Forty Under 40: Alex Baldwin

Alex Baldwin opened up his own insurance office, or “scratch” agency, in Fayetteville in October 2010. At 27 years old, he was the youngest State Farm agent/owner in Arkansas.

In the seven years since, he’s grown the business from two employees to 12, and premium revenue this year is on track to hit $950,000, an increase of 31% from 2016.

The success hasn’t gone unnoticed. The Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce named the agency the city’s Best Small Business in 2013. Earlier this summer, at an annual State Farm event in California, the company recognized Baldwin’s agency as sixth-best in the U.S., out of more than 18,000 agents.

“My team has been the biggest reason for our success,” Baldwin said. “Our culture is identifying what we have to do to be successful today. You have to win the day. That’s when you turn the corner.”

Baldwin is from Piggott in northeast Arkansas. He graduated from the University of Arkansas in December 2005 with a finance degree, and went to work in Rogers for veteran State Farm agent Roger Clark, whom Baldwin considers a mentor.

After two years, Baldwin transferred to central Arkansas for a couple of years before the opportunity came to return to Northwest Arkansas in 2010.

Baldwin says he’s proud of the agency’s agent aspirant program, giving prospective agents the chance to gain hands-on training in advance of applying to become a licensed agent.

As for Baldwin’s aspirations, a long-term goal is to one day become the largest State Farm agency in Arkansas.

Married with two children, Baldwin loves reading and cooking and is a Leadership Fayetteville graduate. He’s previously served on a number of boards, including the Fayetteville Chamber, Fayetteville Future Fund and UA Young Alumni.

He’s a current board member of Central United Methodist Church, where he teaches Sunday school.