Peter Fetherston has been working as a Financial Advisor in the greater New York City area for nearly 30 years. He graduated in 1990 from Adelphi University where he earned his Master of Business Administration in Finance.

Peter currently works as a Financial Advisor at PJF Consulting Group, which he started himself in 2015. There, he has mastered a superior client experience that sets him apart from the competition. He takes pride in his ability to facilitate long-lasting client relationships and strong client retention. Seeking out a financial advisor is often a daunting task for a person or for a business. It is of the upmost importance that a client has someone with knowledge and trustworthiness in order to make a sound decision. Peter examines each client’s unique circumstances before offering them a spectrum of solutions to choose from. The result is a well-established and respected business in PJF Consulting Group as well as a well-respected Financial Advisor in Peter Fetherston.

Peter’s clients have expressed their satisfaction in working with him time and time again. Frequently, past clients will refer their friends and family to Peter as well, making it evident that Peter is a caring and skilled financial adviser, one that has become not only an adviser but also a friend to many of his clients.

Peter is a long-time resident of the greater New York City area and respected member of the community. He is a loving husband to his wife Kimberly, and a loving father to their two daughters, Sarah and Elizabeth. Peter is also passionate about volunteering. One of his favorite ways to help is by volunteering his time in the community by coaching the swim team at the Catholic Youth Organization. He has also coached at the Garden City Rams Girls Lacrosse Club, and the Garden City Centennial Soccer Club.

Being a very philanthropic person, Peter supports many causes that are important to him. Like the Humane Society of New York which is significant to Peter as a pet owner himself, or Robin Hood, which is New York City’s largest poverty fighting organization. Peter is always looking for the best and most responsible ways to spend his time and money which is just another reason he is such an excellent choice for a financial advisor.

Putting his experience to work with both passion and compassion, Peter looks forward to continuing to build long-lasting client relationships as well as the best financial futures for his clients for years to come.

How did you get started in your industry?

I have always had an interest in the financial and money management industry, I started researching it in high school. Whenever they would make you write papers or do presentations on your future career I would do them on being a Financial Advisor. Maybe it wasn’t as exciting as the kids who thought they were going to be basketball players but guess who those kids came to when they started getting their own savings accounts and credit cards and wanted some help? I even had a teacher ask me for some investment advice! Right after graduating college with an MBA in finance, I started looking for employment as a Financial Advisor and I was fortunate enough to find work at the Grand Central Financial Group where I stayed for 26 years. I branched out on my own and started PJF Consulting group in 2015, the choice to start your own company can be a scary one at first but with all of my experience to back it up, I was confident and more than ready for the next step.

How do you make money in your field?

I have various fees based on the customer’s needs. It is typically going to be either a flat fee, per financial plan, per year or per hour. It is unique to each client, but the rates are competitive based on current market conditions.

How long did it take for you to become profitable?

I was able to become profitable within the first year, because of my vast experience, I had built up a very large client base before branching out on my own which helped me to be profitable in the first year. I was also able to keep costs low by working out of a small office. I typically travel to the client or meet at a neutral location which means I do not need to have a large, lavish office space. Of course, now, I am doing mostly all video conferencing for my client meetings which is something that I may actually just keep going with even after things eventually start opening back up again post-covid.

When you were starting out, was there ever a time you doubted it would work? If so, how did you handle that?

Making the switch to being self-employed always comes with some doubt but I handled it by working as hard as I possibly could. I knew that the only way to be profitable and maintain the level of support my family needed was to build the best foundation I possibly could in my first year. So I was constantly setting goals for myself. If I reached a goal, I would set a new one, so on and so forth. That helped me to have a great first year and I contribute a lot of my success to having that drive to succeed. I guess the moral of the story here would be to turn your doubts into drive.

Do you remember how you got your first client?

I had a lot of connections through my years of experience, so I just needed to turn those connections into clients. I gave them a call and let them know that I had started my own consulting group along with everything I could offer them. Pretty soon I had my first client, then my second, third, fourth and so on.

What is one marketing strategy that you’re using that works really well to generate new business?

There are a lot of great tools out there to help stay organized and automate tasks like sending out marketing emails. For instance, if I want to have a special referral program in a given month, I could create the email saying that you get a $50 visa gift card for referral that signs a contract with me, schedule it to go out on the first of that month to a list of contacts and it is taken care of for me. So, this is really two strategies in one, the emails help generate new business and the task automation is great for time management and productivity.

What is the toughest decision you’ve had to make in your professional life?

Taking the leap into being self-employed was both the toughest and most rewarding decision I have made in my professional life.

What do you think it is that makes you successful?

I think I am successful because I am an extremely hard worker and I remind myself of the reasons why I work so hard. It is always good to have that why in your mind to keep driving the hard work forward.

What has been your most satisfying moment in business?

I am extremely proud of what I have built in PJF Consulting Group and hitting the 5-year mark was satisfying. Once we get to the ten-year mark, that will really be satisfying though, I think we will do something special to commemorate that milestone.

What does the future hold for your business? What are you most excited about?

I am excited for growth. Maybe opening additional locations and expanding our services.

What business books have inspired you?

What It Takes: Lessons in the Pursuit of Excellence by Stephen A. Schwarzman and The Financial Advisor’s Guide to Excellence: Becoming a World-Class Practitioner by Daniel Collison.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

I hesitated a little before deciding to start PJF Consulting Group so I might tell my younger self to have more confidence. Looking back, it was there but I just needed to find it a little sooner.

 

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