

Today we’d like to introduce you to Thomas Hodge.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My entrepreneurial journey began in an unlikely place. I was scooping ice cream for minimum wage in high school. After many months of feeling out of place behind that counter, I decided to take a leap and started a small car washing business. What happened next surprised everyone, including myself. Word spread quickly around town, and suddenly I had more business than I could handle. While I didn’t fully grasp concepts like “scaling” back then, I was experiencing something powerful: the direct connection between the value I provided and the results I earned. The contrast was striking. Instead of watching the clock tick by at the ice cream shop, I was building relationships with satisfied customers, earning glowing testimonials, and even had a classmate ask to work for me. When my entire high school heard about the business, it was an incredible feeling of validation. Though the car wash didn’t evolve into a long-term venture, it planted something essential; the entrepreneurship bug had bitten me hard.
Fast forward through my accounting degree at UCF, and I found myself climbing the corporate ladder for five years. I held positions ranging from audit at PwC to senior financial analyst roles at PepsiCo and FLIX Bus. Yet despite the prestigious names on my resume, that familiar feeling crept back in; the same sense of being out of place that I’d felt at the ice cream shop. As a small cog in a massive wheel, I struggled to see the direct impact of my contributions.
Then came late 2023 and my first layoff. While initially discouraging, I recognized it as the universe’s way of nudging me toward my true calling. During my job search, I took time to reflect on what truly energized me: working with numbers, storytelling through data, mastering Excel, and most importantly, helping businesses succeed. That’s when Tangerine Financial Solutions was born in 2025. I founded this financial strategy and bookkeeping company specifically for small business owners who need help optimizing their operations or maintaining proper books.
Today, I’m building a growing client base while actively networking throughout the DFW area, connecting with fellow business owners, CPAs, and financial advisors. I won’t pretend the learning curve hasn’t been steep: it absolutely has. But I’m focused on delivering exceptional service to my clients while continuously expanding my knowledge of building a scalable business. My vision extends far beyond where we are today. By the end of 2026, I plan to offer comprehensive tax services, payroll solutions, and IT consulting with AI optimization. We’re just getting started, but our commitment runs deep. At Tangerine Financial Solutions, we believe in giving our clients what I found in that high school car wash business and missed in corporate life: confidence in your numbers, clarity in your decisions, and the direct value that comes from a partner who’s truly invested in your success.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Getting laid off was hard pill to swallow. But after that, I lurked around a ton of small business owner & entrepreneur subreddits, networking events, and reached out to other small business owners. I realized that sometimes the hardest part is just getting it started.
I am a very methodical person, I like to take steps and check things off a list in order to full execute a task. I called the texas secretary of state, the texas Comptroller, and a few other sites to figure out what I need to do to get started. Another challenge was getting my first client. I tried the cold walk in approach, cold email approach, cold calling approach, nothing ever came to fruition. I then came across a part time bookkeeping role on LinkedIn, applied, and then offered to 1099 with them and my LLC. The rest is history. Once you have one client, getting the next one is easier.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Tangerine Financial Solutions LLC?
Tangerine Financial Solutions provides bookkeeping and financial strategy services to help small businesses gain clarity and control over their finances. We go beyond standard bookkeeping, offering strategic insights that optimize cash flow, streamline budgets, and improve financial decision-making. Whether it’s monthly reconciliations, financial reports, or complex financial models, we deliver accurate, data-driven solutions tailored to your needs. At Tangerine Financial Solutions, we don’t just crunch numbers – we help businesses thrive through smarter financial decisions.
What sets us apart is our unprecedented fidelity we have towards all our clients, ensuring that they always come first. Its not always about getting NEW clients, but its more about retaining your CURRENT clients making sure that they are fully satisfied. Tangerine Financial Solutions also has a young, innovative mindset, constantly staying agile and finding ways to optimize while keeping our clients around.
I am proud that I finally have created a company that aligns to my objectives, providing value while being my own boss. We aspire to become Texas’s next McKenzie, Bain, or BCG. We will focus on small to mid size businesses and make our experience fun, one of a kind, and unforgettable. We want to treat our employees right, fairly, and give them the flexibility that many other companies don’t offer.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
They can email me at thomas@tangerinefs.com or message me via my linkedin company page (https://www.linkedin.com/company/tangerine-financial-solutions)
Pricing:
- Depends on the workload
Contact Info:
- Website: https://tangerinefs.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Tangerine-Financial-Solutions-LLC/61576880423802/#
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/tangerine-financial-solutions