Mark Stern, founder and principal
I grew up at the intersection of art and finance. My father was an artist who, needing to survive in post-blitz London, founded a highly innovative lighting manufacturer. I remember sitting in his studio on weekends and watching him paint, and, sometimes during the week, I would accompany him to the office where he took on his alter ego of Managing Director of a rapidly growing company. I had a few hundred pounds worth of shares in this newly public company in my name, and I remember studying the financial reports at a young age. I was also always drawing, and at 16, I wrote and illustrated a children's book, making enough money to buy a car that I drove all over France and Italy. After graduating with a degree in Fine Art I worked for a while at Andy Warhol's Factory and then became a freelance photographer specializing in celebrity portraits for magazines. Around the same time I started investing a small sum of money, teaching myself by reading books about legendary money managers and portfolio strategy. My pot of money grew and it became clear that I had a stronger calling as an investor than a photographer and I joined Dean Witter which soon merged with Morgan Stanley.
I’m passionate about bringing Independent Fiduciary Advice to the creative community. Stone Ridge Advisors is our vision of how financial advising should be done. We specialize in the needs of creative entrepreneurs from solo professionals to full studios and design offices. As your independent fiduciary, we leverage the power of big partners, including Charles Schwab and Dimensional Fund Advisors, free of corporate agendas and proprietary products.
I invite you to start a conversation.