1-Branch Los Robles Bank Profits on Personal Approach

At a time when business transactions are increasingly handled long distance, small Los Robles Bank in Thousand Oaks thrives on a personal approach.

Los Robles’ profits increased 16% in the first quarter to $136,000. Its total assets were $71.1 million as of March 31, up $6 million over last year.

The success of the 24-year-old one-branch operation, said John Putnam, executive vice president, underscores the need that bank customers have for face-to-face interaction, something larger financial institutions don’t always provide. Los Robles Bank competes for customers with such banking giants as Wells Fargo Bank and such local institutions as Ventura County National Bank.

“People feel more comfortable knowing who they are banking with,” Putnam said. “The number of small banks in the nation continues to decrease. That’s just part of the . . . trend toward centralization. . . . It will be very, very important for customers to have a small bank to turn to and work with.”

Larger banks, he said, have central offices for granting loans and lines of credit. These offices are usually inaccessible to the public, so the person handling the transaction may never come in contact with the borrower. Employees of smaller banks, Putnam said, are able to sit down with their customers, discuss their personal needs and work toward a solution.

“We specialize in serving small businesses and the professional community, such as CPAs and attorneys,” Putnam said. “They have unique needs that don’t always fit into the cookie-cutter mold that large banks want them to fit into. They may have a practice that generates large amounts of expenses at one time of year and significantly extra costs at other times of the year. We’re able to work with that.”

This month, Los Robles Bank will open a second branch, in Westlake Village, and it hopes to open a third branch in Camarillo.