BMW Northwest 2020 Magazine - Flipbook - Page 11
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Family Matters
In Good Company
More than a familiar face on television, Maddie Scharmach represents the third generation
working at the family-owned BMW Northwest
By Andrea Bassett
family and business are one
and the same. The granddaughter of founder Werner
Scharmach and daughter of
owner Manfred Scharmach,
she’s worked in the family
business for almost half her
life. For the past several years,
Maddie has been the special
project manager for BMW
Northwest, but you might
recognize her more from her
latest role, as the new spokesperson in television ads for
BMW Northwest.
Like her dad, Maddie started
working at the dealership early
on. At 16-years-old, she learned
what quality and customer
service means at BMW Northwest by spending her summers
answering phones, making
appointments, contributing
to social media and working
in the parts department.
In 2013, she graduated from
Western Washington University with her psychology degree, cum laude. But a
career in psychology wasn’t
the right fit for her at that
time. She started full-time
at BMW Northwest in the
have a great role model.”
While business and family are one for Maddie, she’s
not just about work. Maddie
is married to William McEntyre, a respiratory therapist, is
active in the local equestrian
community, and loves animals,
including her two dogs, three
cats and her horse, Snowy.
“We’re a family and
we practice what
we preach. We
bring everybody
on board with the
assumption they’ll
have a long career
with us.”
Yet even with everything
she has going on, she’s enjoying her latest special project
with the BMW Northwest ad
campaign. “Maddie has done
an outstanding job as the
new spokesperson for BMW
Northwest,” says Gary Spinnell, partner at Spinnell and
Stwan Marketing and Media,
the advertising agency that
produced the BMW’s new
television spots. “She wants
her work to look professional
and in a very short time,
she’s succeeded.”
BMW Northwest Life 2020
PHO TO: LUCIEN KNU TESON
FOR MADDIE SCHARMACH,
Business Development Center, and it felt like home.
Now, at age 28, she oversees new projects and manages employee satisfaction
programs. While she’s most
visible for her television commercials, much of her work is
behind the scenes. “The best
thing about my expanded
role is I’m more integrated
into the dealership,” Maddie
says. “It’s allowed me to get
to know employees I’ve never
had the opportunity to work
with before.”
In fact, she knows 95% of
BMW Northwest’s 258 employees. The other 5% are brand
new. “We say we’re a family and
we practice what we preach”
she adds. “We bring everybody
on board with the assumption
they’ll have a long and prosperous career with us. We have
such a wonderful management
team and we work hard to help
everyone feel like part of the
family and have the resources
they need to succeed.”
If that sounds familiar,
it ’s because the Scharmach
business philosophy hasn’t
changed in over 50 years.
About working for her father,
Maddie says, “I have so much
respect for my dad. After all
these years, he’s still looking for ways to make the
bu si ne s s s t r on ge r. I ’ ve
learned so much working
with him and I’m luck y to
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