The Tattoo Artist Advisor - An Interview with Colton Etherton
An interview with Colton Etherton…
An interview with Colton Etherton…
The Tattoo Artist Advisor, he speaks for himself. Where tattoo artistry meets finances, and turns our Ink to Assets. I’d love to introduce the man behind this niche business, looking out for our industry.
I had the joy of working with Colton Etherton directly, I had hired him on as my financial advisor. But before that ever came together, we met over a video chat to record a podcast together. After he got to interview me, I thought it was only fair to return the favor and get a deep dive on what Out Of The Office Planning really is and how it all came together. This is what Colton had to say:
1. Brief introduction:
My name’s Colton Etherton. I was born and raised in Arizona but eventually escaped to Portland, Oregon after my wife, Bri, finished nursing school. We currently live in Beaverton, Oregon with our two kids and two dogs. I’m 31 and I’ve been living in the Portland area for 6 years now.
2. What is your job?
I’m a financial advisor for tattoo artists – The Tattoo Artist Advisor.
3. How long have you been doing this?
I’ve been in finance for roughly 8 years, initially in banking then switched to the financial advice side in 2015. I launched my own firm and started working with tattooers in 2021.
4. What got you started?
The only reason I ever ended up in finance is because my wife and I were moving from Arizona to Washington (Vancouver) and I needed a job. She found an opening at a bank and insisted I apply. Honestly I didn’t want to. I thought I’d hate working in finance. I was never the kid in high school/college that was into stocks and investing and all of that. But I ended up loving it. Eventually a friend of mine invited me to apply with his company and move from banking to the investment side of finance.
As far as working with tattoo artists, I kind of stumbled into that one. I had a meeting with an artist and realized nobody was trying to help them with their finances so I figured I could be that person.
5. What do you like about your job?
I love seeing the change in someone’s demeanor around their money after we’ve worked together for a bit. They typically start out stressed and unsure about their finances – no solid idea on their total income, how to manage their taxes, where/how to save for retirement, etc. It’s incredible to see how they change over time as we meet and answer those questions for them. Eventually their finances change from this thing they hate to look at to something they like (or at least don’t fear) to look at because they’re proud of the progress they’re making.
Plus I get to connect with awesome artists all day.
6. Where do you pull inspiration from?
This is a good question. It’s cliché but my family definitely inspires me. I have an incredible wife and two young kids. I want to show them that they can do what they’re passionate about even if people are telling them they can’t or shouldn’t do it (I heard that A LOT when I started working with artists). I’m also inspired by other advisors that I’m connected with. There’s a small group of us each working with unique niches (fitness coaches, travel nurses, sex workers, small biz owners, etc.) and doing some really cool shit so it’s exciting to pull ideas from each other.
And of course I’ve been inspired by the artists that I’ve talked to. So many of them have such interesting stories of how they’ve got to where they’re at and it pushes me to want to help even more.
7. What did the process of putting this project together look like?
Starting the business was pretty easy. A disagreement with my old boss resulted in me being kicked out rather than buying into the business like we planned. I didn’t want to ever be in that position again so I started the process to start my own firm the next day.
Honestly the difficult/scary part was when I decided to transition to focus on tattoo artists. It was like unchartered territory because no other advisor had really done that and it meant limiting my potential clients to a much smaller group of people.
8. What do you hope for the future?
I hope I can help more artists gain confidence with their finances so they can focus on what they truly love to do, which is tattooing. I also want to figure out a way to improve upon the Oregon tattoo school situation. I don’t see the state changing the rules to allow apprenticeships again so the only thing to do is for someone to start a legit school that actually sets artists up for success, which includes understanding the business side of what they do.
9. Advice for someone who is interested in this field?
There’s a lot of bullshit in my industry. A lot of people call themselves advisors but they are actually product salesmen. Connect with an independent firm/advisor. It’s also important to understand the number one skill of a good advisor is communication, not understanding investments or taxes or anything like that so you don't necessarily need a finance background.
Also I’m always open to talk – send me a DM, email, call me, etc. I love talking to people that want to get into the industry.
10. What all do you offer and how might someone inquire with you?
I offer financial planning for tattoo artists across the country. What that actually means is I help tattoo artists gain confidence with their finances. We create a system to manage their income, plan for taxes, and save for retirement.
If someone’s interested, they can schedule a free call with me through my website or connect with me on Instagram.
A huge thank you to Colton for taking the time to share with us, as well as host me on his podcast and guide me and other artists towards financial security. Be sure to check out his website for more information and opportunities. If you haven’t yet, check out my previous blog post for more information on the podcast we did together. I’ve had a great time working with him, thank you again Colton!
