Merrill herd grazes on something different

New York

AT a retreat for Merrill Lynch financial advisers in a luxury Orlando hotel last month, a group of several dozen men and women in business attire swung their arms back and forth over their heads to Kid Rock's All Summer Long to get their circulation going. The mild aerobics were part of a three-day event orchestrated by Chris Johnson, a wellness guru who has gained influence under John Thiel's leadership of Bank of America's Merrill Lynch wealth management business.

On Mr Thiel's instruction, Mr Johnson has for the last year been travelling the country teaching Merrill Lynch advisers how to lead healthier lives. He urges brokers - and, in some cases, their family members and clients - to include liver oil, wheatgrass, flax, chia and a type of algae called spirulina in their diets, and to take relaxing baths with Epsom salts to unwind. "They're starting to go down the medication path. They have acid reflux. They don't sleep. They feel crummy. They're drinking too much. They gain too much weight," Mr Johnson said of the Merrill employees who most need his advice. With that lifestyle, he said, "they're not going to be a good adviser. If I'm coming to my adviser, I want them to be healthy."