Linear was previously an AR of Openwork, but said joining Pink was a logical move since it was bought by Linear’s parent company, the LSL Group, in December last year.
Graves’ addition as sales director to Pink is part of an ongoing strategic plan within LSL, it said. He will focus on building a comprehensive protection panel for Pink and training advisers on protection and cross sales.
He will remain as managing director of Linear, but will hand day-to-day running of the business to Linear’s financial services director, Simon Handy, who will also join the board, and Roger Lucarotti, Linear’s operations director.
Graves said: “Now that Pink is part of the LSL Group, it makes absolute sense for Linear to move to Pink to keep the mortgage and protection work within the group.”
He added: “We have worked hard at Linear to move from a mortgage-focused operation to a protection-focused one, as we believe that the general public needs advice on life and protection products more than ever.
“We continue to use mortgages as our first point of call, but enhance the sales skills of our advisers through training workshops to provide them with the confidence to provide the full range of financial advice.”
David Copland, chief executive of Pink, said: “Pink aims to grow the network and to significantly increase our insurance proposition. Linear joining the Pink network and Mark’s appointment as a director to oversee our sales operation will have a significant, positive effect in helping us achieve both of these objectives.”
