[2] As of October 2022[update], the company offered its services in the San Francisco Bay Area, Greater Los Angeles, and Portland, OR.

Shift was founded in 2013 by: George Arison, Toby Russell, Minnie Ingersoll, Christian Ohler, Joel Washington and Morgan Knutson.

[8] The company then began acquiring cars outright and reselling them on its platform direct to buyers, removing the peer-to-peer consignment model.

[9] As a private company, Shift received funding from Lithia Motors Inc., Goldman Sachs Investment Partners (GSIP), Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ), Highland Capital Partners, SV Angel, Great Oaks Venture Capital, DCM Ventures and others.

[7] It facilitated financing options, inspections, Department of Motor Vehicles interactions, detailing, pricing and merchandising.