Laguna resident appointed to Trump small-business advisory group

Laguna Beach resident Loreen Gilbert, founder and president of Irvine-based WealthWise Financial Services Inc., announced she is one of 19 executives nationwide, and the only one from California, appointed to the Trump Pence Small Business Advisory Council.

Executives were selected for the group to work with the administration of President Donald Trump and various agencies to provide perspectives and ideas on reducing regulation and the cost of government mandates, according to a news release.

Initial recommendations include a White House Conference on Small Business and a Task Force on Private Sector Initiatives appointed by Trump.

“As a small-business owner since 2005 and wealth advisor for many other business owners, I fully understand the challenges of business ownership, especially obtaining access to capital and making your way through the frustrating labyrinth of government red tape,” Gilbert said in a statement. “I am honored to be selected as a member of this active advisory group that will be formulating solutions with every agency of the federal government, especially the Small Business Administration and Department of Commerce.”

WealthWise Financial Services is a wealth management and financial planning firm that has clients in 20 states.

Gilbert has more than 25 years’ experience in creating wealth strategies for clients, according to the release. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in business administration and launched her career at Fidelity Investments. She then worked for a company selling retirement plans to municipalities and their employees. She has been in private practice as a wealth manager since 1997.

Gilbert serves on the executive board of the National Assn. of Women Business Owners and received the Remarkable Woman Award as 2016 Business Owner of the Year for NAWBO-Orange County. She also is on the regional board of HOPE International, a lending organization that helps women in Third World countries start or expand a business.