In 1924, Calvin Coolidge was president, and the Worcester Panthers were playing baseball under Jesse Burkett. It was also the year that Harold Fielding opened the Harold Fielding Insurance Agency on Pearl Street. Now, 100 years later, the insurance agency remains. Many of our clients were home grown companies like Laipson’s Diary, and Widoff’s Bakery. Now known as Insurance Marketing Agencies Inc., the firm is now a 4th generation family-run and still in downtown Worcester. Harold always felt Worcester was his home and continued to do business in the city his entire life.
The insurance business changed greatly throughout the '50s & '60s. After restrictions on multi-line underwriting are lifted, one of the oldest & largest insurance companies in the US applies to license a new product combining a range of different risk coverages into a single package, and homeowners insurance is born.
Harold Fielding Insurance Agency is 26 years old.
Nov 09, 2017
It's 1964: the year the Civil Rights Act is passed, and America is subject to a brand new British Invasion. Somewhere among the moptops, Beatlesmania, and miniskirts, Harold Fielding Insurance Agency has quietly doubled in size.
Spurring this growth is the increasing significance of the insurance industry as a whole. Over half of the population of the US has some form of hospital insurance, and NAIC is developing its Center for Insurance Policy and Research.
Nov 09, 2017
The first crewed Apollo mission takes place, the Big Mac is introduced, and a groundswell of cultural and social change results in both the "Summer of Love" and the "Long Hot Summer."
In Worcester, the Harold Fielding Insurance Agency moves its headquarters to 332 Main St. to accommodate its rising headcount. The following year, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) will be created, alleviating the risk of staggering losses caused by flooding to private insurers.
Nov 09, 2017
Harold Fielding Insurance Agency moves to Mechanics Tower when it opens in 1971.
Mechanics Tower is part of the Worcester Center Galleria, an urban renewal project that occupies 1 million square feet in downtown Worcester. At the time it was completed, it contained the largest parking garage in the world, and was touted as the finest shopping center in the US by construction experts.
Nov 09, 2017
The nation's 200th anniversary is also a big year in our history. The company officially passes to the second generation, with Sumner Herman taking the reigns as president. He acquires four other local agencies, which incorporate as Insurance Marketing Agencies and becomes the largest agency in the area. Our first logo - a tree with five branches - celebrates each company's unique roots and unified strength.
Nov 09, 2017
The year is 1984. Steve Jobs has just launched the Macintosh PC. Desmond Tutu will win the Nobel Peace Prize. The first minivans roll off the production line, and Ronald Reagan will soon be elected.
It’s an age of optimism, and in Worcester, IMA is enjoying a golden age all its own. In less than a decade, Sumner has seen the company double in size yet again, causing the team to relocate yet again, this time to its current home in the Day Building. Changes to banking regulations in the US have revolutionized banking and business, leading to a fundamental change in the needs and risks businesses faced. IMA creates a separate business department for the first time. Under the inspired leadership of Jack Kelly, IMA’s commercial and risk management arm expands rapidly.
Having survived Y2K, the dot com bubble, and the creation of platform flipflops, IMA sails smoothly into the hands of the third generation. Combining bedrock values of service and integrity with a forward-looking stance, Laura Herman-Strohecker and Peter Herman grow the firm into one of the largest independent insurance brokers in New England.
Nov 09, 2017
After 3 generations, 81 years, and thousands of records, IMA does something that would have been unthinkable in 1924: it eliminates paper records. But this is no catastrophe, just the transition to fully electronic record keeping.
Nov 09, 2017
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was passed in 2010, launching the US healthcare system’s most significant regulatory change and expansion of coverage since the advent of Medicare and Medicaid in the 1960s. With the majority of the law’s provisions only going into effect in 2014 and the final provisions not coming into effect until 2020, the ACA transition is still very much ongoing, and we are proud to have served as a trusted guide and expert resource for our clients in the past decade of growing complexity and change.
In 2016, IMA makes its biggest acquisition since the 1970s, purchasing a large specialty agency and moving into the sports insurance space for the first time. In recognition of this evolving presence, the company also undertakes its first major rebrand, launching our puzzle piece logo and “Coverage That Fits” tagline.
Nov 09, 2017
In 2022, IMA welcomed the first member of the 4th generation of the Herman family to our ranks. Along with the centenary, this milestone presents a unique vantage point to look back at the rich history and accomplishments of our history, while looking forward to the dawning of the next era of our story. With less than 5% of family businesses making it to the 100 year milestone, and less than 3% reaching the 4th generation, we are proud to have already become an exception and honored to carry this legacy into the future.
In 1924, Calvin Coolidge was president, and the Worcester Panthers were playing baseball under Jesse Burkett. It was also the year that Harold Fielding opened the Harold Fielding Insurance Agency on Pearl Street. Now, 100 years later, the insurance agency remains. Many of our clients were Worcester were home grown companies like Laipson’s Diary, and Widoff’s Bakery. Now known as Insurance Marketing Agencies Inc., the firm is now a 4th generation family-run and still in downtown Worcester. Harold always felt Worcester was his home and continued to do business in the city his entire life.
The insurance business changed greatly throughout the ’50s & ’60s. After restrictions on multi-line underwriting are lifted, one of the oldest & largest insurance companies in the US applies to license a new product combining a range of different risk coverages into a single package, and homeowners insurance is born.
Harold Fielding Insurance Agency is 26 years old.
It’s 1964: the year the Civil Rights Act is passed, and America is subject to a brand new British Invasion. Somewhere among the moptops, Beatlesmania, and miniskirts, Harold Fielding Insurance Agency has quietly doubled in size.
Spurring this growth is the growing significance of the insurance industry as a whole. Over half of the population of the US has some form of hospital insurance, and NAIC is developing its Center for Insurance Policy and Research.
The first crewed Apollo mission takes place, the Big Mac is introduced, the Vietnam War kicks into high gear, and a groundswell of cultural and social change result in both the “Summer of Love” and the “Long Hot Summer.”
In Worcester, Harold Fielding Insurance Agency moves its headquarters to 332 Main St. The following year, the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) will be created, alleviating the risk of staggering losses caused by flooding to private insurers.
Harold Fielding Insurance Agency moves to Mechanics Tower when it opens in 1971.
Mechanics Tower is part of the Worcester Center Galleria, an urban renewal project that occupies 1 million square feet in downtown Worcester. At the time it was completed, it contained the largest parking garage in the world, and was touted as the finest shopping center in the US by construction experts.
The nation’s 200th anniversary is also a big year in our history. The company officially passes to the second generation, with Sumner Herman taking the reigns as president. He acquires four other local agencies, which incorporate as Insurance Marketing Agencies and becomes the largest agency in the area. Our first logo – a tree with five branches – celebrates each company’s unique roots and unified strength.
The year is 1984. Steve Jobs has just launched the Macintosh PC. Desmond Tutu will win the Nobel Peace Prize. The first minivans roll off the production line, and Ronald Reagan will soon be elected.
It’s an age of optimism, and in Worcester, IMA is enjoying a golden age all its own. In less than a decade, Sumner has seen the company double in size yet again, causing the team to relocate yet again, this time to its current home in the Day Building. Changes to banking regulations in the US have revolutionized banking and business, leading to a fundamental change in the needs and risks businesses faced. IMA creates a separate business department for the first time. Under the inspired leadership of Jack Kelly, IMA’s commercial and risk management arm expands rapidly.
Having survived Y2K, the dot com bubble, and the creation of platform flipflops, IMA sails smoothly into the hands of the third generation. Combining bedrock values of service and integrity with a forward-looking stance, Laura Herman-Strohecker and Peter Herman grow the firm into one of the largest independent insurance brokers in New England.
After 3 generations, 81 years, and thousands of records, IMA does something that would have been unthinkable in 1924: it eliminates paper records. But this is no catastrophe, just the transition to fully electronic record keeping.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was passed in 2010, launching the US healthcare system’s most significant regulatory change and expansion of coverage since the advent of Medicare and Medicaid in the 1960s. With the majority of the law’s provisions only going into effect in 2014 and the final provisions not coming into effect until 2020, the ACA transition is still very much ongoing, and we are proud to have served as a trusted guide and expert resource for our clients in the past decade of growing complexity and change.
In 2016, IMA makes its biggest acquisition since the 1970s, purchasing a large specialty agency and moving into the sports insurance space for the first time. In recognition of this evolving presence, the company also undertakes its first major rebrand, launching our puzzle piece logo and “Coverage That Fits” tagline.
In 2022, IMA welcomed the first member of the 4th generation of the Herman family to our ranks. Along with the centenary, this milestone presents a unique vantage point to look back at the rich history and accomplishments of our history, while looking forward to the dawning of the next era of our story. With less than 5% of family businesses making it to the 100 year milestone, and less than 3% reaching the 4th generation, we are proud to have already become an exception and honored to carry this legacy into the future.
Satellite Offices (By appointment only):
100 Conifer Hill Drive Suite
411 Danvers, MA 01923
366 Menauhant Road
East Falmouth, MA 02536
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