Welcome to Stark Private Wealth – an independent wealth management practice based in Edmonton, proudly serving clients across Sherwood Park, Stony Plain, Spruce Grove, and throughout Alberta.
We work with successful individuals, families, business owners and retirees who want more than a portfolio – they want clarity, confidence and a plan that brings their bigger picture to life.
Through thoughtful advice and personalized wealth strategies, we bring investments, tax planning, retirement income, estate planning and business succession together – so every decision works toward what matters most to you.
This website gives you a closer look at who we are, what we do, and how we help our clients build, protect and enjoy the wealth they’ve worked hard to create – today and for generations to come.
Independent advice. Comprehensive planning. A relationship built around your life – not a collection of accounts.
Before we talk about your wealth, it helps to understand what we belive about it.
I began my career in wealth management in 2007 after graduating from Business Management at Grant MacEwan College. I was recruited into the industry and spent my first several years learning the business from the ground up – investments, financial planning, client relationships, insurance, compliance and the many moving parts that go into managing someone’s financial life.
As I gained experience, I also began to see where the industry didn’t always align with how I believed clients should be served. I wanted greater freedom to recommend what I genuinely believed was best for the client, rather than being limited by proprietary products or compensation structures. That eventually led me to an independent investment dealer in Calgary, where I gained a much deeper understanding of the industry and saw firsthand what a more open architecture and client-focused model could look like.
Today, I work independently through Portfolio Strategies Corporation, an investment dealer based in Calgary. It gives me the independence I was looking for: access to a broad range of investment solutions, strong infrastructure and compliance support, while allowing me to build my own practice around the way I believe clients should be served. I’ve added the planning software, research, tools and professional relationships that allow me to do the kind of work I enjoy most—getting to know a client’s entire financial picture, finding the opportunities and problems that matter, and helping turn that into a practical plan for their future.
I take the responsibility seriously, but I genuinely enjoy what I do. I like markets, I like solving complicated problems, and I especially like working with people who have spent years building something and want to make sure it works as hard for them as they worked for it.
My philosophy is pretty simple: understand the whole picture, tell the truth about what you see, and always put the client’s interests first.
Beverley brings decades of experience in financial services and wealth management to Stark Private Wealth. A former financial advisor and CFP professional, she built her own practice around the same principles that remain important to us today: knowing your clients, understanding their financial lives, managing risk thoughtfully and helping them build and preserve wealth through sound financial planning and disciplined investment management. Her dedication to her clients and their long-term financial success has been a defining part of her career.
Today, Beverley works with Stark Private Wealth on a part-time basis, bringing her experience and knowledge to the day-to-day operation of the practice. She assists with client transactions, KYC updates, account and document administration, new applications, file organization and the many details required to keep client plans moving smoothly. Having previously worked directly with many of the clients we now serve, she also provides valuable continuity and a familiar point of contact. She knows that the little things matter—and that good wealth management is often just as much about getting the details right as it is about getting the strategy right.
Stark Private Wealth provides comprehensive Independent wealth management built around the entire financial picture, not simply an investment account.
We help clients understand what they own, how it is structured, what it is intended to accomplish and where opportunities or risks may exist. Our work can include financial planning, investment management, retirement and income planning, tax strategy, insurance and risk management, corporate and business planning, estate and succession planning, and legacy planning.
We use detailed financial modeling and scenario analysis to explore different outcomes – whether that’s determining how much to save, when to retire, how to structure income, how investments should be positioned, what happens if a business is sold or transferred, or how a family could be affected by an unexpected death. We then prioritize the most important issues and develop practical strategies around them.
Clients can turn to us when they are considering a major financial decision because we understand the broader context behind it. The ultimate objective is financial independence and a prosperous future on your terms—making sure your wealth supports the life you want to live today, provides sustainable income throughout retirement, protects the people and assets that matter to you, and ultimately passes where you intend it to go. We can’t tell you what the future will bring, but we can help you prepare for it.
I learned early that life can change in an instant.
When I was twelve years old, my father was struck and killed by lightning.
There are moments in life that divide everything into before and after. That was one of mine.
What followed was difficult. There were years of uncertainty, fear, upheaval and experiences that forced me to grow up much earlier than I should have. I could tell some good stories.
I don’t share that for sympathy. I share it because it changed the way I see the world. It taught me something I carry into my work every day: You don’t get to choose everything that happens in life. But you can choose to be prepared.
I’ve never believed wealth management was really about investment accounts. An account is just a number on a statement.
Behind that number is a family. A retirement you’ve spent decades working toward. Children you want to help. A business you’ve built. A home. A legacy. And sometimes, a future that depends on decisions being made correctly today.
I’ve experienced what it feels like when life changes without warning. That has given me a different perspective on what financial planning is supposed to accomplish.
It’s not simply about making money. It’s about creating options.
It’s about knowing your family is protected if something goes wrong. Knowing you can retire without constantly wondering whether you’ve saved enough. Knowing your investments have a purpose beyond chasing the next percentage point. Knowing that the wealth you’ve spent a lifetime building can actually do what you intended it to do.
Today, I work with families to bring the pieces of their financial lives together — investments, retirement, tax, insurance, estate planning and wealth transfer — and turn them into something that actually makes sense.
Not because I think anyone can predict what happens next. Because I know they can’t.
The goal isn’t to build a plan that works perfectly if life goes according to plan. The goal is to build one that is strong enough to adapt when it doesn’t.
That’s the difference between simply managing money and actually planning for a life.
I know what it feels like to have the ground move underneath you. And perhaps that’s why I take this responsibility as seriously as I do.
When someone trusts me with their family’s wealth, I don’t see a portfolio. I see everything that portfolio represents… Years of work. Sacrifices. Opportunities. People they love. And a future they may never get a second chance to build.
That responsibility means something to me.
It’s what gives you the ability to protect what matters, make your own choices, and leave something meaningful behind.
That’s why I do this.
And that’s why Stark Private Wealth exists.
At Stark Private Wealth, we take a whole-picture approach to wealth management. We start by getting to know you, your family, your business and what you’ve built, then gather and analyze the financial information needed to understand the full picture.
Using financial planning software, detailed projections and scenario analysis, we identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and risks within your financial life and prioritize the areas that can make the greatest difference. We then work through the relevant pieces—investments, retirement income, insurance, tax, corporate structures, estate and succession planning—looking at how each affects the others rather than making decisions in isolation.
Once the strategy is clear, we work with you to turn it into a practical financial blueprint and help implement it, including coordinating with your other professional advisors when appropriate.
From there, the relationship becomes ongoing: we manage your investments, monitor your plan, revisit assumptions, model new decisions and act as a trusted financial sounding board when important questions arise. We can’t predict the future, but we can plan for it—and we believe good wealth management is about having the right strategy, understanding why it works, and having someone in your corner to keep it working as life changes.
You Won’t Be Handed Off to a Department.
Stark Private Wealth is intentionally personal.
You work directly with the people responsible for your plan and your investments. We keep the practice focused and use a network of trusted professionals and investment specialists when additional expertise is required.
We also believe financial planning works better when it fits into your life.
That’s why we often meet clients at their homes or offices.
Sometimes the best planning conversation happens around a boardroom table.
Sometimes it’s at the kitchen table.
Either way, the conversation is about you—not about filling out another form.
We Get to Know the Person Before We Start Working on the Plan
A good wealth management relationship requires trust, and trust takes a little time.
Especially when we haven’t been introduced through someone we already know, we spend time getting to know one another before getting into the numbers. We want to understand your family, your work, your business, what you’ve accomplished, what you’re trying to accomplish and what keeps you up at night.
We also want you to understand us.
We’ll explain what we do, how we work, where we can help and where we can’t. We believe that expectations are best established early and that a good client relationship should be comfortable, candid and mutually understood.
Once we’re both comfortable that we’re a good fit, the real work begins.
Our clients tend to have something in common: they’ve spent years building successful businesses, careers, farms, investments and families, and they’ve reached a point where their financial world has become too important – and often too complex – to leave disconnected.
They’re not simply looking for someone to manage a portfolio.
Whether you’re approaching retirement, building a business, managing a growing family fortune, or planning the future of a farming/business operation, we bring the bigger picture into focus.
The people we serve have different stories. But they share a desire for something remarkably simple: confidence in what they’ve built, clarity about what’s next, and a plan designed around the life and legacy they want to create.
Where your income comes from matters.
Investing in retirement is different than investing for retirement.
With great assets comes great responsibility.
If you can make a difference, you should.
But transitioning from earning a living to living from your wealth requires more than simply having enough invested. It requires a plan for where your retirement income will come from, how much you can comfortably spend, which accounts to draw from, how to manage investment risk, and how to minimize the taxes you pay along the way.
Your retirement plan should also account for the things that are harder to predict—market downturns, inflation, unexpected expenses, changes in your lifestyle, and the possibility of living much longer than expected.
That’s why effective retirement planning is about more than a number on a statement.
It’s about creating a strategy that turns your wealth into dependable income, protects your financial independence, and gives you confidence in the years ahead.
Because retirement shouldn’t be about wondering if your money will last.
It should be about knowing what your money is there to do.
Where your income comes from matters.
Investing in retirement is different than investing for retirement.
With great assets comes great responsibility.
If you can make a difference, you should.
Your business is more than an investment. It’s the result of years of work, risk and decisions — and for many owners, it’s one of their most valuable assets.
Your wealth is often closely connected to the business you’ve spent years building, which can make personal financial planning considerably different from simply managing an investment portfolio.
We work with business owners to bring those pieces together — building wealth while the business is growing, and planning what happens when it’s time to step away.
That can include investment management, retirement planning, tax and estate considerations, insurance, succession planning and preparing for the eventual sale or transfer of the business.
Because the business may be your greatest asset, your retirement and wealth plan should be built around it — not separate from it.
The goal is simple: make the transition from business owner to financially independent retiree a confident one.
Where your income comes from matters.
Investing in retirement is different than investing for retirement.
With great assets comes great responsibility.
If you can make a difference, you should.
For families with $250,000 or more in retirement investments, retirement planning becomes about far more than simply choosing investments. It’s about turning what you’ve accumulated into lasting financial confidence – knowing where your income will come from, how much you can spend, how your investments should be structured, and how to protect the wealth you’ve worked so hard to build.
Because retirement is different when there is more at stake.
Your decisions can affect your lifestyle today, your tax bill tomorrow, and what ultimately passes to the people you care about. Investments, pensions, real estate, businesses, insurance and other assets all need to work together—not exist as separate pieces of your financial life.
We help affluent families bring those pieces together with a comprehensive approach to retirement planning, investment management, tax and estate planning, and family legacy planning.
The questions become bigger: How much is enough? When can you spend with confidence? How do you create reliable retirement income without unnecessarily sacrificing growth? How can you reduce taxes and protect your estate? And what do you want your wealth to accomplish for the next generation?
Because the purpose of wealth isn’t simply to have more of it.
It’s to give you the freedom to enjoy your life, confidence in your future, and the ability to leave something meaningful behind.
Where your income comes from matters.
Investing in retirement is different than investing for retirement.
With great assets comes great responsibility.
If you can make a difference, you should.
For many farm families, wealth is measured in more than dollars.
It’s in the land worked for generations. The equipment that keeps the operation moving. The corporation built through years of long days and difficult decisions. The investments accumulated along the way. And the hope that what you’ve worked so hard to build can become something meaningful for the next generation.
That makes farming wealth different.
A successful agricultural family may have significant wealth, but much of it can be tied up in land, corporations, equipment and other assets that aren’t easily converted into retirement income. Add tax considerations, debt, multiple family members and succession decisions, and the path forward can become complicated quickly.
We help farm families and agricultural corporations step back from the day-to-day and look at the whole picture.
That means bringing retirement planning, investment management, tax planning, estate planning, insurance, corporate wealth and farm succession into one coordinated strategy.
Because eventually, every farming family faces an important question:
What happens to everything you’ve built when it’s time to step away?
We help you prepare for that transition—whether the goal is keeping the farm in the family, transferring ownership to the next generation, creating financial security outside the farm, or finding the right balance between preserving the legacy and allowing each generation to build its own future.
The goal isn’t simply to preserve wealth.
It’s to preserve opportunity, family relationships, financial independence and the legacy behind the land.
Because the greatest return on a lifetime of hard work may be knowing that what you built can continue to matter for generations to come.
Where your income comes from matters.
Investing in retirement is different than investing for retirement.
With great assets comes great responsibility.
If you can make a difference, you should.
But often, the most important decisions overlap.
We help connect those conversations when it makes sense.
Rather than solving a tax problem that creates an estate problem, or restructuring a business without considering retirement income, we try to make sure the major decisions are being viewed together.
The goal isn’t more professionals.
– It’s fewer gaps between them.
These questions are more common than you might think.
You may have a financial plan already. You may have an investment advisor, an accountant, a lawyer –
or all three. But if you’re still wondering whether everything is working together the way it should,
it’s worth having a conversation.