Strategic Partners

What Strategic Partners does

Strategic Partners, Inc. is a privately held insurance marketing organization (IMO) and financial services firm headquartered in Parsons, Kansas, founded in 1994 by Chris Lubbers. The company serves independent financial advisors through a multi-carrier distribution platform organized into three operating divisions: Insurance Planning (operated under the DBA Strategic Partners Insurance Planning / Strategic Life & Annuity), Investment Planning, and Advanced Planning. Core insurance offerings include life insurance, annuities, and long-term care insurance in both traditional and asset-based (hybrid) variants, accessed through a curated panel of select top-rated carriers. Securities services are delivered through a core partnership with LPL Financial, under which the founder and his wife Ella Lubbers hold FINRA Series 6, 63, 65, 7, and 24 licenses.

The company operates on a traditional commission-based IMO model, earning override commissions on life insurance and annuity products sold through its independent advisor network, supplemented by service and planning fees across its three divisions. There is no proprietary technology platform; the value proposition rests on curated carrier access, case design and underwriting support, in-house marketing collateral, point-of-sale coaching, and an "elite advisor" community reinforced through annual events and training. The distribution footprint spans 32 states where the founder is licensed, with approximately 8 named team members handling licensing/contracting, operations, case management, and client relations.

Strategic Partners is a family-owned enterprise with no external funding, no M&A activity, and no public listing. Revenue is not disclosed, and growth signals are limited to incremental hiring and product line extensions. The business is sustained primarily by founder Chris Lubbers' personal production (MDRT Top of the Table level) and a long-tenured, repeat-award reputation across MDRT, National Planning Corporation, and AIG Legion of Honor programs spanning 1997 to 2023.

Name

Strategic Partners

Legal name

Strategic Partners, Inc.

Website

https://strategiclifeandannuity.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Strategic Partners, Inc. is a privately held insurance marketing organization that provides independent financial advisors with access to a curated multi-carrier platform for life insurance, annuities, and long-term care products, along with case design, marketing, and coaching services across 32 states.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Insurance Marketing Organization

NAICS

Insurance Agencies and Brokerages (52421), Agencies, Brokerages, and Other Insurance Related Activities (5242), Insurance Agencies and Brokerages (524210), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Insurance Agents, Brokers & Service (6411), Life Insurance (6311)

akta.pro primary industry

Employee Benefits Brokerage & Consulting (FSAEADAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Business Owner & Executive Financial Planning (FSAEAAAO)

Keywords

• Insurance marketing organization
• Life insurance distribution
• Annuity products
• Long-term care insurance
• Independent advisor support

Headquarters

HQ city

Parsons

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Insurance and Annuity Commissions: The company generates revenue through commissions on life insurance and annuity products sold through independent financial advisors. Strategic Partners provides access to a select group of carriers and earns compensation through these distribution relationships.
2. Advisory and Planning Services: Through its three divisions (Insurance Planning, Investment Planning, and Advanced Planning), the company supports advisors with comprehensive financial planning services and earns revenue through service fees and commissions.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Strategic Partners operates as an insurance marketing organization that gives independent financial advisors access to a select group of top-rated life insurance, annuity, and long-term care carriers on a multi-carrier platform. The firm wraps that product access with case design, underwriting support, advanced planning, marketing materials, coaching, and licensing/contracting administration across three divisions: Insurance Planning, Investment Planning, and Advanced Planning. Revenue is earned via commissions on placed insurance and annuity products and through related advisory and planning services.

Product overview

Strategic Partners Insurance Planning (SPI) operates as a multi-carrier distribution and servicing platform for independent financial advisors, offering three core insurance products: Life Insurance, Annuities, and Long-Term Care Insurance (with both Traditional and Asset-Based/Hybrid variants). SPI enables advisors to access a select group of top-rated life and annuity carriers through a unified platform, providing case design, support, and servicing. The platform is designed to help advisors serve clients' life and annuity needs efficiently, complementing broader financial planning services including Advanced Planning and Investment Planning divisions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Life Insurance Life insurance products distributed via a multi-carrier platform for independent financial advisors. Covers personal and family applications (estate planning, wealth protection) and business applications (key-employee retention, executive bonuses, business continuity, succession planning) using select top-rated carriers.
• Annuities Annuity products providing guaranteed lifetime income and principal protection to reduce longevity risk, with tax-deferred growth opportunities to enhance long-term planning and retirement options for clients of independent advisors.
• Traditional Long-Term Care Insurance Traditional long-term care insurance policies under which owners pay regular premiums in exchange for financial coverage for long-term care stays. The policies do not hold cash value and can be structured to meet anticipated care needs.
• Asset-Based Long-Term Care Insurance (Hybrid LTCI) Hybrid (asset-based) long-term care insurance consisting of a life insurance or annuity contract with long-term care benefits attached. Funded with a single premium or continued premiums, with customizable benefits and cash value that continues to grow.

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• LPL FinancialcoreTechnology or IntegrationLPL Financial serves as the primary securities platform for Strategic Partners. Chris Lubbers holds FINRA Series 6, 63, 65, 7, and 24 licenses through LPL Financial. Ella Lubbers also holds FINRA Series 6 and 63 licenses through LPL Financial.
• Select Life and Annuity CarrierscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStrategic Partners provides independent advisors access to a select group of life and annuity carriers that have a proven track record of delivering value to both clients and advisors. The company does not work with all carriers but focuses on a select few.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Kestra Financial: Kestra Financial is a large independent wealth platform (broker-dealer/RIA) with a substantial insurance marketing arm. Comparable as a broader incumbent that combines securities distribution with the insurance and annuity access SPI offers through partners like LPL Financial.
• Cetera Financial Group: Cetera is a large independent broker-dealer platform serving financial advisors with insurance, annuity, and wealth products — overlapping with SPI's advisor-supported distribution model at much larger scale.
• Cambridge Investment Research: Cambridge is an independent broker-dealer serving financial advisors with insurance, annuity, and investment product access. Comparable as another independent-channel platform competing for the same advisor relationships.

Direct peers

• LifeMark Partners: LifeMark Partners is an IMO specializing in life insurance distribution to financial advisors, with case design and underwriting support comparable to SPI's offering.
• AmeriLife: AmeriLife is a major IMO platform offering life, annuity, and health products to independent agents across the U.S. Same distribution model and target customer base as Strategic Partners.
• Highland Capital Brokerage: Highland Capital Brokerage is an IMO providing case design, advanced planning, and product access to financial advisors across life, annuity, and long-term care — directly overlapping with Strategic Partners' three-division model.
• Integrity Marketing Group: Integrity is the largest IMO consolidator in the U.S., distributing life, annuities, and Medicare products to independent agents. It competes directly with Strategic Partners for advisor relationships and carrier partnerships.
• Ash Brokerage (now part of oneDigital/Advisor Benefits): Ash Brokerage is a large Insurance Marketing Organization (IMO) distributing life insurance, annuities, and long-term care products to independent financial advisors through a multi-carrier platform — a near-identical operating model to Strategic Partners.

Others

• LPL Financial: LPL is Strategic Partners' primary securities platform and partner for FINRA licensing. As the largest independent broker-dealer, LPL shares the same target market of independent advisors and provides the infrastructure SPI leverages.
• Fidelity & Guaranty Life (F&G): F&G is a life and annuity carrier that distributes products through independent advisors and IMOs including organizations comparable to Strategic Partners. Comparable as the type of carrier partner on whose products SPI earns commissions.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 Strategic Partners