Johnny Pitts

Johnny and his business partner, Mat Lipscomb, owned the largest, privately held insurance agency in Tennessee, Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance, founded by their fathers in 1954.

From 1980 to 1981, he was employed with Safeco Insurance Company and Cigna Insurance Company with training in the underwriting, loss control and claims departments.

From 1981 to 1988, he was responsible for production and retention of business insurance clients for Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance.

In 1989, he became a partner at Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance and then in 1992, Johnny and Mat purchased Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance from their fathers.

Johnny earned his CIC designation and serves on the boards of Youth Villages (past chair), Boy Scouts (current chair) and the Independent Insurance Agencies of America large agency committee.

Recently, Johnny served as chairman of the Council of Insurance Agencies and Brokers (CIAB), chairman of the Greenwich Insurance Group, chairman of the Insurors of Memphis, chairman of the Memphis/Shelby County Insurance Advisory Committee, chairman of the Greater Memphis Insurance Council, board member of Assurex Global, chairman of Innovate Memphis, board member of the Business Emergency Preparedness Council and board member of the Brooks Museum.

In 2005, Johnny founded cityCURRENT Memphis and then founded cityCURRENT Nashville in 2018. These companies recruit businesses to work together with local, regional and national government, non-profits, educational institutes, businesses and faith-based organizations to network for business development and to help create positive change in their respective communities.

In 2009, Pitts and Memphis Mayor, A.C. Wharton, founded Innovate Memphis, a non-profit organization funded with both private and local government funds, whose function is to tackle local government challenges and create solutions which will improve government efficiency, reduce costs, and help citizens.

In 2017, he founded Discipling Memphis Men, an organization dedicated to discipling a diverse group of men to live Christian lives and then equipping them to do the same with others.

Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, he attained the rank of Eagle Scout in 1973, graduated high school from Memphis University School in 1976, graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1980 with an insurance major from the University of Tennessee.

He is a member of the President’s Club at the University of Tennessee, and his hobbies include fishing, hunting, competitive running/triathlons and golf.