The Roberts branch of Edward Jones has been part of the downtown landscape for nearly two decades. Daniel Roberts took over the branch from his father four years ago which was located at 201 Second Street East. With the uncertainty of long-term leasing or renting a space, Roberts began exploring buying a building downtown, keeping his eyes open for the right opportunity. That opportunity came to fruition in 2023, and they closed on the building at 218 Second Street East in October of 2023.
“It was probably towards the end of 2022 when I first went to bed one night, tried to and I realized, wow, I could be booted if my landlord changes his mind, or if someone buys it. Because, you know, these buildings change hands. You never know it until it's changed hands,” said Roberts.
That thought kept him looking for the right opportunity to buy his own space.
“I even chatted with my landlord, but the Finch is an amazing building, and that wasn't exactly feasible. In doing that, I got my ducks in a row. This building came along just as I determined that the Finch wasn't an option, and so actually, I had everything in place and this was just available at the right time,” he added.
They started to make moves right away to convert the existing retail space into office space. That required working hand in hand with city officials because most of the buildings along Second Street are on the national historic registry. That required a lot of ‘boxes to be checked’ explained Roberts. Construction on the space began in March of 2024 but their lease at the Finch Building was up in February so the Roberts and his assistant, Shawna Nelson, were forced to work from home.
“I did work from my bedroom,” laughed Roberts. “But I also did a lot more home visits. Also, a big shout out to our library in town here, and the rooms that you can rent there. I met with many clients and future clients there, and they were amazing.”
Roberts gives a ton of credit to his amazing client base for being supportive and understanding during the location transition and he is happy to once again have an amazing office space to call home and serve his clients.
“I really want to shout out Shawna Nelson,” said Roberts as he addressed the crowd before the ribbon cutting. “She is my business partner; we have different terms here with Jones and she is my business partner. This is just as much her as me, she has been with Jones for 17 years, she is the reason we still exist here.”
Roberts is a graduate of the University of St. Thomas. His family moved to Alaska when he was six months old, his father bringing Edward Jones to Alaska in the 90’s.
“Everyone in Alaska has Midwest roots,” said Roberts. “My mom is a Stillwater girl; my dad is from north of Fargo.”
Roberts moved to Minnesota for college where he went to school for accounting. He was still unsure of what he wanted to do, so he joined the Navy. That was when the rest of his family moved to the area and as his Navy contract was wrapping up, they received the worst news a family could, his father had two years to live.
“It was just good timing where I was able to come in and take over so he could just spend more time with mom and the family. So, it was kind of an odd turnaround and quick, but it allowed us amazing family time, and also allowed my dad's clients to not just have some random person come in, but someone that they had known about for most of my life come in and make sure it was a safe and secure transition. That was back at the end of 2020 and I quickly fell in love with everything, including Hastings. I bought a home in 2021 here, and then October of last year, an opportunity came up to purchase this building and make ourselves permanent, so people know how dedicated I am to the town, to supporting it, not just from an Edward Jones standpoint, but in any way I can. I play lots of music. I love the musician community here, it is unreal. Playing music for people, and in any way I can there too, has been so sweet. So, this is just going to allow us to keep going, but it feels like it's still the beginning,’ said Roberts.
They officially opened the doors of the new space to clients in the middle of October and held their official ribbon cutting and grand opening on November 1.
Edward Jones offers a variety of financial services focusing on wealth management and retirement planning.
“We are in the business of financial advising, wealth management and supporting individuals, families and businesses and just, mirroring or merging the financial power of our lives with everything else that's going on, so that you can just feel like you're living a fulfilled life and everything's acting accordingly to towards your specific goals and wishes in the future, so that you can feel secure in that and enjoy yourself and we partner with them for their entire lives,” added Roberts.
To learn more about the services offered, visit www.edwardjones.com and search for the office nearest you. You can also call 651-437-0229 or stop in at 218 Second Street East.