ABOUT US
Meet the team
DOMINIC THOMAS – FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL
Favourite book – Ben Elton, Gridlock
Best money advice – Budget and start saving
- Pet peeve – Litter, I get a little bit like Victor Meldrew
Originally from Bath, Dominic left Monkton Combe for London and a Degree in Business Studies. His father was entrepreneurial, and business fascinated him. He saw business as one of many ways to make society better, bringing dignity through good employment and making and providing goods and services that genuinely benefit people. He continues to wrestle with compromises we make for a better and more fulfilling life and isn’t the person he was or will be, but his principles of justice, integrity, fairness and ethics all form part of who and what Solomon’s is today.
Dominic formed Solomon’s in 1999, setting up a fee-based financial planning service. He had worked for a national Independent Financial Adviser firm since 1992 that was undergoing a change of ownership and felt there was a cultural mismatch with the new owners. He remains thankful that he was permitted to ask if clients he looked after wished to move with him; the majority did.
Initially Dominic was concerned about integrity in a sector known for the lack of it. Protecting people from being ripped off or mis-sold were key aspects of the work. Dominic believed that commission was the main reason for this and as a result the new business was set up with all commissions homogenised and rebated to reduce client costs, thereby removing bias or conflict of interest from the advice process. It saved clients a fortune. He was one of a handful of advisers who worked on a fixed fee basis at that time.
However – he soon realised that this did not address the main problem for clients: ie how much is enough? and will my money run out? He was still really “arranging better stuff, honestly and more cheaply, helping clients pay less and accumulate more”. Eventually in 2008 he met with Paul Etheridge, a leading financial planner who had built the UK’s first proper cashflow planning tools. It was not so much an epiphany but more of a sense of finally ‘coming home’. Much of the way Dominic works today was due to meeting with Paul and members of the Institute of Financial Planning community. He found people who shared very similar values, collaborating to help improve best practice and better experiences and results for our respective clients.
Dominic
DANIEL LIDDICOTT – FINANCIAL ADVISER
Best money advice – Save every month
Favourite holiday destination – Budapest
- Favourite Beverage – Jura whisky
Dan is a financial adviser at Solomons, having passed the Financial Adviser CII exams as an apprentice at the firm, becoming a fully qualified financial planner in the process. His initial training background was in sports therapy but he has now made the transition into the financial services industry.
What he hopes to achieve by making this transition is to place himself in the best possible position to help people to realise their life goals and financial goals. This is a passion that started with his work in the private health care industry but has now extended into a desire to help people to maintain and improve their quality of life, as well as promote a high level of financial security.
Dan was born in Guildford and grew up in the large village of Cranleigh in the Surrey Hills. He now lives with his wife, Abi, in Surrey. He spends his spare time watching almost every sport imaginable, though has a particular interest in football having played since he was a small child. He is an unfortunate Portsmouth FC supporter. He and Abi enjoy spending time with their friends and lead a busy social life, often utilising weekends to visit friends from all around the south of England. He is an avid fan of rock and indie music and has been known to play guitar on occasion.
Dan has known since his teenage years that he wanted a profession in which he could help to make a difference to peoples’ lives. This led him to completing his sports therapy degree and practicing at an advanced spinal care clinic in central London for seven years. He believes that his transition into the financial services industry was yet another opportunity to make a difference – this, as well as the chance to increase his knowledge base and always continue learning – something that he is very excited about.
Daniel
DEBBIE HARRIS – PRACTICE MANAGER
Favourite book – I know why the caged bird sings, Maya Angelou
Favourite beverage – Caramel Latte or Prosecco!
- Favourite holiday destination – Gorran Haven, Cornwall
Debbie has worked in various different sectors of the financial services industry during her 30+ year career. She is now settled as the Practice Manager here at Solomon’s. Her main roles are to ensure that we do what we promise to do; that we do it well; and that our clients are happy. Debbie ensures that the team is productive, efficient and motivated.
Debbie was born and raised in Surrey and now lives just over the border in Hampshire. She holds a psychology degree and is a certified bookkeeper. As well as working at Solomon’s, she runs a family partnership specialising in office management consultancy and security services.
Debbie’s spare time is generally spent with family; she can be found walking the family dog, enjoying a decent home-cooked meal or watching a disaster movie! Her lifelong passion has been singing – this is her happy place. She has performed in a number of amateur productions over the years and in her twenties was the lead singer in a local band.
Debbie’s motivation at work stems from a deep-rooted desire to be helpful. Her core professional (and personal) values are attention to detail and ensuring a personal touch. The financial services industry isn’t known as being a caring profession, but as Solomon’s continues to grow, Debbie is fiercely determined that our clients will continue to receive the bespoke and personalised service experience that we have worked so hard to create.
Always wanting to improve our processes and her own understanding, Debbie has a love of learning that was instilled in her as a small child. She is currently considering embarking on a Leadership & Management Diploma course. The future appears to be busy and challenging – just the way she likes it!
Debbie
JEMIMA THOMAS – MARKETING & MEDIA LEAD
Favourite book – Reasons to stay alive by Matt Haig
Favourite Beverage – Whiskey sour
- Favourite holiday destination – Lake Tahoe or New Zealand
In 2019 Jemima was a fresh media-producer graduate from Bournemouth University, and jumped straight into joining the Solomon’s team. Jemima works closely on all of Solomon’s marketing, as well as creating/producing short videos on money management and client how-to’s.
She’s also the driver for our Spotlight magazine that goes out twice a year to clients; giving insight on what our clients have been up to, the growth of the firm and key financial updates that are happening throughout the year.
Outside of work, you will often find Jemima regularly watching films with a gin and tonic in hand either at home or at the cinema. Her 20’s are currently being spent working hard for the firm, spending time and living with her friends in London, attending music festivals throughout the year, as well as holidaying with her loved ones.
Jemima
SAM HARRIS – TRAINEE PARAPLANNER
Favourite book – Bravo-Two-Zero, Andy McNab
Little-known fact – Sam doesn’t like tea or coffee
- Favourite food – Lamb roast dinner
Having joined the Solomon’s team in 2022, Sam primarily took on administrative duties which operated as a versatile role within the firm. He is now currently training as our very own Paraplanner, and hopes to qualify in the New Year.
Sam has a wide background in computing having been fascinated by intricate gadgets and devices from a young age. Capable of building custom PCs and creating sophisticated formula-based spreadsheets. We look forward to seeing what Sam can bring to Solomon’s in the future as we endeavour to modernise and incorporate additional tech-based solutions into our operations.
Sam was born in Kingston-upon-Thames and has lived locally his whole life. He is a passionate football fan and student of the game, he has devoted many a weekend to the Premier League and his club Arsenal FC. When he’s not watching football, you’ll likely find him in the kitchen cooking up a storm. Sam has also been known to dabble in eSports, having performed at a high level in a number of different genres.
Sam is very competitive and a little bit of a perfectionist. He is constantly striving to improve himself and the processes he’s involved in. A stickler for detail, Sam is relishing the challenges and intricacies of the Financial Services Industry.
Sam
MATT LOADWICK – TRAINEE FINANCIAL PLANNER
Favourite Films – The Lord of the Rings trilogy
Best Money Advice – risking sounding like a broken record here, but it’s the best advice for a reason – save every month
- Favourite Holiday Destination – The Lake District
Having joined Solomon’s as a trainee financial planner, Matt is seeking to follow the path successfully trodden by Dan, in switching professions for a career in financial planning.
A geography graduate from Newcastle University, Matt’s career to date has seen him specialise in transport and development planning, through which he sought to satisfy an innate desire to improve society; in this case by helping to make places and spaces better for people.
A proud northerner and good listener who likes to connect with people, Matt’s motivation for starting a new career in the financial services industry stems from the opportunity to make better use of his people skills; to help individuals realise their life goals through financial guidance and to further increase his breadth of knowledge – all things he is greatly excited about.
Matt was born and raised in Poynton, a small town located just outside of Manchester, on the edge of the Peak District National Park. Growing up there inspired his love of hiking and cycling in the countryside; undoubtedly had some influence over his love of alternative rock and indie music; and is also reflected in his favourite sports teams – Sale Sharks RUFC, Stockport County and Manchester City (before the oil money made them “everyone’s favourite team to hate”).
Matt
ABIGAIL LIDDICOTT – ADMINISTRATOR
Favourite Beverage – Gin & Tonic, with a slice of lemon
First album – First Band on the Moon, The Cardigans
- First car – Honda civic
Abigail has always enjoyed nurturing children and had a passion for instilling a love of learning in the next generation. She swapped her day job as a qualified Primary School teacher to become a self-employed private nanny in London.
Abigail spent many years in London with her now husband living life to the full. This included exploring art galleries; going to theatre shows and gigs; and making the most of hipster pubs and pop-up restaurants. During the global pandemic and after being diagnosed with a chronic illness, Abigail decided to continue her work as a nanny part-time and joined the Solomon’s Team as an administrator. She loves the personal touch that Solomon’s provides and enjoys working with a team who enable people to have peace of mind over their finances; helping clients turn bucket lists into realities. Having moved to Surrey in search of a bit more space at home, Abigail is now expecting her first child.
Abigail
“The best financial decision my wife & I have made is to plan financially for retirement using Solomon’s; but we should have started sooner and that would be my advice to my 20 year old self! We use Solomon’s because we need someone to make investing for growth for retirement both easy and tax efficient, and without their services we would leave things to drift.”
Jeremy Sykes
“In spite of our ‘late start’, we very much appreciate all Dominic and the team at Solomon’s have done in establishing and maintaining our financial plan. We value the foresight and advice on the implications of our financial decisions. We also appreciate the friendliness of the team when we visit Solomon’s offices in Raynes Park for our reviews.”
Roger Newberry
