The Strategic Employee Benefit Services locations in Brookfield and Appleton have been purchased by Christy Schwan and are now a joint entity known as Stellarus Benefits Inc.
Schwan, who worked at SEBS for 15 years and was president of the Brookfield branch for the last two years, purchased the Brookfield location on August 1 and the Appleton location on September 1.
The opportunity arose when Tom Goris Jr. left his position as managing partner of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance subsidiary Cornerstone Financial Group in Milwaukee and moved to a similar position in Chicago in June. He owned the Brookfield office of SEBS, which is under contract with Northwestern Mutual.
SEBS is a national company with operations in 42 states. It provides group medical, disability life, dental and related insurance and employee products through Northwestern Mutual representative offices.
Stellarus will continue its relationship with Northwestern Mutual.
Schwan is restructuring the Brookfield and Appleton branches to combine tools and capabilities between the locations and create statewide opportunities for growth. She hopes to move Appleton’s office into targeting more large group clients going forward.
“The market opportunity is really strong, not just in the Milwaukee area, but as we go further north,” Schwan said. “I see the future for us as being a more Midwestern organization, not just in the State of Wisconsin.”
