial consultation, planning implementation, and ongoing reviews) with a proprietary Plan of Care framework, and maintains a specialization in retirement planning for Kaiser Permanente employees and retirees.

Product overview

Cooper Associates is a unified financial advisory practice offering comprehensive financial planning and investment management services. The firm operates as a single integrated service model, combining financial planning, investment management, and specialized retirement planning for Kaiser employees. Services are delivered through a structured three-step process (initial consultation, planning implementation, and ongoing reviews), supported by a proprietary Plan of Care framework that addresses cash flow, investments, taxes, estate planning, and insurance. The firm is affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network for brokerage and RIA services, and uses National Financial Services for trade processing and clearance. The firm primarily serves individuals and families with $1,000,000+ in investable assets, with specialized expertise for Kaiser Permanente employees and retirees.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Financial Planning Services Comprehensive financial planning services covering investment planning, estate planning, insurance planning, and tax planning, delivered through a three-step process of initial meeting, planning implementation, and ongoing progress reviews. Designed for individuals and families seeking a long-term advisory relationship.
• Kaiser Employee Retirement Planning Specialized retirement planning services for Kaiser Permanente employees and retirees, guiding clients through the complete retirement timeline including pension checks, Vanguard fund rollovers, IRA account setup, and retirement income management.
• Initial Consultation Complimentary, no-obligation initial consultation to assess client goals, current financial circumstances, and determine fit between client needs and firm capabilities.
• Plan of Care Personalized financial plan of care developed for each client covering cash flow, investments, taxes, estate planning, and insurance, with regular six-month reviews.

Quantifiable outcome

• Serving clients since 1985

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Commonwealth Financial NetworkcoreTechnology or IntegrationCooper Associates is affiliated with Commonwealth Financial Network, a Registered Investment Adviser and broker/dealer with nearly $200.7 billion in total account assets. Commonwealth provides the technology platform, regulatory infrastructure, market research, and operational support that enables Cooper Associates to deliver financial planning and investment management services.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Betterment: Major digital wealth management platform offering automated investment portfolios, retirement planning, and now human advisor access. Represents the fintech/robo-advisor threat to traditional small RIAs like Cooper Associates targeting younger and mass-affluent clients.
• Wealthfront: Leading robo-advisor offering automated, low-cost investment management and financial planning. Adjacent competitor to Cooper Associates for mass-affluent and emerging-HNW clients who may bypass traditional advisors for digital alternatives at lower fees.
• Personal Capital (Empower Personal Dashboard): Hybrid digital wealth manager combining a free financial dashboard with fee-based advisory services for HNW clients. Comparable to Cooper Associates in HNW focus but competes on technology-enabled, lower-fee delivery that threatens traditional small RIA economics.

Broad incumbents

• Fisher Investments: Large independent RIA managing private wealth and institutional assets on a fee-based model. Comparable in its fee-only, advice-driven approach to HNW households, though significantly larger and more institutionally oriented than Cooper Associates.
• Charles Schwab Wealth Advisory: Schwab's managed-account and advisory program serving retail and HNW investors with fee-based portfolio management. Comparable in fee-based advisory model and HNW accessibility, but leverages massive scale and brand to undercut smaller independent RIAs on cost.
• Mercer Advisors: National RIA providing comprehensive financial planning, investment management, and estate planning to HNW households. Comparable in service breadth and HNW focus, but operates as a multi-billion-dollar consolidator with dozens of offices versus Cooper Associates' single-market footprint.
• Edelman Financial Engines: One of the largest independent RIAs in the US, serving mass-affluent and HNW clients with fee-based financial planning and investment management. Comparable to Cooper Associates in business model (fee-only advice, employer-affiliated client acquisition), but vastly larger in scale and geographic reach.
• Creative Planning: Large fee-only RIA offering financial planning, investment management, and retirement advisory to HNW individuals nationwide. Comparable in fiduciary, fee-based model and HNW targeting, but at substantially greater scale and geographic diversification than Cooper Associates.

Direct peers

• Carson Wealth: Independent RIA platform serving HNW clients with comprehensive financial planning. Comparable to Cooper Associates in fee-only, planning-led model targeting $1M+ households, but operates as a multi-advisor firm within a larger partnership ecosystem.
• Buckingham Strategic Wealth: Fee-only RIA focused on evidence-based investment management and comprehensive financial planning for HNW clients. Closely comparable to Cooper Associates in size (mid-sized practice), service mix (fee-only advice, fiduciary standard), and HNW client focus, though with broader geographic reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Cooper Associates