Nationwide Financial Firm unveils bilingual model to train agency owners

Nationwide Financial Firm co-founder Digna Deleon-Morris says the company’s Bilingual Duplication Model has helped agents generate more than $30 million in premium. She is using the system to recruit and train more bilingual leaders as the firm targets 1,500 active agents.

Why it matters: - Nationwide Financial Firm is betting that bilingual training can turn more agents into business owners, not just salespeople. - The model is aimed at Hispanic and immigrant communities that often have strong professional talent but limited access to ownership paths in financial services. - Deleon-Morris says the goal is to help families build income, protect assets and create generational wealth.

What happened: - Co-founder Digna Deleon-Morris introduced the Bilingual Duplication Model on the Sharkpreneur Podcast with Kevin Harrington and Seth Greene. - The company says the training system has helped its agents generate more than $30 million in premium. - Nationwide Financial Firm says the model is designed to move a new agent from first commission to agency ownership.

The details: - The program includes daily structure, live roleplay, mentorship and accountability. - Training is offered in both English and Spanish. - Deleon-Morris arrived from the Dominican Republic at 17 and later worked her way up from a $5.25-an-hour job to running an $82 million territory for a corporation. - A business collapse in 2016 forced Deleon-Morris and her husband, William Morris, to start over. - Nationwide Financial Firm now writes more than $3.8 million in premium each month. - The firm says hundreds of agents over roughly a decade have produced $10,000 to $30,000-plus months. - One agent who started with $200 now runs a multi-million-dollar agency. - A policyholder’s living benefits helped cover care and keep a mortgage current after a chronic illness set in, and his family later received a $650,000 payout after his death. - More than 67 million Latinos live in the United States, a figure Deleon-Morris cites as a major market for bilingual financial education and leadership. - The company says it offers Indexed Universal Life insurance and annuities. - The company also says the model is a step-by-step route from first policy to full agency ownership.

Between the lines: - The pitch blends business coaching with cultural access, which could help the firm recruit people who may not respond to a standard insurance-agency sales track. - The emphasis on duplication suggests Nationwide Financial Firm wants growth to come from agent development, not just direct recruiting. - The story also positions insurance as a family-protection product, not only a sales product.

What's next: - Deleon-Morris wants more than 1,500 active agents on the roster. - She also wants a larger bilingual leadership program for immigrant entrepreneurs. - Families and entrepreneurs can learn more at the company’s announcement.

The bottom line: - Nationwide Financial Firm is trying to scale by teaching bilingual agents to become owners, with premium growth and community access at the center of the playbook.