Home / People / From Afghanistan to advice: ‘Every person matters, every dollar counts’

In between night missions in the Afghan desert, Warren Loudon would complete his financial planning assignments on a handheld 'tough book'. "When I got back to base I'd submit them," he recalls.

After serving with the special forces, two of Australia’s elite ex-commandos have transitioned their skills from the battlefields of Afghanistan to the private wealth offices of Sydney’s Northern Shores.

Warren Loudon and David Vaughan created Loudon & Vaughan Private Wealth in late 2016 with the goal of providing life changing advice to good people, but it was their time spent in special forces that formed the backbone of their partnership.

The two met whilst serving in the 2nd Commando Regiment, a special forces unit of the Australian Army. Both men were deployed in Afghanistan on multiple occasions.

“We actually joined the military on the same day, so we were part of a scheme called special forces direct recruitment scheme (SFDRS),” Loudon (pictured) tells The Inside Adviser. “Dave joined in Sydney and I joined in Brisbane. We did all our training together and then we did a commando course, a reinforcement cycle and then we were sent to the same company. Ever since 2004, we’ve been hanging out together.

“Before the army, Dave was a banker,” Loudon continued. “He worked for Rabo and Deutsche Bank and gave all that up to go to the military. I wasn’t anything like that, I started off as a tradesman and studied while in the military.”  

Loudon says life was difficult at times, being both mentally and physically challenging. He doubled down on the challenges of being a soldier by studying to be a financial planner during the day.

“In Afghanistan we’d go out on missions at night and during the day we’d be in the desert resting. During the day, I’d use my tough book, which is a little computer, to do my assignments and when I got back to base, I’d submit them,” he recalls.

“When we got back home, we both worked for different companies. I worked for a company in North Sydney, while Dave worked for a company in Cronulla. Following that the stars just aligned; we had an opportunity to do our own thing, so in 2016 we teamed up and set up our own shop.”

According to Loudon, the special forces ingrained a culture of discipline and principled decision-making with the secret to success being intensive preparation. Not only does preparation help manage problems more quickly and more efficiently, but it also builds confidence, which creates an upward spiral that improves performance. The hard work and determination that got them through on the battlefield helped them to manage and grow client wealthfin the next phase of their careers.

“We manage over $110 million after six years which is all based on referrals,” Loudon says. “Some defence people, some police, and the rest high-net-worth clients. Roughly 25 per cent are made up of defence force people, the rest North Shore and Cronulla clients.

“Financial planning is different to other professions,” Loudon says. “Every client is a long-term relationship, we want someone that can be with us for 20 years. Character is very important because we have to see this person at least once a year for the next 20 years.”

Loudon says ex-soldiers are like sports stars in that they have transferable skills that can have wide ranging applications in finance and investment. A successful financial adviser who adopts a people-first approach will listen carefully, and use emotional and intellectual intelligence to build stronger relationships with clients. “It’s the discipline, determination, and team dynamics of a soldier that apply in the same way as in the advice industry.”

“My best bit of advice for those wanting to start a career in wealth is to find a mentor. A mentor is important to your personal development. They will raise your confidence and problem-solving abilities along with developing leadership and will guide you through your career,” he says.

“We have a motto, every person matters, every dollar counts. We do want to work with good people. The more assets they’ve got, the more you can do with it.”