Ascend gives Higginbotham additional in-house expertise in entertainment coverage, including event cancellation and non-appearance, and Higginbotham expands Ascend's service capability into all lines of commercial and personal property/casualty insurance and employee benefits
Ascend merges with Higginbotham (Credit: Pixabay/Joshua_Willson.)
Higginbotham, the largest independent insurance firm based in Texas, and Ascend Insurance Brokerage, an independent agency in Dallas serving the entertainment industry, have merged operations. Ascend gives Higginbotham additional in-house expertise in entertainment coverage, including event cancellation and non-appearance, and Higginbotham expands Ascend’s service capability into all lines of commercial and personal property/casualty insurance and employee benefits.
Higginbotham has an office in Dallas and another six offices in the broader DFW area. Part of the firm’s growth initiative is to strategically unite with other growing insurance firms having industry concentrations that add to Higginbotham’s lineup of more than 20 industry verticals for commercial customers. Ascend and Higginbotham will collaborate as a unified team to round out their collective product and service offering.
“We’ve employed a partnership culture that directly benefits clients,” said Higginbotham Chairman and CEO Rusty Reid. “Through one broker, clients with highly specialized risks, like those in entertainment, get the expertise they need and access to all our resources. Ascend’s hands-on industry experience will bring a unique breadth of knowledge and strengthen our current capability in the rapidly growing entertainment space.”
Ascend CEO Paul Bassman added, “I’m excited to bring the additional risk management services Higginbotham’s partnership affords us and deliver extra value to our entertainment clients. At the same time, it opens up channels for Ascend to serve other industries and keep growing.”
Higginbotham named Bassman a managing director. The 13-person group will operate as Ascend, A Higginbotham Company until consolidating with Higginbotham’s office at 15660 North Dallas Parkway.
Source: Company Press Release