September 25, 2002

People's Helps Women Plan Their Financial Futures

BRIDGEPORT, CONN.
Cutting back on items like a daily diet cola can boost savings and lead women to explore varied financial techniques for achieving a secure retirement and reaching other goals. That is the message at a People's Bank-sponsored women's financial seminar planned tonight at the People's Financial Center in Trumbull, which garnered interest from nearly 75 area women.

"Smart Women Finish Rich™", based on a best-selling book of the same name by David Bach, is a seminar designed for women of all ages who want to learn how to use money to make their lives better. Erin Candler, registered investment consultant at People's Trumbull office, is presenting tonight's seminar, in conjunction with Van Kampen Investments, as part of People's Women's Possibilities Seminar Series.

"This seminar offers seven simple steps to help in the pursuit of financial security, building for retirement and funding dreams," said Candler. "Women learn to plan their finances around their values, to save money effectively, to organize their finances to determine financial status and to build separate financial baskets for various needs."

People's is taking the lead in Connecticut in reaching out to women who want to feel more secure about their financial futures. "Smart Women Finish Rich" is one of several financial seminars People's currently offers that are designed specifically for women. Other seminars in the Women's Possibilities Series include "Taking Control," a financial management workshop for women, and "Women's Focus on Retirement Planning."

"We know and understand women's financial needs as a result of helping them through the years with mortgages, personal equity lines, CDs, IRAs and every other aspect of their finances," said Maribeth Farley, Women's Market Manager at People's.

Additionally, Farley said, nearly 60 percent of investment consultants in People's branches and at People's Securities, the company's investment subsidiary, are women. And all of the organization's investment consultants can help women with financial issues specific to women, such as changes in finances resulting from divorce or widowhood, re-entry into the job market after taking time off to raise children, or planning for a longer life and the resulting longer retirement years.

People's has reached out to women in significant ways through the years with convenience and expertise that is unmatched in the state. In 1974, People's was the first bank in the country to introduce telephone banking, a service that today manages more than 1.5 million calls each month. And, in 1995, People's entered into an exclusive agreement with the Stop & Shop Company to open full-service branches in Super Stop & Shop stores throughout the state. Today, People's offers seven-day-a-week banking, loans, insurance and financial planning and investment expertise in more than 60 supermarket branches across the state - and those branches are staffed with People's licensed investment representatives.

At People's, women are a natural focus point because a majority of the bank's customers are women. Additionally, surveys have consistently indicated that the convenience and tailored financial solutions that People's offers resonate deeply with women.

"About 98 percent of those who shop regularly in supermarkets are women," said Farley. Women, who control 75 percent of household finances and make 80 percent of purchasing decisions in the nation, according to a Harris Interactive study, are a critical market for all People's businesses, she added.

People's (peoples.com) is a diversified financial services company providing commercial, consumer, insurance and investment services. Founded in 1842, it is the largest state-chartered bank in Connecticut with managed assets of $14 billion, 152 branches and 230 ATMs. People's is a leader in consumer and commercial banking, residential lending, insurance sales, supermarket banking and is the nation's 15th-largest issuer of MasterCard and Visa credit cards. People's subsidiaries offer brokerage services, asset management, equipment financing and leasing, and insurance services.

Fast Facts About Women and Finances

Sources: Business Week, 01/00, Shelby White - What Every Woman Should Know About Her Husband's Money, Investment Company Institute