We all dream of an early retirement, don’t we?
For me, that dream became a semi-reality in 2010 when I sold the telesales business I’d built up alongside my business partner, Lindsay.
Eight weeks later, I was going stir crazy at the slow pace of life as a semi-retired bloke who hadn’t yet hit the age of 40.
A property investment franchise called Platinum Property Partners followed and myself and Lindsay quickly built up a healthy portfolio of shared living houses in Kent, while I doubled up as Platinum’s Sales Director.
Having taken 150 people through a process that I now realise was not dissimilar to an in-depth financial planning process, and no longer being required to work in the property business on a daily basis, I was looking for my next challenge, which actually came in my personal life rather than in business.
I got married in 2016 and became a father for the first time a year later at the age of 46.
Like many, it was that kind of personal change that prompted me to take a forensic look at my own financial life.
Here are the headlines…
- I had no Will or LPAs
- I had an Inheritance Tax issue that I could clearly see would grow over time
- I had a pension pot that I didn’t really understand what costs it was incurring, its performance, etc.
- I had a business partner in Lindsay, but wanted to ensure that if anything were to happen to either of us, there would be no issues for those we left behind
Money-wise, I knew what I had today, but I was no closer to understanding how much my new family really needed 20 years down the road.
The problem with MOST financial advisors
I had three advisors I could call upon in times of need such as the one I outlined earlier; an accountant, a solicitor and an Independent Financial Advisor (IFA). After speaking to all three of them, I was left distinctly underwhelmed by the conversations I’d had and the solutions left in front of me.
It turned out they didn’t communicate with each other on my affairs at all. I also felt that some of the advice was conflicted – were my best interests really at the heart?
I soon realised that having three separate advisors working in silos on their own ‘specialty’ just wasn’t going to work for me.
Through no fault of their own as individuals, they simply weren’t equipped to answer the most prevalent questions I had: Have I got enough money to last the rest of my life and, also, how much is ‘enough’ when it comes to the things my family and I want to do … & did I even have a clear picture of what we wanted to do?
I should add that I also reflected on my mum’s death when I was 27, which left me with a financial mess to clean up.
She had a business that couldn’t operate without her, no LPAs, a large mortgage, no life insurance and a family devastated by her loss.
I very quickly realised that the only person with the true ability to sort out my financial issues was me.
I’m not the only one
Having resolved my own affairs after 22 exam papers and the new titles of Mortgage & Equity Release Broker, Estate Planner & Independent Financial Advisor, it quickly dawned on me that my own situation was far from unique.
If I had issues, there was a chance many other property investors and small business owners would be wrestling with the same ones. I knew there had to be a better way of delivering & charging for financial planning and advice. One that was people-led and not run for the benefit of larger financial services companies.
I found that there are a small percentage of lifestyle financial planners in the UK that were already doing something like this – ones that believe that effective financial planning and advice is about people and their lives driving their money and not the other way around.
Financial Planners that know real advice is so much more than simply selling financial products or trying to get as much of a client’s money under their control as possible for those lovely high Assets Under Management (AUM) fees.
But it was very much an underground movement.
So Suitable Life Planning was born…
Located in Poole, Dorset and serving clients all over the UK thanks to the use of technology, Suitable Life is the umbrella that brings together three companies that between them deliver the 4 crucial aspects of Financial Life (or FinLife) planning.
- Suitable Financial Life (FinLife) Planning: Giving people clarity on what they want their life to look like, what money they need and what they actually have now and into the future.
- Suitable Money Advice: Where required, giving regulated financial advice and ongoing investment management on things such as pensions (incl. SSAS), life cover, etc.
- Suitable Legacy Planning: Solving complex death and lifetime legacy planning issues – especially IHT mitigation.
Suitable Life is about clarity. Bringing clarity to your financial affairs by planning for your long-term business, personal and family lifestyle objectives. The majority of people only plan so far ahead and few have a real idea of the consequences of the life and financial decisions that they make today and the effect they’ll have on their long term future. Suitable Life removes the guesswork, providing that much needed clarity and certainty of what your financial future really looks like.
We’re not a huge financial conglomerate. We’re a boutique business that provides a personal service to each and every client.
Our business is a small team of people and we’ll bring in or work with other expertise as and when required. One of the key things we get our clients to focus on is ‘life’ – what they want from it, what they need from it.
We then want to mould their money around the vision of their life, so they can properly see how things will potentially pan out.
I practice what I preach, so Suitable Life is moulded to fit in with my lifestyle but without compromising on delivering ‘Financial Clarity for Life’ through giving help and support when needed, and you will need it…
I want you to live a happy life. A suitable one.
And this is the first step towards it.
Jon Rose
Financial Life Planner
Our Team


Jon Rose

Dipak Davé

Graham Wells

Jonathan Wright

Matt Vincent

John Marlborough

Jenni Senior

Claire Rose
Who you'll deal with


Suitable FinLife
Giving people clarity on what they want their life to look like, what money they need and what they actually have

Suitable Money
Where required, giving regulated financial advice and ongoing investment management

Suitable Legacy
Solving complex death and lifetime estate planning issues