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Vizio Who?; American Company Outpaces Samsung, Sharp to become #1 Seller of Flat Panel HDTVs in the U.S.
This represents the first time in more than a decade an American brand led major categories in U.S. TV sales...more

Advance America Hosts Voter Registration Drive; Stores to offer voter registration material
In a effort to register new voters, Advance America is running its annual Register in Advance campaign in Virginia...more

High Point Furniture Market Upgrades Online Market Planner; Tool Enables Buyers to Tailor Market Experience
Buyers can search and map their route by company name, showroom building or product category and create a pdf file that they can email to associates...more

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Interview With Larry Furiani, Vice President of Dealer Relations for Coaster Company of America
Larry Furiani of Coaster Furniture tells what sets his furniture company apart from the competition...more

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Interview With John Howard of PromoBiz
John Howard of PromoBiz displays the latest in career apparel and promotional products for the rental purchase industry...more

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Interview With John Sprayberry, Newest Premier Rental-Purchase Dealer
John Sprayberry is the newest Premier Rental-Purchase Dealer and he tells how it feels to finally be your own boss after years of working for RTO’s "big guys"...more

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Interview With Alexis Miller, Marketing Coordinator for Advertising Made Easy
Alexis Miller, a Marketing Coordinator for Advertising Made Easy, gives us a sneak peek at marketing materials made available through their innovative online ordering system...more

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Interview With Albert Turick, Creative Director for Amcase
Albert Turick, Creative Director for Amcase, gives a tour of the latest in store fixturing for RentDirect members available through the Nationwide Design Center...more

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Interview With Jean-Guy Poulin, Louisiana Rental Dealer and Louisiana Rental Dealers Association Secretary/Treasurer
Louisiana rental dealer and Louisiana Rental Dealers Association Secretary/Treasurer Jean-Guy Poulin provides an update on the LRDA...more

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Interview With Gloria Homeier-Schwein, Owner of Full House Rentals
Rental pioneer Gloria Homeier-Schwein explains her secrets to success and shares what plans she has to expand her rental business this fall...more
 

easyhome opens 200th Location
"We will continue with our aggressive plan to expand our presence in communities across Canada and the United States." - David Ingram, CEO, easyhome...more

Convention Coverage
RentDirect Wraps; Dealers , Vendors Proclaim Show "Best Yet"; 9 New Podcasts From Show Floor
RentDirect Nationwide wrapped a successful four-day event at The Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas with a trade show that broke all previous records for attendance...more

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Video; Interview With Ron Martino, Marketing Manager for Yamaha Corporation of America
Ron Martino, Marketing Manager for Yamaha Corporation of America, discloses how a rental dealer can find sweet success with Yamaha musical instruments without having to play a single note on their own...more

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Video; Interview With Warren Chaiken, President and Chief Operating Officer of ALMO
Warren Chaiken, President and Chief Operating Officer of ALMO, divulges the secret to the long-term success of the Warehouse Direct partner…training, training, and more training...more

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Video; Interview With Mike Moore, President of NewAvenues Rentals
Mike Moore discusses how he parlayed his experience operating more than 300 finance outlets into a fast-growing rental-purchase company. With eight stores open in just a few years and several more on the horizon, Moore has made an impact by opening the country’s single-largest RTO store with a 35,000 square-foot location in Georgia...more

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Video; Interview With Paul Gibbons, National Account Representative for Central File
Paul Gibbons, National Account Representative for Central File, reveals the elements that make their direct marketing programs consistently successful for rental dealers...more
 

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Video; Interview With Duane Knavel, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for Textron Financial
Duane Knavel talks about the unique programs available to RentDirect members including the chance to double an existing credit line to take full advantage of the many RentDirect buying show deals...more

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Video; Interview With Dave Eshelman, President and CEO of Salem Logistics
Dave Eshelman, President and CEO of Salem Logistics, explains how his company offers not just trucking but also technology services as a valued 3PL provider to rental dealers...more

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Video; Interview With Tim Moore, Vice President of Specialty Business Sales for DSI Systems, Inc.
Tim Moore, Vice President of Specialty Business Sales for DSI Systems, Inc., tells how his company’s involvement as a Warehouse Direct partner for RentDirect members gives dealers access to multiple top-of-the-line appliance and electronic brands...more

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Video; Interview With Joe Lapekas, Owner of TruckSkin
Joe Lapekas, owner of TruckSkin, explains how his company’s flex-face graphics system turns ordinary delivery trucks into valuable mobile billboards...more

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Video; Interview With James MacAlpine, Executive Director, RentDirect Nationwide
MacAlpine discussed benefits the group provides just for rental dealers, including some impressive statistics about the buying group’s exclusive Cash Back Now instant rebates...more

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Interview With Peter Krideras, National Marketing & Merchandise Manager for Radio Rentals of New South Wales, Australia.
From collecting on a fortnight to double-checking a customer’s scorecard, they might say things a bit differently in his part of the world. But with Radio Rentals’ stores averaging 3,000 units on rent per location, it’s lingo we could all do well to learn...more

Convention Coverage
RentDirect Nationwide Buying Show Welcomes 3,700 Participants; RTO Online Streams 10 Video Podcasts From Tradeshow Floor
Day One of the RentDirect Nationwide Buying Show opened with a bang as rental dealers and their retail counterparts swarmed a show floor packed with merchandise from nearly 200 vendors, including 12 brand-new exhibitors...more

Convention Coverage
Ohio Congressman John Kasich Keynotes RentDirect-Nationwide Meeting; Kicks Off Largest RTO Event Ever Held; Overall Attendance Sets New Record
“I believe independent dealers are the backbone of America. They personify the ideals of honesty, integrity and personal responsibility. Business doesn’t have to be just about the dollar. I think independent dealers, especially in smaller towns, are the people who keep our communities together. You’re the glue.” - John Kasich...more

Convention Coverage
RentDirect-Nationwide Member 2 Member Summit; General Session, Break Out Seminars Focus on Improving Rental Business Practices
Saturday's Member 2 Member General Session featured an update by Executive Director James MacAlpine. MacAlpine announced that RentDirect will have 300 member companies by the end of August and more than 150 were registered to attend this weekend’s meetings...more

TARA Changes Convention Dates; Name Will Change To Reflect Regional Nature Of Event
The Board of Directors of the Texas Association of Rental Agencies (TARA) set a tentative date of October 2008 for TARA's 25th annual convention. The TARA Board of Directors said the convention was moved from Spring to Fall to better align with traditional rent-to-own company buying cycles...more

Dorm Furnishings, Electronics Push Back-to-College Sales Past $47 Billion
“Colored laptops, stylish cell phones and distinctive dorm furniture will appeal to today’s students and should be big sellers in retail stores across the country." - Tracy Mullin, CEO, NRF...more
 

Radio Rentals Australia Turns A Corner; Company Plans Financial Services Rollout
Radio Rentals Australia operates 66 locations. Since raising $56 million in its initial public offering (IPO) in December, 2006, the company has seen significant growth - moving away from rent-to-rent and expanding its Rent-Try-Buy (RTB) program - what we yanks call Rent to Own...more

Ohio Representative Pryce Announces Retirement From Congress
Pryce cited the needs of her family as the primary reason for not seeking reelection. The announcement will almost certainly guarantee a win for Democrat Kilroy...more

Cash America Shuffles Senior Management; Feehan To Continue As CEO
Cash America International, the largest payday lender in the U.S., shuffled its senior management team and is bringing in new talent to help the company "leverage best practices and aggressively pursue new opportunities and initiatives." The company operates 928 total locations...more

Las Vegas Furniture Market Head Resigns; WMC Searching For Replacement
After only 11 months as CEO of Las Vegas Furniture Market, Harvey Dondero is resigning. Dondero, the former CEO Broyhill, a division of Furniture Brands International, will reportedly be named as CEO of "a global furniture manufacturer" next week...more

easyhome Raises Over $50,000 During 2007 Backpack Challenge; Employees Summit Mount Kilimanjaro To Support Fundraising
The company's top two 2006 fundraisers, Store Manager Pauline O’Brien and Regional Manager John Kanarens, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in support of the backpack fundraiser. On July 18th, John and Pauline reached the top of Mount Kilimanjaro and easyhome reached its goal of $52,000 raised...more

Rent to Own and Retail Side By Side; Badcock Home Furnishings Tests Side By Side Retail and Rent to Own In Largo, Florida
W. S. Badcock Corporation held a ribbon cutting Wednesday to celebrate the opening of its 8,000 sq ft Largo, Florida Home Now Rental Ownership store. Home Now is the rent-to-own division of Badcocks. See a complete photo gallery of the ribbon cutting and celebration...more

Government Awards IBM $120 Million Contract For Digital-to-Analog Converter Box Coupon Program Services; Consumers May Request Coupons Starting January 1, 2008
"By awarding the contract on schedule, NTIA is preparing to be open for business so consumers may request coupons starting January 1, 2008, as required by law." - John Kneuer, Administrator, National Telecommunications and Information Administration...more

RTO Vendor Profile
Whirlpool Building Blocks 2007
Whirlpool is one of Habitat for Humanity's largest corporate partners and donates a range and refrigerator to every new Habitat home in North America. Since the partnership began in 1999, thousands of Whirlpool employees have volunteered their own time to Habitat builds around the country...more

Washington D.C. Payday Loan Operators Go On Offensive; D.C. City Council To Vote On Ban September 18th
"We hope the City Council will follow our lead, and take the necessary steps to protect DC residents without taking away a valuable tool that helps Washingtonians make ends meet between paychecks." - Sonny Eyabi, President DC Financial Services Association...more

La-Z-Boy Sales Fall 12.6%; Company Cites Soft Retail Environment
"Against the backdrop of ongoing challenging business conditions pervasive throughout the furniture industry, our results reflect a significant drop in volume, which made it difficult to absorb our current fixed costs." - Kurt L. Darrow, CEO, La-Z-Boy...more

Simmons Bedding Sales Soar Despite Soft Retail Environment; New Flame Standards Drag Net
"In the second quarter and first half of this year our business operated at record sales levels despite a relatively soft home furnishings sales environment." - Charlie Eitel, CEO. Simmons...more

Aaron's "Lucky Dog" Helps Bring Smiles to Children With Cancer
"We are so grateful to Aaron's and the New York State Rental Dealers Association for their generous support of our summer book club." - Chuck Collard, who co-founded Carly’s Club with his daughter, Carly Collard Cottone, who succumbed to cancer in 2002...more

Online Training For Sales Associates CEknowhow Gains Popularity Among Top Retailers
The Consumer Electronics Association's (CEA) CEknowhow retail training program is five years old. Launched in 2002, CEknowhow is brand neutral and introduces retail sales associates to the fundamental information needed to understand and sell products like digital televisions...more

Interest In Plasma Falls As LCD Continues March Toward DTV Dominance
LCD will continue its ascension to market dominance and will have almost 75% of the market in 2011, with plasma fading to less than 15% according to high-tech market research In-Stat...more

RTO Vendor Profile
Protecting Your Assets
United One Source, a leader in the Asset Protection Business for more than 21 years, continues to expand into the rental industry with a strong reputation as an innovator of new products.  United One Source is known for premium products such as furniture pads, spring-loaded door jam protectors, and hand trucks and dollies...more

SEI Aaron's Donates To Special Olympics Through Aaron’s Community Outreach Program
"We are extremely grateful to Aarons and the members of the New York State Rental Dealers Association for their kind generosity to our athletes." - Laurie Kennedy, Regional Director, Special Olympics New York...more

LG Electronics Hopes To Draw Celebrity Trendsetters To "LG House Malibu"
"LG House Malibu provides a unique platform for us to showcase LG's premium product line to tastemakers and influencers." - Ehtisham Rabbani, VP Marketing, LG Mobile Phones...more

Rent to Own Store Crime Preparedness Questionnaire; How Prepared are YOU?
Take this questionnaire to see how you and your staff would react if your employees were threatened, or if an armed robbery occurs...more

SED To Distribute Sansui HDTV Televisions
Orion America, Inc. has announced the addition of SED International as an authorized distributor for its Sansui line of LCD, Plasma, and CRT high-definition televisions...more

Municipalities Pass Increasingly Bizarre Payday Loan, Check Cashing Restrictions
City governments will continue to impose heavy restrictions on non-traditional financial services companies until challenged in court. So far, no company appears willing to make that leap...more

Experts Predict LCD Panel Shortages In Second Half Of 2007
DisplayBank's analysis reveals that the supply of 25-inch and smaller LCD panels will be 5% to 10% shorter than demand in the second half...more

Consumers Delay Back-To-School Spending; 46% Plan To Buy Electronics
In summing up the outlook for the 2007 back-to-school shopping season, All in all it will be a good year for back-to-school, not a stellar one...more

Survey Shows Game System Owners Unaware Of Console Features
It should not come as a surprise that, despite marketing efforts to educate the consumer, awareness of functions that extend beyond gaming are low...more

U.S. Labor Department Publishes Rules Under Pension Protection Act
The Pension Protection Act (PPA) established rights of plan participants and beneficiaries to sell the company stock in their accounts and reinvest the proceeds into other investments available under a plan...more

Consumers Remain Wary; Purchasing Intentions Up Slightly From 2006
Future purchase plans (next 6 months) for most big ticket durables were up from August 06 for computers, furniture, appliances, jewelry, TVs and digital cameras. More than half (61.1%) of consumers questioned felt gas prices would rise by Labor Day...more

RTO Vendor Profile
That’s a Wrap
Utilizing company delivery vehicles as a marketing medium is not necessarily a new concept. After all, that's why companies put their names on vehicles to begin with. But thanks to the technologically advanced process used by TruckSkin, delivery trucks have never looked so good...more

Nationwide Marketing Group Reports 42% Growth in Convention Attendance
For the first time, RentDirect Nationwide, the leading rent-to-own buying and marketing group for independent rental dealers representing more than 260 rental dealers throughout the country, will host their annual Member 2 Member Summit in connection with the PrimeTime! by Nationwide event...more

Fox News Host and Former Ohio Congressman John Kasich To Keynote PrimeTime! by RentDirect-Nationwide Convention
RentDirect Nationwide, and parent company Nationwide Marketing Group, announced today that John Kasich is set to keynote their PrimeTime! convention kickoff meeting, Sunday, August 19th at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas...more

Prediction; Consumer Spending Will Not Collapse in Face of Sub Prime Housing Correction
The U.S. economy is expected to emerge from the recent hail storm in financial markets relatively unscathed and, once again, prove its remarkable resilience in the face of adversity...more
 

PLS Payday Loan Store Kicks Off Back-to-School Donation Program
"Our annual Back-to-School program is one of several charitable campaigns that PLS sponsors every year." - Bob Wolfberg, Co-President, PLS Financial Services...more

RTO Online Celebrates 10,000th Photo
The 10,000th photo was taken Saturday, July 14th 2007 at the American Rental Trade Expo Hog Roast in Nashville, Indiana during a "bubble blowing contest" held for children of employees...more

75% Of Top US Retailers Attend Las Vegas Furniture Market; Coaster To Triple Space Size
Coaster, Standard and AICO will move to larger spaces in the new Building C. Coaster will go from its current 13,429 square feet to 50,000 square feet...more

New York Legislature Galvanizes Rental Dealers; Legislative Conference Set For January
Since Elliot Spitzer took the Governors office, the New York press has focused heavily on consumer issues. There has been little official industry opposition to distortions by the press, who rely solely on the far left views of consumer advocacy groups for information. The Buffalo News ran an editorial Sunday entitled - Albany Snubs The Poor; Failure to address systemic abuses leaves needy New Yorkers exposed...more

RTO Vendor Profile
Toshiba and HD DVD
Sales of dedicated CE players are important because they show that HD DVD is gaining traction with movie-watching consumers. These are HDTV owners who are investing in a format specifically to watch high def movies but who also want to playback their current library of DVDs and CDs. HD DVD has the highest attachment rates for movies to players sold and that is currently from dedicated CE players, not for game consoles...more

Association Seeks Administrative Changes To National Do Not Call Registry
When the registry was first developed, FTC proposed a maximum annual fee per telemarketer of $3,000. However, by the time the Commission made the registry available in 2003, the cost for access was $7,375. In 2006 the FTC raised the rate to $17,050, a 263 percent increase in four years...more
 

The 640 Pound Home Theater System
Let's see...4 turn, 24 months...that'll be $5,000 per month please. Ok, so the new Swan 2.3HT ultra high-end home theater system isn't going to hit rent-to-own stores anytime soon. But the coolness factor is just too great to ignore...more

First Missouri Class Action Filed Against Advance America
The suit alleges that while Missouri state law allows borrowers to repay loans in up to six payments, Advance America limited borrowers to four payments...more

DSI Partners With Sharp
We’re pleased that Nationwide Members can now include product from Sharp, with their orders for Hitachi, Toshiba, Mitsubishi, Pioneer, Pioneer Elite, Fisher & Paykel, Monster Cable and DIRECTV, to ship via a single purchase order in 48 hours or less." - Mike Decker, Vice President of Marketing-Electronics, Nationwide Marketing Group...more

Warning; Virus ''Storms'' On The Rise
The e-card threats not only collect email addresses to be used for sending SPAM but current variants are installing rootkits - which hide themselves and unknowingly change the function and performance of the victims' computers...more

RTO Vendor Profile
On A Mission
The mission of Textron Financial Corporation (TFC) is simple. Textron Financial vows to consistently provide the highest level of quality financial services to manufacturers, distributors and dealers...more

RTO Vets Partner To Open Dixon Illinois Premier Rental Purchase
"The only way I could establish myself in a comfortable work environment, doing what I love and giving the service and respect that my customers deserve was to start my own company." - Candie Gustafson, Premier Franchisee...more

Furniture Tip-Overs Among Top Five Home Hazards
According to CPSC statistics, furniture tip-overs result in an average 22 deaths and 3,000 injuries every year. There were 31 deaths in the U.S. due to tip-overs in 2006...more

Payday Loan Industry Fires Back at Washington Post; Demands correction, investigation
"We offered to sit down with the editorial writer who refused to meet us. Instead she took the word of a disingenuous anti-business activist group, the Center for Responsible Lending, reprinting their factually inaccurate charges verbatim from their talking points. Newspapers are allowed to have opinions, but they should be informed opinions." - Tommy Moore, Executive Vice President, CFSA...more

RTO Vendor Profile
SED International
Everybody loves the chance to get two-for-one, and rental dealers are no different. Thanks to SED International, RentDirect members can now get two product categories in one single shipment...more

Next Generation of Consumers Spending Massive Amount of Time Online
If children are our future, then our future is online. The 18 million US college students heading back to campus this fall are the most wired generation yet. Their time spent online is measured in hours per day – not per week...more

SED To Distribute ASUS Notebooks
"ASUS creates unique and cutting edge products and features which provide a competitive advantage to resellers." - Jonathan Elster, Executive Vice...more
 

U.S. Employers Hold the Line on Planned Salary Increases
Modest 2007 salary budget increases of 3.9 percent, which are expected to plateau in 2008, present a challenge for managers. They will have to think more holistically and learn the art and science of ‘total rewards’ to attract, motivate and retain talent." - Anne C. Ruddy, President, WorldatWork...more

Talleys, Coles, ColorTyme Agree to Part Ways
Talley Rents and the Cole Group will join forces to operate their existing stores and future stores under the Rent 1st brand, which will focus on renting appliances and electronics with the ability to expand into new territories while protecting ColorTyme’s existing franchisees for a two year period...more

Oklahoma ColorTyme Franchisees Timmons and Hill Win Annual War Room Contest; 62% of franchisees achieve record deliveries in single day
ColorTyme stores across the country recently participated in the company's second annual War Room contest. The one day contest was a collaboration between ColorTyme, Inc. and the company’s Franchise Advisory Council (FAC) and served as the kick-off event for a three-week-long Grand Slam Promotion...more

RTO Vendor Profile
SEADRA Drives RTO Industry Profits
Scan the merchandise at a typical rental industry trade show, and you'll see furniture, appliances, electronics, and computers. But don't be surprised when, at the upcoming Nationwide RentDirect buying show, there's a car dealer in the mix...more

Electronics Growth Slows; PC Market Perks Up
All major markets generated positive growth in 2005 and 2006 and all these areas will continue to expand in 2007, although the total electronics equipment growth in 2007 will drop to 6 percent...more

LCD TV Shipments Double Plasma In 40 inch Plus Category; LCD Share Reaches 68%
This growth be attributed to the success of LCD TV brands and retailers in getting consumers excited over 1080p TVs where LCDs have dominated Plasmas and to the greater number of LCD TV brands overwhelming plasma TV brands in retail...more

RTO Online Releases Website Traffic Numbers For July, 2007
RTOonline.com registered over 518,000 visitor sessions and 4.3 million page views in July, 2007, a 74% increase in visitor sessions and a 33% increase in page views over July 2006...more

easyhome Same Store Sales Up 8.6%; Earnings Up 56.9%
"All of our four major product categories produced comparable revenue gains, including electronics, which improved 18% compared to 5% at the same time last year." - David Ingram, CEO, easyhome...more

Court Orders Advance America To Close Doors In Pennsylvania; Advance To Appeal
Advance America commented on what it called  an "unfavorable ruling " that was issued by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania directing Advance America's subsidiary in Pennsylvania to immediately suspend its current operations and discontinue its "Choice Line of Credit" in the state...more

Renting The Good Life; By Jim Hawkins, Law Clerk to the Honorable Jerry E. Smith, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
Academic literature and court decisions are replete with calls to ban or severely inhibit the rent-to-own industry. The argument is simple enough: Rent-to-own firms charge exorbitant prices to the most needy and vulnerable segments of society...more

Furniture Color Trends For 2008
Color impacts consumers in a conscious and subconscious way. There will be no one or two hot colors to watch for in the 2008-2009 color forecast. Instead, it will be a more varied approach featuring color families...more

The Smartest Link in Your Supply Chain
Salem Logistics has been in business for 21 years, offering third-party logistics, trucking, warehouse and distribution services to its clients. Their current customer list includes both manufacturers and retail companies. According to CEO and President Dave Eshelman, Salem Logistics wants the RTO community to focus on its core business of renting merchandise and leave the major transportation worries to them...more

Rent-A-Center Reports Same Store Sales Up 2.7%; Warns For Q3 and 4
"..the business environment has been very challenging as of late. We believe that the financial challenges facing our customers have increased recently, resulting in a softer outlook for the balance of this year." - Mark Speese, CEO, Rent-A-Center...more

Las Vegas Furniture Market Kicks Off; 50,000 Buyers Expected
"World Market Center Las Vegas is the source for new trends and new products that will soon be available at retail to consumers. If it’s new, it’s here." - Dave Palmer General Manager, World Market Center...more

Reducing Employee Turnover; Size Matters
Each additional year of tenure on a job reduces the probability of turnover by 81 percent. It also established that the offering of benefits reduces the probability of an employee leaving in a given year by slightly more than 26 percent...more

Blu-ray or HD?, Consumers Still Confused; Blu-ray Gains Slight Lead In Sales Forecast
Recent retail developments, support from major Hollywood studios, and inclusion of the format in the PlayStation 3 puts the Blu-ray format in the lead...more

Expert Predicts Back-to-School Spending to Grow Meagerly in 2007
92.6% of parents say they will spend less on each item this year compared to 75.3% last year and 32.8% in 2005. The reason most give is higher gas prices...more

Rent to Own Industry Vet Tom Gould Opens Greensboro NC Premier Wheel Rentals
"I come from a family of entrepreneurs. I feel that it is the right time for wheel rentals and that the product is right. I want to capitalize on a fairly new concept in rent to own that’s growing. I don't want to wake up later and wonder if I should have done it." - Tom Gould, Premier Wheel Rentals Franchisee...more

RTO Vendor Profile
RTO Dealers Get the Big Picture From Mitsubishi
"LCD seems to be the television technology for the long-term, and our LCD flat panel strategy is all about offering more picture in less space. A typical LCD set is mounted within a 2" frame, but ours is less than 1" so it really offers maximum screen space. Plus, our sets offer bottom-mounted speakers that are hidden for a low-profile design." - Frank DeMartin, Vice President of Marketing for Mitsubishi...more

Kenwood And JVC Having Affair; Considering Marriage
"Japan Victor (JVC) and Kenwood agree that a strategic alliance in car electronics and home/portable audio, as well as the unification of both companies’ management, would bring opportunities for success in a challenging AV market." - Shoichiro Eguchi, President, Kenwood USA Corporation...more

Payday Loan Companies Continue Solid Growth
"We are pleased to have our first center operating outside of the United States and look forward to expanding our business in the United Kingdom and elsewhere." - Ken Compton, President and CEO Advance America...more

14 States Prepare For August Sales Tax Holidays; Concept expanding
The tax holiday phenomenon continues to expand beyond the month of August and beyon back-to-school supplies. Shoppers in Tennessee will repeat its August holiday for three days in late March 2008...more

Survey; Workers Reveal Which TV Show Bosses Remind Them of Their Own
When asked which TV boss most reminds them of their own boss, the most popular responses from workers included Sam Malone from "Cheers", Charlie from "Charlie's Angels", Judge Judy from "Judge Judy...more

RTO Vendor Profile
Positive Cash Flow
"I can't stress enough that a rent-to-own store can't afford the loss it takes when a customer comes in, does not see that big screen television set and then leaves. That big screen may cost you $1000 to purchase, but you just lost $2500 when that customer walked out empty-handed." - Bill Lassiter, Vice President , Lynnray Financial...more

Aaron Rents Reports 5% Same Store Sales Growth In Q2; Net Falls
Consolidated rentals and fees for both the second quarter and first half advanced 13% over the comparable previous year periods. In addition, franchise royalties and fees were up 18% and 19% for the second quarter and year-to-date...more

RTO Crime Prevention Tips
Both rent-to-own and retail stores are more susceptible to robbery attempts during opening and closing procedures. Fewer employees and customers to contend with coupled with end-of-day cash handling mean employees must be extra vigilant during these critical few hours...more

dPi Teleconnect Acquires Vertex Communications; Largest Acquisition to Date
"Vertex is our fourth acquisition this year, and it represents our largest overall acquisition to date. We are particularly excited about the potential for growth that this acquisition represents." - David Dorwart, President and CEO, dPi...more

Technology That Will Change The Way You Do Business
In our last edition of Technology That Will Change Your Business, we featured Microsoft Surface Computing (see story). This installment will focus on 3D video...more

Grand Opening Of Mizati's First Rent to Own Store Set For This Friday
"There are things that you need to have, and things that you want to have, and a brand new set of wheels are what most people have got to have when they get a new car." - Hazel Chu, CEO, Mizati Luxury Alloy Wheels...more

RTO Vendor Profile
GE; Imagination at Work
"GE has a very strong relationship with Nationwide Marketing Group and we continue to expand our opportunities into the rental industry with RentDirect. Our goal is to attract and service more members who have not had the chance to merchandise GE and show them the difference of working with top-quality products backed by a true factory service network." - Paul Eichberger, Rental Sales Manager. GE Appliances...more

California Supreme Court Rules Against Frivolous Lawsuits
"This is a great win for small businesses that are often the target of frivolous lawsuits because attorneys know that small employers don't have the resources available to defend themselves against these claims." - Karen Harned, Executive Director, NFIB Legal Foundation...more

Brand Source Sponsors New Orleans Fund Raiser
The ReNew Orleans project is designed around the second anniversary of Katrina, which devastated major parts of New Orleans. The building will be full service, and include a police substation. The grounds will include baseball and soccer fields...more

RTO Vendor Profile
Mattress Rentals Roll Forward
For years, mattress deliveries have posed unique challenges, particularly when narrow stairwells and sharp turns are part of the territory. However, Garme (pronounced gar-MAY) USA could change all that with the line of mattresses they claim are not only are better for customers, they're better for your rental business, as well...more