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RentDirect Preview
Creative Chill; The Coolest Rent to Own Product of 2008
The refrigerators hold up to 60 cans of your favorite beverage and they come with the logo of your favorite collegiate sports team which makes them a very appealing item on a regional level...more

RentDirect Preview
Quarter of a Million Reasons Why RTO Dealers Choose E.H.P. Direct South
There are distributors and then there are fulfillment partners. What's the difference? While both fill similar roles in storing, selling and then getting merchandise to rental stores, a fulfillment partner tends to be more focused in its approach...more

RentDirect Preview
Frigidaire's RentDirect Program; Wash Upon a Star
Today, rental customers closely follow trends in the retail marketplace and demand more in performance and appearance from their home appliances. Advancements by companies like Frigidaire have made today's appliances not just more attractive, but also more energy-efficient...more

RentDirect Preview
GE Supplies RTO Industry Appliances That Work as Good as They Look
GE Appliances will showcase its latest design successes at the Nationwide RentDirect show in Dallas, including new French Door Refrigerators and the latest colors in laundry pairs...more

RentDirect Preview
Extend the Life of Rent to Own Appliances With Anti-Vibration Pads From Kellett
"Three years ago, when front load washers first became prevalent for home usage, we noticed an increase in consumers visiting our industrial products website," said Beverly Davis, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Kellett Enterprises, Inc...more

RentDirect Preview
Marcone Appliance Parts and Supply For the Rent to Own Industry
Marcone is a third-generation, family-owned business that is well-known as the #1 product support company in the country with world class service provided through each of its 40 nationwide locations...more

RentDirect Preview
New Appliance Line From Sunbeam is Winning RentDirect Members
The Sunbeam line up includes such appliance standards as ranges, refrigerators, and tabletop microwave ovens. They also offer 'lifestyle' appliances like room air conditioners and even beer and wine chillers...more

RentDirect Preview
Whirlpool and RentDirect; Building Blocks 2007
The Whirlpool¨ Building Blocks homes were built on a recently donated piece of land in Guadalupe, a small community located between Phoenix and Tempe, Arizona. From start to finish, nearly 300 volunteers raised walls and roofs...more
 

RentDirect Preview
Capital Inventory Solutions Provides Rent to Own Dealers Unique Inventory Financing Alternatives
Capital Solutions for the Home Product Industry's' name says it all. The company has a proud history of providing rental dealers with unique and varied financing opportunities and creating new programs to keep the rental business model a profitable one...more

RentDirect Preview
Keeping Your RTO Cash Flow Positive; Lynnray Financial
With the rental transaction taking in a mere fraction each week of what the merchandise cost the rental owner to acquire, RTO stores are always in a cash flow crunch. Lassiter says that's why dealers need the financial vision of a company like Lynnray Financial securely in their corner...more

RentDirect Preview
Textron on A Mission to Finance the RTO Industry's Inventory
In addition to providing Home Source™ retail financing and FasTurn™ wholesale inventory financing, Textron Financial also offers a Dealer Credit Line product which brings rental store owners lower rates, streamlined order processing and incredibly responsive inventory financing...more

RentDirect Preview
Dimplex Electric Fireplaces Lead Hot-selling RTO Category
Nothing says "home" quite like a warm hearth. According to the National Association of Home Builders, a fireplace is one of the top three most-desired features for new homebuyers...more

RentDirect Preview
Artistic Resources Rent to Own Wall Art Program
If a picture is worth a thousand words, than a testimonial about a picture program should be much longer. Yet rental dealers who have experienced success with the Artistic Resources wall art program sum up their experience in just a few words...more

RentDirect Preview
Guardsman Helps Rent to Own Companies Extend the Life of Rental Inventory
Guardsman offers the most complete selection of furniture care products and is considered an industry leader. Guardsman products are developed with furniture manufacturer's specifications in mind, and are formulated to solve most furniture repair problems...more

RentDirect Preview
The High Definition of Rent to Own Art
Remember the first time you saw the crisp, clear picture of a high-definition television image? You wanted to reach right in and touch the scene, it looked so real. Well that same impulse occurs the first time you see HD Canvas Art in person...more
 

RentDirect Preview
Helping RentDirect Members Make the Most Of Home Furnishings
One of the company's strengths is a spectacular array of styles available at price points between $180 and $200 per piece. The Entree Casual Dining brand covers a wide selection of exceptional value and well designed casual dining...more

RentDirect Preview
Ashley Focuses On Rent to Own Channel
Ashley Furniture Industries is hardly your typical furniture company. As the nation's top-selling furniture brand, Ashley continues to dominate the industry and differentiate its offerings by working with customers as a complete business partner...more

RentDirect Preview
Baseline Licensed with NASCAR to Produce Unique RTO Sports Furniture Line
With two years of sales under its belt, Baseline Licensing Group has proven how well sports furniture, officially licensed with the team logos featuring the NFL, Collegiate logos, NASCAR, MLB and NBA, performs from a quality and retention standpoint with the RTO customer...more

RentDirect Preview
Catnapper; Supplying RentDirect Members with Nine Lives
Catnapper provides unique motion furniture to rental dealers in several categories – rocker recliners, Leather Touch recliners, Heat and Massage recliners, the patented Pow'r Lounger recliners, motion sofas, motion leather sofas and sectionals...more

RentDirect Preview
Coaster Company Takes RentDirect Coast to Coast
Coaster's inventory contains no less than 3,200 different items, all of which are kept in-stock at each of their seven warehouses across the country. The company's on-hand inventory includes living rooms, bedrooms, and dining rooms plus occasional tables and decorative accents like mirrors and lamps...more

RentDirect Preview
Real Furniture Real Fast; Innovex Ready to Assemble Furniture
Innovex Home Products is a leader in the ready-to-assemble office furniture industry, but you won't find any oak desktops in their lineup. Instead, Innovex prides itself on a more European design sensibility that's perfectly in line with RTO...more
 

RentDirect Preview
Legends Furniture Invites RentDirect Members to Reconnect With the Good Life
From their humble beginnings back in 1990 in an 800 square foot garage to Legends Furniture's shiny new state-of-the-art facility on 26+ acres, the company's focus on quality and customer service has never wavered...more

Vegas Furniture Market Final Report; 50,000 Attendees From 100 Countries
Total registrations well exceeded the historic 50,000 average, and included registrations from more than 100 countries – on par with January 2007's mega market which featured the opening of Building B...more

Aaron Rents Reports Same Store Sales Increase; Earnings Drop in Q4
For the year, revenues increased 13% to $1.495 billion compared to $1.327 billion for the 2006 year. Net earnings were $80.3 million versus $78.6 million a year ago. Diluted earnings per share were $1.46 for 2007 and $1.47 in 2006...more

Aaron Rents Earnings Webcast Set For Wednesday February 20
In January, Aaron's lowered its guidance citing "challenging conditions." Aaron's is expected to report a 3.9% increase in same store revenues for the Aaron's Sales & Lease Ownership division...more

Multi-Room Entertainment System Sales to Double in Five Years
The lower cost and proliferation of easy-to-install wireless entertainment technologies could open up a whole new market for rent-to-own and leasing companies...more

RTOFunding.com Reaffirms Commitment To Rent-to-Own Industry; Signs unique Funding Agreement
RTOFunding.com, a new financial resource for the rental-purchase industry powered by Vanguard Leasing, today announced the successful funding of Rent Your World, an RTO store located in South Carolina... more

Blu-ray Win Doesn't Solve Basic Consumer Issues
Many are claiming that Wal Mart's recent decision to carry Blu-ray exclusively is the death-knell for HD-DVD. While this may be true, HD-DVD going the way of Betamax does not solve the much larger issue...more

Worldwide LCD TV Shipments Surpass CRTs for First Time
LCD is the only other technology that extends down in screen size to less than 20”, which makes it a natural replacement to CRT TVs, as consumers upgrade and CRT TV tube capacity shrinks...more

RentDirect Preview
TruckSkin Makes Your Rent to Own Fleet a Roving Billboard
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

RentDirect Preview
Adobe Commercial Trucks Helps The RTO Industry Keep On Truckin'
It's pretty simple math. A company purchasing one truck will never get the same price as a company purchasing several dozen in a single year. That is why smart independent dealers call someone like Wes Grizzle, Sales Specialist for Adobe Commercial Trucks, formerly Kelly Commercial Trucks...more

RentDirect Preview
Salem Logistics; The Smartest Link in Your Rent to Own Supply Chain
Calling Salem Logistics a transportation company is like calling Microsoft a computer company. It's an accurate description, but it doesn't do nearly enough to explain the myriad of services and capabilities each company provides...more

Bauer, Newman Open Harrisburg Pennsylvania Premier Rental Purchase
With 28 years of RTO experience between them, Dave Bauer and Shawn Newman have gone into business together, opening their first Premier Rental-Purchase store in Harrisburg, Pa...more

Older, White Households More Digital-Ready than Younger, Black and Hispanic Households
Nielsen found that adults over 55 are better prepared than younger households; and Whites and Asians are more ready than Blacks. More Hispanic households still rely on analog, over-the-air broadcast television than non-Hispanics...more

RentDirect Preview
Pump Up Your Rent to Own Store Signage
Experts say that a print-on-demand signage program is one sure way to increase the perceived value of your merchandise, and enhance the in-store effectiveness of your external marketing program...more

RentDirect Preview
One Stop Rent to Own Industry Uniform Stop
Employee uniforms have begun to expand beyond the prevalent but predictable denim shirt/khaki pant combo and into a wider range of shirt and pant styles...more

RentDirect Preview
Rent to Own Store in a Box
Much has changed since Pensak's first rental show, and his business has grown and changed right along with the rental dealers he serves. Today, INform Print & Promotions offers every form a store needs plus several other items, including LED signage, ad specialties, promotional items and even advertising materials...more
 

RentDirect Preview
Retaining Your Rent to Own Customers
Out of 250 different types of RTO mailers, about 25-30 really work. Statistics show that for every 500 customers a store has on rent, 150 are simultaneously renting from a competitor...more

Is Your TV Ad Campaign Super Bowl Worthy?
There must be a happy, affordable medium between a $1 million CGI production and a guy in a cheap suit screaming 'first week free'...more
 

Rent-to-Own Professional Training Series Topic #1; Five Tips For Making Change Stick
In truth, driving sustainable change requires persistence, skill and hard work. Armed with a strategy and an understanding of what it takes to make change stick, you can be successful. Below are five things you need to know and do to lead sustainable change...more

RTO Online Launches Rent-to-Own Professional Training Series
RTO Online announced the launch of the Rent-to-Own Professional Training Series - a weekly series of articles aimed at providing professional and personal development to owners, executives and managers of rental-purchase / leasing companies...more

Republican Trio LaTourette, Aderholt, King Cosponsor Rental Purchase Agreement Act
Congressman LaTourette is serving his seventh term in the United States House of Representatives and is a longtime member of the House Committee on Financial Services, where he serves on the Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit subcommittee, the committee of jurisdiction for the Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act...more

Missouri Reps Akin and Graves Support Rental Purchase Agreement Act
Seven of Missouri's nine Representatives now cosponsor the Act including the bills primary sponsor, Democrat William Lacy Clay...more

Tax Rebate Checks to Pump $43 Billion into Economy
The $152 billion measure will provide tax rebate checks of up to $600 per working individual and $1,200 per married couple, plus $300 per child for families with children and new tax incentives for job-creating business investments...more

RentDirect Preview
Advertising Made Easy; RTO Life is Better When You Know Jack
Jack Sweat says both the commercials and also the print materials feature a variety of offers that dealers can select to customize the promotion to their market. And, thanks to the huge volume of print managed by AME (more than 10 million circulars a month!); the company will pass increased cost efficiencies along to dealers via a new "DIZCOUNT" printing program...more
 

RentDirect Preview
Have a Banner Rent to Own Year
Think only the major rental chains have access to dedicated marketing partners? The kind who make sure their advertising programs are consistent, on brand, and within budget? Think again, says Bill Sauther, President of Banner Retail Marketing Group...more

Rate of Business Openings In Rural Versus Urban Areas Nearly Equal
The differences in the rate of business births and closures between rural, suburban, and urban areas, while statistically significant, is in fact quite small...more

Bedding Association Reports Successful Summit
Mattress manufacturers and their suppliers, met with representatives of leading mattress retailers on February 7, 2008 in Naples, FL. to explore opportunities to work together to expand the market for mattress sales...more

Maintaining The Integrity Of The Rental Application Process
onsider this example. If you serve 25 customers a week and spend $8.00 an hour for an employee to check all the information on a customer's application, say at 15 minutes each, you will spend $216 a month and 27 hours of time on the process...more

Employee Codes of Practice Vital For Dealings With Third Parties
Companies struggle with the competing tensions that arise from developing business relationships with local partners that aren't always mindful or responsive to a broad range of stakeholder concerns...more

Virginia House Passes Payday Loan Rate Cap; Bill Goes To Senate
The Payday Loan Act prohibits a payday lender from making a payday loan if the loan would cause the borrower to have more than one payday loan outstanding at the same time, or more than five loans in a year...more

RentDirect Nationwide to Set Another RTO Industry Attendance Record
Management Credits Interest in Bud Gates' General Session and RentDirect's New Quarterly Rebate Program with Generating Largest-Ever Pre-Registration Numbers...more

easyhome Schedules February 22 Conference Call
easyhome, Canada's largest rent to own company, will webcast it's management conference call to discuss results for the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2007...more

Hispanics Will Account For 30% Of U.S. Population By 2050
The Latino population, already the nation's largest minority group, will triple in size and will account for most of the nation's population growth from 2005 through 2050...more

Rent-to-Own Industry Legislative Action Tools on RTO Online
RTO Online hosts a complete online legislative action tool-set for rent-to-own industry professionals supporting the Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Act - S.1012 as introduced by Senator Mary Landrieu (D) and H.R.1767 as introduced by Representative William Lacy Clay (D)...more

RentDirect Preview
AMCASE Develops Complete Rent to Own Store Fixture Set
The design of major appliances and home electronics has changed drastically in the past several years, and it only makes sense that the way rental dealers display these items would change, too...more

RentDirect Preview
Protecting Your Rent to Own Assets With The Proper Tools
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...more

Consumers Can Sue Debt Collector, Federal Court Rules
In the suit, Del Campo v. ACCS, plaintiffs claim that ACCS's threats of prosecution violated their rights under state and federal consumer protection laws...more

High Point Announces Spring 2008 Furniture Market Entertainment Lineup
The Market Authority announced its entertainment lineup for the Spring High Point Furniture Market set for April 7-13, 2008...more

The R Word; Consumer Confidence Drops On Recession Fears
With consumer spending driving 70 per cent of the U.S. economy, a pullback in spending increases the risk that the country could tip into recession...more

Video
Buying RTO Inventory; Interview With Bart Stamper, Executive Director, Premier Companies Purchasing Co-op
The rent to own industry is always on the leading edge of tech. Our customers want the latest and greatest technology. That's a lesson learned over the last decade. The hard part is balancing price and technology...more
 

Business Activity Tax Simplification Act (BATSA) Introduced in House
BATSA ensures that a state may not tax a business unless the business has some physical presence within the state...more

New Jersey Rent-to-own Bill Introduced With Ten Co-sponsors
The bill protects consumers and clarifies the rights and responsibilities of consumers and merchants by defining and regulating rental-purchase agreements involving personal property used for personal, family, or household purposes...more

Flexsteel Bucks Furniture Manufacturing Trend
Despite what the CEO of Stanley Furniture calls "the longest and deepest furniture recession in a generation," Flexsteel Industries seems, if not totally unaffected, at least able to buck the downward trend...more

02-07-08
Photo gallery
Missouri Rental Dealers Continue To Expand Training Opportunities
Missouri has become one of the most active state rent-to-own trade associations in the country by increasing member value through programs like the Summer Training Seminar and other value-building events...more

Video
Payday Loan Industry Launches New Ads Featuring Customers
As legislators, lobbyists and consumer advocates argue both sides of the Payday Loan issue, there is one group whose voice is not being heard - customers...more

Strong Rent to Own Background Makes DSI Warehouse Direct The Right Choice
Not only is DSI the nation's largest distributor of electronics and appliances, but they also employ a dedicated RTO team made up of employees who have spent decades in the field working for rental stores themselves...more

Nunn Better - Nunn Company and RentDirect
Founded in 1910, Nunn Co. has enjoyed a slow but steady growth rate that has allowed them to partner with their dealers in a way that few other distributors have. With a strong following in Texas, their coverage area extends well into New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas and now Colorado, as well...more

Conflicting Data on Consumer Awareness of DTV Transition
Survey results released in the last two months show conflicting data regarding U.S. consumer readiness for the 2009 transiting to digital TV broadcasting...more
 

Iowa Senate Committee Votes To Modify Consumer Rental Purchase Agreement Law
The bill modifies the definition of "personal property" in the Iowa consumer credit code contained in Code chapter 537 relating to consumer rental purchase agreements to exclude property in the form of a motor vehicle...more

Rentcash Same Store Sales Rise; Rent to Own Division Spin-off Progressing
"The rental division remains well-positioned for the previously announced spin-off to existing shareholders, anticipated to occur in the third quarter of this fiscal year." - Gordon Reykdal, Chairman and CEO, Rentcash...more

Consumer Spending Intentions Drop; Nearly half expect to spend less in February
With optimism decreasing, consumers who participated in the January Monitor survey struck a decidedly cautious note when it came to spending intentions...more

George Mason University and Colby College Release New Study on Payday Lending
The study found that allowing individuals access to payday loans improves the borrowers' ability to survive financially...more

Sony Tops U.S. LCD Shipments For First Time
Samsung moved up to #2 at 12.3%, just half a percent behind Sony as both brands exceeded a million units shipped during the quarter...more

Rent to Own Industry Supplier ALMO Tops 1 Million Sq Ft of Warehouse Space
ALMO President and COO Warren Chaiken explains, "We understand the products, we understand the rental business, and we help even a small operation work under a 'just in time' inventory process...more

Welton USA; Providing Solutions to the Rent to Own Industry
Welton USA wants to be known as a "value-added" supplier to the rental industry. President Steve Sherman has been connected to the RTO business for more than 23 years and understands that rental stores have specific requirements for merchandise...more

Former Ontario Premier Chief of Staff Joins Dollar Financial Board
McLaughlin joined the office of the Premier of Ontario in 1996 and while serving as the Chief of Staff had responsibility for direct support to the Premier...more

Rentcash to Webcast February 7th Conference Call
Rentcash operates over 400 stores across Canada under three banners: The Cash Store, Instaloans and Insta-rent...more

Rent-A-Center Reports Q4 Loss; Settles California Wage Suit For $11 Million
"We are generally pleased with the results for the fourth quarter...At the same time, the business environment remains uncertain." - Mark E. Speese. Chairman and CEO, Rent-A-Center...more

Family And Medical Leave Act Extended To Cover Members Of Armed Services
The Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) now permits certain family members to take up to 26 workweeks of leave to care for a member of the Armed Forces. See printable version...more

Barack Obama Backs Plan To Cap Payday Loans
Payday loans have become an important offering of many Rent-to-Own companies in recent years. Any anti payday loan legislation would have a wide ranging affect on the rent-to-own industry...more
 

CPSC Gives Notice On Upholstered Furniture Flammability Standard
The proposed rule would require furniture manufacturers, already under extreme economic pressure, to use a combination of chemicals and new manufacturing methods that would slow the spread of a fire in upholstered furniture...more

Sustain and Grow Your Customer Relationships
There is a strong correlation between long-term business success and long term customer relationships. Successful businesses capitalize on every stage of the customer life cycle-from customer approval, customer acquisition, customer retention and customer growth...more

Groovy: 40th Anniversary of Summer of Love To Influence Furniture Styles in 2009
It's the 40th anniversary of the summer of love and that's triggered a nostalgic interest in the printed patterns from the late 1960s to the early 1970s...more

Payday Lender Dollar Financial Added To NASDAQ Financial-100 Index
"We are honored to receive this recognition from Nasdaq and to be included with the top financial services companies in the world." - Jeffrey Weiss, CEO, Dollar Financial...more

RTO Online Reports 2007 Results; 53 Million Page Views
For the year ended December 31, 2007, user sessions increased 40% over 2006 to 4.5 million. Page views increased 52% to 53.6 million. Average page views per session increased 14% to 12.5...more

Microsoft Offers $44.6 Billion For Yahoo!
"We have great respect for Yahoo!, and together we can offer an increasingly exciting set of solutions for consumers, publishers and advertisers while becoming better positioned to compete in the online services market." - Steve Ballmer, chief executive officer of Microsoft...more

Plasma TV Shipments Smash Previous Record
Price parity with LCD and increasing availability of 1080p models contributed to the 42% increase in global Plasma (PDP) TV shipments in the fourth quarter of 2007 and a 62% increase over the same quarter in 2006...more

Sealy Reports Twenty Percent Increase In Bedding Shipments; Rising Raw Material Costs Hurt Profit
"The difficult consumer spending environment combined with rising commodity cost pressures is expected to continue for the next few quarters." - David J. McIlquham, Chairman and CEO, Sealy...more

Rent-A-Tire Acquires Rent-A-Wheel of Florida; Company Plans Coast to Coast Expansion
"This acquisition gives us a launching pad to the Southeast and brings us one step closer to our plan of developing every major market from coast to coast." - John Bowlin, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Rent-A-Tire...more

Pioneer Plasma TV Sales Soft
Company officials also lowered operating revenue forecasts because "plasma display sales are projected to fall below forecasts chiefly in Europe and North America."...more

Whirlpool Closes Two More North American Plants
"These decisions, while difficult, are an important part of our overall operating plans, and will help ensure that we remain competitive in North America." - Al Holaday, Vice President, Whirlpool North America Manufacturing...more

Ten Step Guide to Hiring Employees In Compliance With State and Federal Regulations
Understanding your regulatory requirements as an employer is crucial to the success of your business. This guide lays out ten easy steps for new employers to follow to ensure compliance with key federal and state regulations...more

Bryce Acquires Rights to M&B Jewelry
The recently-finalized agreement will ensure an "uninterrupted flow of merchandise" to customers of M&B Jewelry Designs...more

Consumers Have Major Misconceptions About Digital TV Transition
Of those who will have at least one TV affected, nearly two-thirds (61%) incorrectly believe they are not affected, do not know that they are affected or are completely unaware of the transition...more

A New Breed of Rent-to-Own: Largo ColorTyme first to feature retail-inspired environment
Largo's first ColorTyme, which opened in early December, represents the next generation store for the nation's oldest rent-to-own (RTO) company, with an updated retail-inspired design that will begin emerging at ColorTyme locations nationwide in 2008...more

01-30-08
Negative Rent to Own Industry Press At Fifteen Year Low
An analysis of archived press reports containing common keywords and phrases associated with the rent to own industry shows that although articles referencing the industry have tripled since 1995, the percentage of articles considered negative decreased from a high of 33.54% in 1995 to just 2.43% in 2007...more
 

Report: Weakness Forecasted For Consumer Spending On Furniture, Appliances, Electronics
"The four month decline in the index suggests that, in the next few months, there will be significant weakness in consumer spending on consumer electronics, furniture, appliances, cars, home improvement products and other big ticket items." - Ira Kalish, Director, Deloitte Research...more

Bassett Furniture 2007 Sales Fall 12%
"Our major challenge in 2007 has been to continue to dedicate operating and capital resources to staff our retail organization, to invest in our marketing strategies, and to design and construct our new prototype store while suffering through the worst industry wide sales slump in memory." - Robert H. Spilman Jr., President and CEO, Bassett...more

Oops: Payday Loan Stores Do Not Target Poor Neighborhoods
"We are grateful the Virginia Pilot and reporter Meaghan Hoyer have invested the time and resources to get the truth about payday lenders and not just rely on the word of our critics." - Darrin Andersen, President, Community Financial Services Association of America...more

Vegas Furniture Market Update
Furniture: Hot Color Trends For 2008
Fashion and global trends are also strong precursor to what will show up on home furnishings. Celebrity Bono's red social action campaign took the color beyond trend and influenced Pantone's chili pepper red. Environmental issues area also spurring green beyond a color trend. Blue is the most popular color with consumers and crosses over into many home decorating areas in shades of pinks and purples...more

Vegas Furniture Market Update
Ten Vegas Furniture Market Attendees Hit the Jackpot Monday
The Fashion 500 Runway Awards will randomly select 10 winners each day of market to receive $5,000...more

Poll: Small Business Economic Confidence Falls to 18-Month Low
However, the numbers that measure owners' confidence in their own businesses have been fairly constant. It is too early to tell whether any of the proposed stimulus plans are affecting the mood of the small business segment of the economy...more

Consumers Shopping Online Up Forty Percent in Two Years
According to Nielsen, online shoppers tend to stick to the shopping sites they are familiar with, with 60 percent saying they buy mostly from the same site. "This shows the importance of capturing the tens of millions of new online shoppers as they make their first purchases on the Internet...more

Stanley Furniture CEO: "We're in the longest and deepest furniture recession in a generation."
"While the industry-wide slowdown that began in late 2005 showed signs of abating in early 2007, business conditions worsened as the year progressed and we now find ourselves mired in the longest and deepest furniture recession in a generation." - Jeffrey R. Scheffer, President and Chief Executive Officer, Stanley Furniture...more

Vegas Furniture Market Update
Las Vegas Furniture Market GM Palmer Retires
World Market Center announced today that Dave Palmer, general manager of World Market Center, will retire following the January 2008 Las Vegas Market. Palmer will continue to serve as a consultant to World Market Center...more

Vegas Furniture Market Update
Former Century Furniture Industries President Bob Maricich Named CEO Of World Market Center in Las Vegas
Maricich served for many years on the American Furniture Manufacturers Association Board of Directors and most recently was the past chairman of the executive committee...more

Locally Targeted Online Advertising Can Benefit Independent Rent to Own Companies
Most Rent to Own companies operate fewer than 5 locations. National online advertising is ineffective if your target market exists only in a single market or region. Enter locally targeted online ad campaigns...more

Over Half of U.S. Consumers Want To Watch Super Bowl In High Definition
35% of consumers are more likely to host a Super Bowl party of their own if they have the HD experience at home...more

Vegas Furniture Market Update
Las Vegas Furniture Market Kicks Off Today
In the midst of a challenging economic climate, Las Vegas Market is still moving at full speed. Organizers are delivering a high-energy event to help attendees capitalize on opportunities to grow profitably...more
 

Measuring Customer Satisfaction Depends on Asking the Right Questions
Measuring customer behaviors by going beyond typical customer satisfaction that measure only buying behaviors are missing critical information that ultimately can affect their bottom line...more

Super Bowl To Drive 2 Million HDTV Rentals, Sales
Rent to Own company's always see a surge in rentals leading up to the Super Bowl. While most are returned shortly after, some stick RTO professionals see special event rentals as an opportunity to introduce their products and services to a wider audience...more
 

Whirlpool Suit Seeks To Halt LG Refrigerator Sales
Whirlpool Corporation (NYSE:WHR) has filed a patent infringement suit against LG Electronics. If successful, the suit would prevent the import of the majority of the refrigerators sold in the U.S. by LG...more

Poll: Print Inserts Pass TV Ads In Influence; Consumer Purchasing intent Lowest Since 9-11
40 percent of Americans polled indicated they're less likely to make purchases over $100 in the coming year, 24 percent more than after 9/11...more

Women, Thirty Somethings Drive Increased Game Console Sales
Consumer demographic data verifies that game console purchase by two non-traditional consumer groups grew over-proportionately to the whole: females and individuals over the ages of 35...more

Payday Lender EZCORP Reports Revenue Up 22%
"While our stock price has been challenged by what has happened in the finance sector and the larger economy, we continued to do what we said we would do and delivered our 22nd consecutive quarter of year over year net income growth." - Joe Rotunda, CEO, EZCORP...more

Video Podcast
Convention Coverage
Bleeding Blue and Yellow - Mike Lewis Named 2007 Premier Companies' Dealer of the Year
A true-believer, Lewis told RTO Online in an interview Tuesday, "I bleed blue and yellow!" See our Video Podcast Interview with Mike Lewis, 2007 Premier Companies Dealer of the Year (running time 10:15)...more
 

Aarons Founder Charlie Loudermilk Funds Learn and Earn Program
Fulton county Georgia schools will pay students $8 an hour to attend after school tutoring programs through the "Learn & Earn" program funded by Aaron Rents (RNT) founder Charlie Loudermilk...more

Aaron Rents New Store Drag, Reduced Same Store Sales Hurt Q4 Earnings; Lowers Guidance
"Although conditions in some of our markets are currently challenging, we are confident that the products and services we offer to credit constrained consumers will continue to be in high demand in the future." - R. Charles Loudermilk, Sr., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Aaron Rents...more