McKinney Insurance Celebrates 40 Years in Business 

Article written by Sandra Bilbray for Park Life Magazine

When Chad McKinney was just a baby, he went to work with his mom in the same office he sits in today as a Co-Owner and Principal Agent of McKinney Insurance. He started out in a bassinet and he grew up in the business.

“We were in a fortunate situation to be in South Asheville when we began. Biltmore Park didn’t even exist then and we’ve grown with South Asheville,” Chad says.

His parents, Doug and Sandy McKinney, moved to Asheville in 1981 to start an insurance business and a family. His parents worked for Nationwide corporate in Atlanta, and moved to Asheville to start their own branch. They purchased an existing property and casualty agency and expanded it to commercial and life insurance. Now McKinney Insurance is celebrating 40 years of the family business.

Chad now works alongside his dad Doug, a Clemson graduate and the Co-Owner and President of McKinney Insurance. His mom Sandy recently retired as co-owner and office manager. The office currently has 26 professional product specialists.

“I remember we had those little career booklets we had to fill out in fifth grade, and I always put, “Insurance Agent,” Chad says. “My Dad is my best friend and I wanted to follow in his footsteps. I’ve always respected him, and I even selected a college, Ohio State, where I could specialize in insurance,” he says. “It was also near Nationwide’s corporate headquarters where I worked in the summer."

Knowing what he wanted to do early helped him “bring more to the table quicker,” Chad says. “Insurance has been my whole life. It has consumed me in such a positive way.”

Now McKinney Insurance operates independently. “Last year Nationwide corporate made the decision that they no longer want to go with exclusive agents, so while they are still our number one carrier, we also represent more than 50 other carriers including Allstate and MetLife,” Chad says.

McKinney Insurance Services is a multi-line, full-service, and one-stop shop for insurance including auto home, business, investments, and life.

“It’s a really exciting business right now,” Chad says. “For customers where Nationwide is not the right fit, we can help customers find the right solution and price with other carriers. We are now that one-stop insurance shop for everyone.”

The office hallways tell the family story. Plaques hang on the walls of Doug coaching young Chad’s baseball teams with McKinney Insurance on their jerseys. “McKinney’s mission is to be the only insurance agency that our clients ever need,” Chad says.

“Our job is to educate the customer; the customer’s job is to make an educated decision.”

McKinney has three locations: one near Biltmore Park in South Asheville at 5 Allen Ave. and two other locations in Candler and Weaverville.

Chad became the Primary Agent for McKinney Insurance in 2012 after seven years of working in the family agency. Chad has two boys, Bryce who was born in 2013 and Ford who was born in 2016.

We are as tied to Asheville as much as we can be. “We love sponsoring any kind of local charity event. McKinney Insurance is committed to making the community a better place and is a longtime sponsor of South Buncombe youth sports, the YMCA of WNC, TC Roberson and many more."

Photo: Doug McKinney coaching Chad McKinney, South Buncombe Youth Baseball Association, 1993

Photo: Chad McKinney, his sons Ford & Bryce McKinney, and Doug McKinney