Smartway Advisors Team Bio's
Company Overview
Smartway Advisors, LLC is a partnership between Unitus Community Credit Union and QAI, experts in all-things automotive.
Locally-owned and headquartered here in Portland, Oregon, Smartway provides a full range of auto-buying services, including vehicle research, dealer negotiation, and direct sales. However, what makes Smartway truly unique is its innovative auto-buying programs aimed at helping people build or rebuild their credit: Credit Builder and Trust Funding. And being a credit union-owned company, you can be assured of honest dealing, fair and competitive pricing, and most importantly, great service.
We’re here to help good people succeed.
Management Bios
Sheldon Harris
Owner / President / CEO
Prior to Smartway Advisors, Sheldon helped lead Cold Stone Creamery from being a virtually unknown company to becoming one of America’s most respected brands. When he departed as President in 2006, there were over 1,400 stores operating both domestically and internationally, and Cold Stone Creamery was ranked by Entrepreneur Magazine as the 11th fastest-growing franchise in the nation. Prior to Cold Stone Creamery, Sheldon spent 13 years with Costco where he rose from an entry-level position to become one of the youngest Warehouse Managers in company history.In 2006, Sheldon helped to develop a unique auto-buying model, which features an innovative and proprietary loan underwriting model which is not based on traditional criteria such as credit scores. This model would become known as Trust Funding, which is one of Smartway’s key product offerings. The concept was to provide an affordable vehicle and loan to someone with credit-challenges looking to start the rebuilding process. To help describe his vision, Sheldon coined the phrase “helping good people succeed.”
In 2007, after running a successful pilot in Nevada, Sheldon presented the idea to Unitus Community Credit Union (who loved it). Sheldon’s company, QAI, and Unitus formed a partnership and launched Smartway Advisors, LLC in 2008. Sheldon was appointed President and has served in that role ever since.
Dave Daniels
General Manager
Dave previously worked with Sheldon at Cold Stone Creamery as part of the Executive Team, starting in 2005. After initially taking the Human Resource and Training Departments to new heights as the Vice President of People, Dave added numerous other areas of responsibility: FAC (Franchisee Advisory Council), ADC (Area Developer Council), the Franchising Department, Loss Prevention, Ombudsman Program, and the Diversity group to name a few. Before leaving, he was an integral player in preparing for the acquisition of the brand to Kahala Corporation.
Prior to Cold Stone Creamery, Dave spent 20+ years with McDonald’s Corporation, working his way though various departments and ranks culminating in becoming the Senior Regional Manager for McDonald’s in the Nashville Region.
At both Cold Stone and McDonald’s, Dave’s focus was on people and their continued success. This experience makes him perfectly suited for his role as General Manager at Smartway, given that our business is about helping good people succeed. Dave brings to the table a true passion for the work he’s doing and this is seen in the quality of service provided by his team.
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