Julie Gallagher explains how the firm ended up with that name, how they got buy-in from advisors, and why purple plays a role
iA Financial was always going to have to rebrand Richardson Wealth. As part of the acquisition agreement to purchase Richardson Wealth finalized in November of 2025, iA Financial was given thirty months to use the Richardson name, at which point they would have to rebrand. Rather than wait the full thirty, the leadership team at iA and Richardson Wealth conducted their rebrand in 10 months and on November 30th of this year, pending regulatory approval, Richardson Wealth will become Nobelia Wealth.
Julie Gallagher, President & CEO of Richardson Wealth (soon to be Nobelia) explained how her team ended up with that name and branding. She explained what the team did to ensure Richardson Wealth advisors, who had built their businesses under that century-old brand, would be on board with the new branding. She outlined some of the additional marketing and technology refreshes that will come with the rebrand. While she acknowledged that under iA’s ownership Richardson Wealth is giving up a century-old brand, she insisted that the core value proposition at Richardson Wealth remains.
“What we’re giving up is a name or an affiliation to the Richardson [Wealth] family, but it’s still part of us because it’s still part of our history,” Gallagher says. “What we’re giving up is the name, but the experience, how we make people feel, how the commitment of our advisors to make sure that they’re close to their clients and that they feel that we’ve got their back. This is the continuity that comes with us.”
Why ‘Nobelia’?
Gallagher says that the decision to rebrand as Nobelia involved a painstaking process. 10 months may seem like a long time, but given the number of stakeholders and considerations involved it was relatively rapid. Gallagher says that the firm needed a name that they could use in Canada and the United States, a name that would stand out, and a name that reflected the roots of the firm.
Richardson Wealth and iA leadership worked with an external branding firm on the new name and brand. They also assembled a branding committee of advisors as a source of feedback and ideas. Through that process, Gallagher says they found a through-line in a specific shade of purple.
Tyrian Purple, Richardson Wealth’s primary brand colour, has a history and association with royalty and nobility that stretches back to the classical mediterranean. ‘Nobelia’ is meant to evoke the ‘noble’ purple and what Gallagher describes as Richardson Wealth’s “noble position” in the industry. The name also literally ends with “iA” which Gallagher says explicitly calls attention to the firm’s new ownership and their association with that much larger financial institution.
What the rebrand comes with for advisors, clients
While Gallagher was unable to share the budget that iA set for Richardson Wealth’s rebrand, she said there was “good money” being attached to the project, which will be followed up with a national and regional marketing campaigns. She described the rebrand as a “one in a lifetime opportunity,” and one that iA wants to get right. Speaking to WP from Richardson Wealth’s recent national summit in Halifax she says the goal is to create a cohort of advisors who are proud of the new identity and want to be ambassadors for the brand. The focus on regional media and advertising campaigns, she says, is part of how the firm is seeking that buy-in.
Until the rebrand is approved by the regulators and formally launched on November 30th, Gallagher says the back-office team still has a great deal of work to do. Websites, marketing materials, apps, and portals all need to be refreshed. That work will dovetail with the digital transformation that iA has embarked on since they acquired Richardson Wealth, updating the firm’s CRM and rolling out a new desktop platform built for iA by Google.
Gallagher acknowledges that a rebrand for a firm like Richardson Wealth can have immediate repercussions for some of their advisors. These advisors built businesses under the new brand and have deep memories and positive associations with the old brand. In seeking to create a sense of buy-in from advisors around the new name, Gallagher is offering those advisors some room for discomfort.
“Not everybody likes the name right at the get-go, you need to live it. You need to understand the story. It’s not just a name; it’s about the colours, the story, and everything,” Gallagher says. “Someone said to us during the process, ‘Even if you like it, I don’t want you to decide if you like it or not. Take the time, digest it, and through time, then you’ll see you will have your true feeling on how you feel about this because it’s not just about a name.’”
