Our History
In 1983, Vincent Schiavi founded the company after growing frustrated with the commission-driven financial industry that catered to institutions and the ultra-wealthy. He was working for Hewlett Packard and noticed that his colleagues were not utilizing the company’s employee stock purchase plan that allowed them to dedicate part of their paycheck to buying HP stock at a discount. At the same time, the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, or NAPFA, was forming with a fee-only approach to financial planning without the sale of financial products for commission. Vincent decided to start Schiavi & Company as one of the first fee-only and fiduciary-based firms in Delaware. In 1994, Worth Magazine* selected Vincent as one of the top sixty personal financial advisors in the country.
As demand for his services increased, Vincent hired Ravi Dattani and Karen Malchione in 1998. Not long after, Ryan Cross joined the team in 2004. In 2005, Schiavi and Company became Schiavi + Dattani when Ravi acquired partial ownership. In early 2020, Vincent retired. Ravi Dattani, Ryan Cross, and John Melasecca took over ownership and changed the name to Clariti Wealth Advisors. Ravi, Ryan, and John have over 70 years of combined industry experience.
Today, the firm serves over 200 households with ten employees. Our expanded team has over a century of experience. The firm also leverages a large professional network (accountants, attorneys, and insurance agents) to enhance our expertise and the value we deliver to clients. The Clariti Wealth team aims to provide clients with the best financial advice possible.
*The goal of Worth Magazine was to find the top 100 advisors (advisors who the editors would recommend to their own mothers). Their extensive vetting resulted in a list of only 60 advisors. No fees or compensation were paid to Worth Magazine to be included in theirankings. The culling process employed by those editors has never been attempted since and included phone interviews, review of sample financial plans, and even a review of the advisor’s personal credit report. Top advisor lists today often require advisors to pay for inclusion in the rankings and are simply made up of advisors that are growing the fastest or with the largest practices.