This work grew out of a change in direction. In 1992, Robin Taliaferro stepped away from investment management for his Santa Barbara clients and redirected his business toward tax planning with Silicon Valley corporate clients, pre-IPO companies among them.
In the decades that followed, he assembled a book of high-net-worth corporate officers. A great many of these clients faced the same problem: too much of what they owned was tied up in their own company’s stock. The tax strategies he built let them spread out their holdings while minimizing or deferring capital gains tax. Working alongside these clients and their CPAs has kept him up to date on tax code changes for his entire career.
Santa Barbara Roots and Credentials
Robin’s career started in 1971, after his military service, when he began providing investment advice to clients in Santa Barbara, California. For the first two decades of his career, investment management for those Santa Barbara clients was his focus.
He added the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation in 1987, awarded by the College for Financial Planning in Denver, Colorado. Earning it took more than a year and meant passing six examinations. Three decades of experience with corporate clients and their CPAs came after that.
Education and Service
Robin Taliaferro holds an MBA from the Babson Institute in Wellesley, Massachusetts, which he received in 1968. He entered the U.S. Army that year and was an infantry first lieutenant in Vietnam from 1968 to 1971. From the Army, his path led to handling investment accounts in Santa Barbara and then, beginning in 1992, to tax planning with corporate executives at companies like Xilinx, Plantronics, Adobe Systems, and Cypress Semiconductor.
Beyond the Office
Supporting local historical charitable organizations has been a long-standing commitment for Robin and his wife. Every year from 2000 through 2010, the couple gave time and money to the Santa Barbara Historical Museum, and since 2024 they’ve supported the Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum in the same way. His wife has been a board member at both museums.
Robin Taliaferro also competes as a long-distance runner. He took second place in the 10K among American men ages 60 to 65 at the 2006 U.S. National Championships, held in Paso Robles, California.
Robin makes his home in Solvang, California, and that’s where he now builds tax strategies for business owners preparing to sell, with the Structured Installment Sale at the center. He brings more than 30 years of experience with technology executives and their CPAs, plus the investment background he developed in Santa Barbara during the two decades before that.
