Bob Fitch wears a lot of different hats. The State Farm agent has had his own location in the Capital Region since 2011, emphasizing the personal touch that his team provides to their clients.
Fitch said many of his family members have been involved with insurance, noting that he got into the business to help people.
“My father was in the business. My grandfather, my uncles. It’s one of those things I never thought I would get into, but over time, helping people out was huge,” Fitch said during an appearance with Mike Nelson of Glens Falls Today’s ‘Chatting With’ program. “And insurance really does that. When somebody is in a time of need, they need somebody to lean on, to have conversations with, and help navigate them through the tough times.”
Fitch said he has worked at State Farm for nearly 22 years, mentioning he formerly worked with the company’s 24-hour service line.
“I found out there that I really like working with individuals, coaching them, training them,” said Fitch, who was living in Florida at the time. “At that point, my wife and I decided to move back up to the Capital District, and place our family in the Saratoga/Wilton area, and open up my own agency.”
The Bob Fitch State Farm agency has been open since 2011. Its exact location, listed as 1461 US-9 Suite 1 in Fort Edward, is “right in the middle of everything,” Fitch said.
“It’s like the furthest northeastern point of Saratoga County,” said Fitch of his office’s location. “We have a mailing address of Fort Edward, but we’re located in the Moreau/South Glens Falls area. We’ve got Gansevoort addresses right behind us. It’s interesting. We like to tell people we’re located right off Exit 17, Route 9 North. We’re right in the middle of everything.”
He also mentioned that his agency is licensed to serve all of New York State. And as far as services go, Fitch emphasized the personal touch that his agency strives to provide.
“We’re really evolving into an organization or a small company that puts our clients first, as far as a personal touch, figuring out how we can help that individual,” said Fitch, who named home, auto, disability, and life insurance as some of the offerings from his agency. “We also do other things as well, like we work with banks locally. We work with retirement accounts as well. So we wear a lot of different hats. We really want to make sure that we’re meeting our clients’ needs.”
Fitch also mentioned the idea of full coverage, noting that it “is different for everybody.”
“It’s basically saying, let’s take a look at your portfolio as far as your assets go. What your net worth is, how much you earn a year, how much you’ll earn in a lifetime. We don’t want one car accident to rob you of your retirement, to impact your lifestyle going forward,” Fitch said. “Each one of our policies covers each individual differently.
“It’s up to us, and our responsibility, as a licensed individual in the insurance industry, to make sure we’re protecting your family and yourself personally with a personal protection plan. That’s really how we do it. It’s a lot of in-depth conversations.”
This effort can help provide stronger, more personalized coverage, as well as more support, Fitch noted.
“We’re there to help guide you through claims. We’re there to make sure we’re asking the right questions,” said Fitch. “When you call our agency, you’re working with the same group of individuals.”
He mentioned a recent case of a fire, saying he visited the location the following day to offer support.
“The next morning, I was up at the fire taking pictures, walking through the process, before our claims department even gets on top of it,” Fitch said. “Just to make sure the individual knows that, you’re going to be alright. We’re going to get you through this.”
Fitch said that is one of the reasons he signed up, emphasizing the high level of involvement and support that the agency can provide.
“When things like this do happen, catastrophic events, I’ll tell you, there’s a lot going on. When you call us, we’re going to go put you in the right direction,” said Fitch. “There’s a lot of memories, and it can be very emotional for our clients. But we’re there to help them through that emotion too.”
Fitch also discussed the idea of giving back to the community, saying, “I love working with the communities, and most importantly I love working with our youth.”
“I’ve got three kids of my own,” said Fitch. “Giving back in the sports world is huge. I grew up playing sports, I love coaching. Similar to what I do at work with my career.”
Fitch is a coach for the Saratoga/Wilton Blue Sox travel baseball organization, and also mentioned he coaches basketball and football.
“Our youth’s our future. If we’re not giving back to our youth, our future’s going to be in trouble,” Fitch said. “They need people like us to step up and volunteer in the community and help coach and be good role models for them.”
Fitch also mentioned charity work done by the agency, including partnerships with golf tournaments. He said the agency recently invested in what he referred to as “a golf ball cannon.”
“It’s pretty awesome, there’s a few in the area already,” said Fitch. “To be able to shoot an air-compressed golf ball 300 to 400 yards is a lot of fun.”
He also emphasized that it is a “great way to interact with golfers, meet new people, and give back our time.”
“Also what we do is, for every time you fire the golf ball, we take a $10 donation,” Fitch said. “At the end of the tournaments, we take that money and we turn it back over to the foundation.”
He said that just over $1,100 was raised for the Glens Falls Civic Center Foundation during a recent tournament at Hiland Park Country Club using this method.
“It’s a good feeling, to know that money is going to a local charity or local event,” Fitch said.
