The Long Game of Compounding
Few founders speak as plainly as Cody Foster.
The cofounder of Advisors Excel doesn’t describe his success as genius or luck. He describes it as compounding—two decades of small, steady decisions that built a platform now supporting hundreds of independent financial advisers nationwide.
That same mindset explains why he stepped into one of Topeka’s most debated projects: the redevelopment of West Ridge Mall.
His through line is consistent:
Learn from others.
Serve small-business owners well.
Invest in your hometown—even when it’s hard.
Inside Advisors Excel’s Model (Plain English Version)
Advisors Excel acts as a back-office engine for independent financial advisers.
They sit between advisers and product providers—insurance carriers and custodians—and provide:
Product due diligence
Operations support
Marketing systems
Technology infrastructure
Training and coaching
Annuities & Wealth Management, Simplified
Annuities aren’t a trick product. They are insurance contracts designed to manage risk and often create reliable retirement income.
On the wealth side, AE supports ETF-based portfolios and asset management through custodians like:
Charles Schwab Corporation
Fidelity Investments
The business earns revenue through:
Commissions on insurance products
A small fee on managed assets
The edge isn’t flash. It’s scale, service, and repeatable process.
Instead of each adviser mastering dozens of carriers and products alone, AE centralizes the heavy lifting so advisers can focus on planning and client relationships.
Growth: Easier and Heavier
As AE grew, Foster’s role shifted.
Easier — because strong leaders now oversee compliance, legal, events, and advisory coaching.
Heavier — because scale brings scrutiny.
In a world governed by regulators like:
Securities and Exchange Commission
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
…the gray areas multiply, and the stakes rise.
Foster describes himself as a starter and vision-setter, while cofounder Dave (the systems builder and finisher) brings structure and operational rigor.
The remedy? Focus.
Define your customer. Add value relentlessly. Ignore noise.
He quotes Lecrae:
If you live for acceptance, you’ll die by rejection.
That’s a survival principle for anyone building in public.
The West Ridge Mall Bet
The most debated move: acquiring and redeveloping West Ridge Mall.
This isn’t cosmetic renovation.
The mall carries:
Restrictive covenants
Aging infrastructure
Complicated anchor ownership (including former anchors like Sears and JCPenney)
Tethered HVAC systems
Multi-party property entanglements
AE acquired key pieces of the property, cleared structural bottlenecks, and committed to a full redesign.
The Vision
Three identity-based entry points:
Teen
Family
Community
The interior becomes a mixed-use campus anchored by AE’s headquarters—bringing daily foot traffic from roughly 1,200 employees.
Retail reality is blunt:
Many national brands avoid markets under 250,000 population.
Leasing cycles are slow.
Footprints are shrinking.
The strategy? Land one or two “domino” anchors—grocer, entertainment, or experiential retail—and build food, services, and gathering spaces around them.
The horizon: 2–3 years minimum.
The investment: eight figures in infrastructure alone.
The return isn’t just IRR.
It’s civic gravity:
Sales-tax retention
Daily population density
A place built to gather—not just transact
Community as a Discipline
For Foster, community isn’t branding.
It’s ritual.
Two long-running commitments anchor him:
A Thursday morning men’s group
A twice-yearly entrepreneur mastermind with daily text accountability
These circles trade frameworks like Scaling Up but also serve something deeper: restoration.
He worries about isolation—especially among younger men navigating social media and performance culture.
His advice is simple:
Pick a ritual.
Show up consistently.
Stay when it’s uncomfortable.
Consistency beats talent.
Repetition builds depth.
Community requires intentionality.
The Through line
From annuity contracts to retail redevelopment, the pattern is the same:
Long-term thinking
Operational leverage
Local investment
Relational consistency
Cody Foster’s story isn’t about flash.
It’s about compounding.
And in both business and community, compounding favors those who stay.
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This article, From Advisors Excel To The Mall: Why Topeka Is Worth It | Cody Foster, was written by Justin Armbruster of the Armbruster Team at Genesis, LLC, REALTORS®—local experts in Topeka real estate, storytelling, and community connection. Justin is passionate about highlighting the people and institutions shaping Topeka’s future. For more local spotlights and real estate tips, follow Justin on Instagram or call 785-260-4384.