A nearly 100-year-old insurance firm headquartered in Wilmington has opened its newest branch.

Wells Insurance recently opened its facility at 5712 Oleander Drive in Wilmington, bringing the company's number of brick-and-mortar offices to four.  The firm will hold a grand opening celebration and ribbon cutting beginning at noon today.

“With this new branch, we are pleased to now have a presence along Oleander Drive, an important thoroughfare for so many area residents, and to provide an office location with ample parking and space to assist our clients in person,” said Hal Wells, CEO of Wells Insurance, in a news release.

Wells said the firm's office in downtown Wilmington "will continue to be our headquarters, as it has for almost 100 years, but the Oleander area is an important market to us, and we have been looking for the right opportunity to expand our Wilmington Commercial and Personal Insurance products and services into a footprint outside of downtown.”

The release said the firm's Oleander branch features a modern, coastal interior with lots of light, aimed at improving the customer experience with an open and welcoming lobby, and private offices where clients can meet with agents to discuss coverage needs.

Wells Insurance, a privately owned, fourth generation insurance agency, is an Assurex Global member, the world’s largest privately held commercial insurance, risk management and employee benefits brokerage group. The company began helping clients in 1920 and has offices in Wilmington and South Carolina.