TwentY Years of Keeping Retirement InFocus

Eric W. Johnston, CFP® started InFocus with one desk, one assistant—and a burning conviction: that retirement deserved better than what most people were getting. Twenty years later, that conviction hasn't budged. Neither have we.

Start your retirement conversation Our story

InFocus Milestones

A lot can change in twenty years. Markets go up, markets go down. Life throws curveballs. What hasn't changed is our commitment to the people who trusted us with their retirement.

2006
Early Years 2006 - 2009
Growth 2010 - 2015
Process 2016 - 2021
Community 2023 - 2026
Today

2006

InFocus didn't start in a boardroom. We started with one desk, one assistant, and one mission.

Eric W. Johnston, CFP® had spent years watching clients get steered toward products that served the advisor more than the person sitting across the table. He'd seen what good guidance could do — and what the absence of it cost people. So in 2006, he stopped waiting for someone else to do it differently. He did it himself.

2006: Eric W. Johnston, CFP® launches InFocus Financial Advisors with one planning software, one conviction, and one client at a time

That was the whole plan. And it was enough.

Early Years

The early years at InFocus were built on rhythms Eric had already established: a weekly market research process, a steady stream of interns from Salisbury University, a commitment to showing up consistently for the people who trusted him.

2006: Opened first office; welcomed first full-time employee; AUM: $25MM
2007: Financial Crisis begins; S&P 500 ultimately loses 52% peak-to-trough; Eric earns CFP® designation; AUM crosses $40MM
2008: Coached clients through the market drop; positioned for recovery ahead of the March 2009 bottom
2009: Market begins recovery; InFocus clients are guided through with steady, disciplined advice

The crisis didn't shake InFocus. It proved it.

Growth

When you keep doing the right thing, eventually you run out of room.

By 2010, the InFocus team had grown enough that the original office couldn't hold them anymore. They moved to Riverside Drive — more space, more staff, more capacity to serve the clients who kept coming. The years that followed were marked by a series of quiet firsts: a new face dedicated entirely to client experience, a hand-built dashboard to track retirement goals, and a satellite office to serve clients further down the shore.

2010: Moved to Riverside Drive location; began delivering financial planning services for the Maryland State Retirement Program
2013: Added first Client Experience Associate; introduced new logo
2014: Built first Client Dashboard to track retirement goals; opened Georgetown, DE satellite office to serve Lewes/Sussex County clients
2015: Moved to Tilghman Road location to accommodate continued team growth; AUM crosses $75MM

The firm was outgrowing its second office. It was time to stop improvising and start building something that would last.

Process

Growth without structure is just chaos with good intentions. By 2016, InFocus had the clients, the team, and the track record. What came next was building the systems to make sure none of it ever slipped through the cracks. That year, InFocus added its first junior advisor and made a deliberate decision that would define the firm going forward: a niche focus on clients nearing or in retirement. Not everyone. The right ones. The people InFocus could serve best.

2016: Added first junior advisor; established niche focus on clients in or nearing retirement
2017: AUM crosses $100MM
2018: Expanded community education classes through Delaware Money School, corporations, and civic organizations; over 1,000 retirees taught since
2019: AUM crosses $150MM
2020: Guided clients through COVID-19 market volatility; completed office renovation just weeks before the pandemic hit
2021: Launched ClearView360 process — a 360° framework for retirement advice; AUM crosses $200MM

ClearView360 wasn't just a new tool. It was the culmination of everything InFocus had learned about what clients actually need to feel secure in retirement — and a commitment to deliver it with consistency, every single week.

Community

Twenty years in, InFocus could have turned inward. Instead, it looked outward.

The firm had always believed that financial clarity shouldn't be a privilege — that the community around them deserved the same thoughtful guidance as any individual client. The years from 2023 to today have been defined by that belief in action: investing in local leadership training for business people, supporting the arts, funding public spaces, and training the next generation of financial planners.

2023: Added first Director of Operations; AUM crosses $250MM; InFocus funded The Eastern Shore Leadership Institute in partnership with the Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce, that has since trained over 270 local professionals on leadership skills, strengthening our local business community.
2024: AUM crosses $300MM; hired first Wealth Operations Specialist; became sponsor of The Freeman Stage non-profit
2025: $25,000 gift to the Wicomico County Library building fund; launched FinLab Club to teach financial planning software to next-gen planners; Client Dashboard grows to 30+ tabs monitoring 16 aspects of clients' financial lives
2026: Launched new brand refresh: new logo, new color palette, and brand messaging that captures twenty years of purpose — and points toward the next twenty

Today

InFocus serves over 340 clients, manages $310,296,008 in assets under management held with Cetera Advisors, LLC as of December 2025, and employs a full team of eight full-time and two part-time professionals — all implementing the ClearView360 process every single week. The new brand says it plainly: Your True North in Retirement.

Twenty years ago, that conviction took root. It hasn't changed since. It's only come into focus.

And every day, that's exactly what we show up to do — help the people who trust us find their True North, and keep it in sight for everything that comes next.

InFocus team presenting a ceremonial check to the Community Foundation for The True North Initiative

InFocus with the Salisbury Area Chamber of Commerce

Twenty years ago, I started InFocus with one piece of software and one simple goal: do right by the people you serve. No runaround. No one-size-fits-all plans. Just client-centered advice, built around real lives.

What I didn't expect was how much you'd teach us. Every client who walked through the door made us better at this. That's not something you put in a press release. But it's the truest thing I can say.

Thank you. Truly.

Eric W. Johnston, CFP®, Founder & President

Eric W. Johnston, CFP®, Founder and President of InFocus Financial Advisors

InFocus Financial Advisors analyst reviewing retirement portfolio data across multiple monitors

What's kept us pointed in the right direction

Twenty years is a long time in any industry. Plenty of time for a firm to drift — toward growth for growth's sake, toward products over people, toward the easier path. These are the beliefs that kept us honest.

Fiduciaries: Client
First Always

Your interests come first. Every recommendation, every strategy, every time.

Your plan.
Your pace.

Every strategy is built around your life, your goals, your timeline. Not a preset portfolio.

We review weekly.
Not annually.

Markets shift. Life changes. We're watching — and we act when it matters, not when it's convenient.

We'd rather
educate than sell.

Wisdom compounds. Workshops, sessions, and straight talk — because informed decisions age better than sales pitches.

A full team in your corner.

Retirement takes more than one advisor. You get the whole firm — weekly reviews, multiple minds, one unified plan.

Delmarva neighbors. CFP® credentials.

Local enough to know you. Credentialed enough to guide you. Both matter.

For twenty years, here's what a conversation with us has looked like - and what it still looks like today.

Retirement Design Session

One hour. Twelve key areas. You will leave knowing exactly where you stand and what to do next.

The ClearView360™Process

A retirement strategy built around you. Monitored and adjusted through markets, life changes, and whatever comes next.

Year-round guidance

Retirement isn't a one-time plan. We stay with you — proactive, attentive, and ready to act when it matters.

TwentY Years of Keeping Retirement InFocus

InFocus Milestones