Founded on a Simple Observation
Saffron Ridge began in 2016 when our founder, Catherine Harwood, noticed something troubling during her years as a financial planner. Clients consistently arrived at her office already deep in financial difficulty, having made avoidable mistakes years or decades earlier. The pattern repeated endlessly: intelligent, capable people who simply never learned the basics of managing money.
The solution seemed obvious but remained largely unaddressed. Schools rarely taught practical finance. Universities covered theory but not application. And by the time adults sought professional advice, patterns were already entrenched and consequences already accumulated.
Starting Small, Thinking Long-Term
The first Saffron Ridge courses ran in a borrowed meeting room with eight participants. Catherine taught everything herself, refining her approach based on what resonated and what fell flat. The feedback was immediate and honest: adults wanted practical tools, not lectures. They wanted to leave each session with something they could apply that same week.
Children, it turned out, were even more receptive when approached correctly. Games that simulated real financial choices held their attention far better than worksheets or explanations. And parents consistently reported that the lessons extended beyond class hours into daily family conversations.
