We were lucky to catch up with Shannon Hope recently and have shared our conversation below.

SHANNON, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Naming anything – including a business – is so hard. Right? What’s the story behind how you came up with the name of your brand?

In short, lawyers. When I decided to leave my family business and launch my own firm the initial name of the company was problematic because it involved my last name, which the family business did as well. I went through all types of names related to aviation and they were all taken by other insurance industry firms. When my wife and I had our second child we did not opt to find out the sex beforehand, but our intuition told us we were having a girl. We had the name picked out and my wife even bought me a pink button-down to wear to the hospital for the birth. Low and behold, when our baby came into this world our intuition was wrong. We had a baby boy and no names! After a couple of days in the hospital we couldn’t come up with a name with both liked. My father has a cousin that was very into genealogy and has done a staggering amount of research and work structuring our family tree on acenestry.com. We took to the website and found our name. Fast forward to naming the company, I ran into the same situation and went back to the family history. Our ancestors on my father’s side originated from Kassel, Germany. They were Hessian soldiers for the British during the American Revolutionary War and settled in the United States after the war, changing the surname from Haupt to Hope to avoid persecution. The name is a tip of the hat to my grandfather who started the family business and my family who took the baton. I also liked the symbology of starting a new path in life.

SHANNON, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I got into the aviation insurance industry by sheer luck, being born into it. My grandfather started an aviation only specialty insurance brokerage in 1963 after growing the aviation practice in a general lines property and casualty insurance brokerage he started with a friend. My father, uncle and aunt subsequently joined the firm after they received degrees in insurance and risk management in college. I grew up around aviation with my family owning a twin-engine Beechcraft Baron and later on a twin-engine pressurized, Cessna 340. As a child, I was often in the right seat of the aircraft serving as an honorary co-pilot to my father on family trips throughout the Eastern seaboard and Caribbean.

When I got out of college, I decided to try my hand at the family business and worked through the ranks to become an insurance broker for the agency. After working 13 years alongside my father, aunt and uncle I formed Kassel Aviation Insurance in 2017 after the family business was sold to a large insurance conglomerate.

Kassel Aviation Insurance specializes in corporate and commercial aviation. The aviation insurance field is highly specialized and nuanced. Each aviation insurance company in the United States has their own unique policy form, language and endorsements so having a masterful understanding of each company is critical to craft coverage properly for our clients and making coverage as broad as possible for the protection of the client in the event of a claim.

What sets Kassel apart from our competitors is integrity, vigilance and zeal. Our clients tell us we are detail obsessed and proactive which helps them sleep well at night. The insurance sales industry is commonly characterized as sleezy and unethical. Unfortunately, there are those in our industry that are no exception. I was always raised and taught to operate with honor, truth and integrity. I may produce a little less business than those that are comfortable lying, bending truths and saying whatever it takes to win a client, but I can rest easy at night knowing that I can walk into any industry event with my head held high and be respected.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

My surname has been a part of the aviation insurance industry for over 60 years now. It takes a long time to build a reputation, and one bad move can ruin it forever. My family business credo was to always do the right thing. I carried that forward with great honor and dedication when I started my own firm. If you do the right thing day in and day out, I believe everything else will work out in the wash. It took a long time to build that reputation and it’s something that is very important to me.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

Personal touch and consistency. Your clients are your life blood. If you show appreciation and remember you would not be in business without them, your clients take that into consideration when and if they are approached by competitors.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kasselaviation.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kasselaviation/