special event coverage; picture gallery
Rent One Charity Event Raises Record $15,000.00; Ronald McDonald On Hand For Autograph Signing
"We have over 100 kids enrolled in our summer recreation program. Rent One's support has made a tremendous impact on these children's lives and the lives of their families." - Reverend James Gordon, CEO of South County Youth and Day Care Programs...more

Proposed Legislation Could Raise Cost Of Electronics; Analog Hole Legislation is a Bad Solution in Search of a Problem
"...every time Congress accedes to the content community requests, someone else is paying the price, in terms of higher consumer prices, unavailable products and features or abusive litigation costs." - Gary Shapiro, CEO Consumer Electronics Association...more

Advance America Back In PA; Offers Line Of Credit For Monthly Fee
The change in Pennsylvania leaves Arkansas as the only state where Advance America still operates as an agent for an FDIC supervised institution...more

RTA Maker Dorel Plans Broader Line, Higher Price Points
"The combination of domestically and offshore production is working well. Availability and the cost of particle board have pressured margins, however customer price increases are being implemented and will take effect through the year." - Martin Schwartz, President and CEO...more

Vegas Furniture Market Grows To 2.6 Million Square Feet
"We’ve managed to grow by close to 70 percent because we are responsive to both retailers and manufacturers." - Dave Palmer, General Manager of World Market Center...more

Floor Traffic Heavy At Heartland RTO Tradeshow Photo gallery!
Venders interviewed by RTO Online were nearly unanimous in their praise of MRDA's efforts at attendance recruitment...more

Cleek And Darling Win Heartland RTO Tradeshow Bass Tournament; AD PRO's Kelly Dekamp Takes Big Fish
AD PRO's Kelly Dekamp landed a 5 pound 11 ounce lunker only 10 minutes before weigh in to take the prize for biggest fish...more

Former Managers Partner-Up, Open Premier Rentals Franchise In Bradenton, Florida
"I wanted to start a business. I had run a multi-unit operation and had gotten a sense of running my own out there by myself. I knew others who were doing it. Josh and I started talking one day and we said. “Let’s do it!’ And here we are." - Reuben Flords, Premier Rentals Franchisee...more

La-Z-Boy Names Deland CIO
Prior to joining La-Z-Boy, DeLand was a Senior Systems Engineer with EDS...more

Heartland Rental Dealers Kick Off Tradeshow In Lake Ozark Missouri
"This is a great opportunity for managers to see new product, network with peers and get valuable training. Rental companies benefit from the feedback on products from the people that write the agreements." - Ken Steiner, Executive Director of the Missouri Rental Dealers Association...more

David Reutimann Earns Second Top Ten Busch Series Finish in a Row for Aaron’s Dream Machine
"There was a track record-tying total of ten cautions for 46 laps in the race. One red flag occurred when a hard wreck by driver Jeff Fuller sent him to the hospital."...more

Selling Point: Philips Ambient Light Technology Good For Your Eyes
The science revolves around the working of the human eye, which can become fatigued over time in response to a single-light source such as a TV in a dimmed room...more

PC Market Outlook Strong Despite Slower Growth
"The movement towards consumer notebooks, in particular, will help maintain the double digit growth rates that we are predicting for the worldwide PC market through 2008." - Bob O'Donnell, vice president Clients and Displays...more

Are the Days Of The Superhero CEO Over? Survey Says Yes
Many companies are increasingly aware that well-functioning teams matter more than one individual at the top and that relying too much on one person is being increasingly risky...more

Whirlpool Appoints Media Handler to Board; Former New York Times VP Kerr
Whirlpool has appointed of William T. Kerr, chairman of Meredith Corporation and former VP of The New York Times Company to its board of directors...more

Dollar Financial Corp. To Raise $80 Million Through Secondary Offering
Dollar intends to use the net proceeds to redeem up to $70 million of the 9.75% Senior Notes due in 2011...more

Convention Coverage
Heartland of America Regional Rent to Own Tradeshow Begins Tonight
RTO Online will provide daily coverage of the Heartland Show from Lake Ozark. Please check www.rtoonline.com for updates and photo galleries...more

RentDirect Names Advisory Council
RentDirect named it's 20 member Rent to Own industry advisory council. The council will provide feedback and guidance to RentDirect Nationwide Marketing Group, the largest rental industry buying group. Council members include...more

Baseline Licensing Group Announces NFL & Collegiate Team Furniture Availability For RTO Channel
NFL and Collegiate football seasons are right around the corner. We want all rent to own dealers to know which teams they can order now for immediate and late Summer shipping." - Brown Councill, RTO Sales, Baseline Licensing Group...more

easyhome Expands 'Backpack Challenge' Store Fundraising Event
"This year our achievements will allow us to purchase 2,000 backpacks, supplies and to support after school activities for families that struggle to send their kids back to school with the tools they need to learn." - David Ingram, President & CEO. easyhome...more

Stanley Furniture Warns; Lowers Revenue Guidance For Q2
"The weakness in sales that we experienced in the later part of the first quarter and into the early part of the second quarter has continued throughout the second quarter so far." - Jeffrey R. Scheffer, Chairman, President and CEO, Stanley Furniture...more

Jill Crews To Resign As ARDA Executive Director
"This is not a ending. It's a new beginning for me and ARDA." - Jill Crews, Outgoing Executive Director of the Arkansas Rental Dealers Association...more

Country Singer Tracy Lawrence To Entertain Vegas Furniture Market Attendees
Previous markets featured the Beach Boys for the inaugural market in July 2005, followed by the Peking Acrobats in January 2006...more

Convention Coverage
RentDirect Members Share Successful Strategies At M2M
"The biggest challenge for rent to own dealers in the next decade will be competition from from traditional retailers, not other rent to own companies." - Lynn Reed, owner of Suburban Service Center in Salina, Kansas...more

Aaron Rents Wraps Successful AFL Season; Company Sees Benefits Of National Exposure In Growing Sport
"The energy when you’re around the AFL is amazing. The fans enjoy getting up close and involved with the players and as a major sponsor Aaron’s has benefited from a huge level of exposure." - Ken Butler, President, Aaron’s Sales & Lease Ownership...more

Premier Wheel Rentals to open Superstore In Pompano Beach, Florida
"It is essential to the success of a wheel and tire operation to have the knowledge and skill on an operational level as well as understanding of safety and customer satisfaction." - Scott Savell, President, Premier Wheel Rentals...more

RentDirect Nationwide Member2Member Summit Kicks Off In Dallas; Appointment Of RTO Industry Advisory Council Among Key Objectives
"The advisory council will provide feedback on everything from brand performance to specific program enhancements and serve as a critical feedback mechanism in RentDirect's continual improvement process." - Les Kirk, Executive Vice President, Nationwide Marketing Group...more

Vegas Furniture Market Wins Approval For Phase 3
"The first three buildings are configured in such a way that if one segment of the home furnishings industry has greater demand, the segment can expand vertically into new floors as well as horizontally into new showrooms in adjacent buildings." - Babs Blair, World Market Center, Director of Leasing...more

RTO Furniture Refurb Not Just About Repair
"Most idle time is not due to a lack of parts, it's due to a lack of knowledge." - Pat Blank, Director of Training for Furniture Answers...more

Pro Challenge Racing Feeling Exposure Boost from Aaron’s
"Race fans have really embraced the Pro Challenge Series at local tracks, and having the best of the best from several states compete on a national level reflects our motto that Dreams Do Come True at Aaron’s." - Ken Butler, President, Aaron’s Sales and Lease Ownership...more

Furniture Brands International; Seasonally Soft, Reaffirms Guidance
"We are currently in a seasonally challenging period for furniture retailing; nevertheless, net sales are slightly positive versus the year ago period." - Mickey Holliman, Furniture Brands International Chairman and CEO...more

HOT
Nations Largest Check Cashing Franchise Goes Private; Ace Cash Express Executives And Partners To Buy All Shares For $420 Million; Shipowitz Continues A CEO
ACE Cash Express, Inc. is the largest owner, operator and franchisor of check cashing stores in the United States. As of March 31, 2006, ACE had a network of 1,557 stores in 36 states and the District of Columbia...more

Minnesota Attempts Bill To Fine Stores, Underage Kids For Renting M Rated Games; Association Seeks to have Law Declared Unconstitutional
Similar laws have been struck down by six courts in five years, including the Eighth Circuit which governs Minnesota...more

Has Enron Made Companies More Ethical?; Employees, Consumers More Aware Of Company Integrity
National employee perceptions of internal company values increased from 78 percent in 2001 to 82 percent in 2005. Likewise, perception of management’s consistency with stated internal values has increased from a 60 percent positive response in 2001 to 65 percent in 2005...more

Corporate Directors May Not Be Providing Sufficient Risk Oversight
Only 42% of board members surveyed have formal practices and policies in place to address reputational risk...more

Nothing Says Well Done Like A Plasma TV; Survey Says Consumers Will Spend $2.1 Billion For Electronics As Graduation Gifts
31% of graduates would opt for a TV, 22% said they would prefer a new PC or notebook computer. Among the TV gift selections, flat-panel TVs, LCD or plasma, were picked by 22 percent of graduates...more

Retailers Battle For Talent With Incentives
Retail jobs that have the greatest impact on sales and margins are commanding the largest pay increases. In an era of 3.0% base pay increases, the average annual wage has jumped 10% or more for jobs such as Sales Team Leader, Sales Supervisor...more

La-Z-Boy Posts Loss For Quarter, Year; Execs Cite Softness In Demand
"For the full year, our top line was impacted by two factors: supply chain challenges in the first half of the year when the hurricanes caused an industry-wide shortage of foam and disrupted our operations; and macroeconomic issues which caused inconsistent demand in retail." - Kurt Darrow, President and CEO, La-Z-Boy...more

Samsung VP Joe Virginia - "Technological Superiority Pushing LCD Ahead in Flat Panel TV Market"
In the TV market, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) found that average TV screen size shipped in the USA rose approximately one inch per year for the past five years and that TV sets 30-inches and larger now represent 36% of the U.S. total...more

Rent-A-Center To Refinance $725 Million In Senior Debt
"Notwithstanding the overall rise in interest rates, we believe the current credit market and pricing of senior debt remains attractive as a result of strong investor liquidity." - Robert D. Davis, Chief Financial Officer, Rent A Center...more

Texan John Spangle Signs Rent n Roll Development Agreement For Puerto Rico
"We have just been able to open our 6th location and are now preparing to go an open up stores in the Dallas/Ft.Worth area." - John Spangle, Partner's Rental Purchase / Rent-n-Roll...more

New Premier Rental Purchase Store Opens In Gresham, Oregon
"I decided to burn my own trail and make sure I was securing my future, not just someone else’s." - Dan Opoka, Premier Rental Purchase...more

ColorTyme Racing Brings Home Second At Tri-County
"Although we were not pleased with finishing second we were pleased with the overall run." - Johnny Chastain, Driver, ColorTyme #00 GTO...more

Aaron Rents Announces Exercise of Overallotment Option
Aaron Rents' announced that the underwriters of its recent public offering of 4,000,000 shares of common stock have exercised their overallotment option to purchase an additional 450,000 shares...more

Philips to Showcase 3D Viewing and LCD Backlighting Tech
Philips 3D displays, based on WOWvx technology, are designed to deliver out-of-screen 3D effects without the need for special glasses or filters...more

Titan Vince Young Supports Dell's Youth Technology Program
"I've learned a lot about Dell's TechKnow program and the impact it's making on children, particularly here in Tennessee. I look forward to working with Dell to help these children learn new skills and build the confidence to set goals and work toward them." - Vince Young...more

Wood Finishing Technology; Technician Certification For RTO Companies
Do you have certified repair technicians on staff to handle your repair needs?  More and more Rent to Own companies are finding it beneficial to invest the time and money to properly train staff for handling various types of repair needs...more

La-Z-Boy Chairman Retires
"Pat Norton is legendary in the furniture industry and we are fortunate to have had his wisdom, direction and leadership for 25 years." - Kurt Darrow, President and CEO, La-Z-Boy...more

Consumers Take Wait and See Attitude Toward Emerging Digital Video Choices
It’s pretty clear to us that most consumers lean toward the path of least resistance – involving the smallest amount of learning and behavior change." - Todd Board, SVP, Ipsos Insight’s Technology & Communications...more

Update: RTO Dealers Prepare For Second Annual Heartland of America Regional Rent to Own Tradeshow
The Heartland show is a regional rent to own industry tradeshow with attendees from Missouri, Iowa, Arkansas, Illinois, and Kansas. The show is organized by the Missouri Rental Dealers Association (MRDA)...more

Pre-Paid Cards Fueling $10 Billion Un-Banked Economy
Lower-income consumers are 45% more likely than their higher income counterparts to purchase pre-paid cards...more

Las Vegas Furniture Market Exhibitor Education Series
"With so many new companies joining Las Vegas Market each show, we wanted to create a conduit for exhibitors well in advance so they can manage their market-planning efficiently and effectively." - Briana Mackey, Show Director for Las Vegas Market...more

Consumer Demand Rises for Music, Movies Anywhere
There is a growing expectation among consumers to have access to their digital content wherever they are--be it music, pictures, or video." - Steve Koenig, Senior manager of industry analysis, CEA...more

Ask Pat; Avoid Furniture Repairs With An Ounce Of Prevention
When it comes to controlling refurbishment costs, an ounce of prevention is the key. Proper training can avoid injured furniture, appliances, floors and backs...more

Olympic Gold Medalist Lanny Bassham to Keynote RentDirect Nationwide “Member2Member” Summit in Dallas June 12-13; Over 100 RTO Pros To Attend
"We are extremely fortunate to have someone with Lanny’s reputation and management skills headlining our Summit." - James MacAlphine, Executive Director of RentDirect...more

Consumer Confidence Declines In May
Apprehension about the short-term outlook for the economy, the labor market and consumers' earning potential has driven the Expectations Index down to levels not seen since the aftermath of the hurricanes last summer...more

History of Memorial Day
The first large observance was held in 1868 at Arlington National Cemetery, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C....more

ColorTyme Racing Fights Weather; Ready To Start Turning Left This Weekend
"The biggest problem we have had this spring has been one we can’t do anything about, the weather." - Johnny Chastain, Driver, ColorTyme #00 GRT Pontiac...more

Value Offerings By Acer, HP, Dell Driving 28% Annual Growth In Notebook PC Shipments
The global notebook PC market has experienced annual growth of over 20% in recent years, and in 2005 the global market scale reached 59.4 million units...more

Ask Pat; Furniture Accounts For Over 30% Of Rental Revenue, Keeping Pre-Rented Furniture Rent-Ready Critical
Furniture is primarily responsible for your image as a rent to-own / lease-purchase company. No other category is more visible on your floor. As a result, keeping your pre-rented furniture in like-new condition is critical to maintaining your competitive edge...more

Recruiting Costs Are Up; Survey Shows Job Seekers Dissatisfied With Recruiting Process
Data indicates that nearly 70% of job seekers are dissatisfied with the recruiting process and it’s starting to affect the organizations they work for...more

Rod Kush Closing Retail Operations; Expanding Rent to Own
Kush continues to expand his seven-store RTO chain, RK's Rent To Own, with an eighth unit coming soon...more

UK Rental Company Homebuy Appoints Tom Bartlam To Board
"[Tom] has had an extremely successful career in finance and brings to Homebuy considerable experience and expertise at a time when we are positioned to expand our credit finance model to a wider customer audience." - Michael Riding, Chairman, Homebuy...more

Study; Less Than Half of Companies Encourage Discussion of Ethical Issues at the Workplace
The research also explored organizational values about ethical conduct of managers. The majority of the study's respondents (69 percent) disagreed with the statement that managers in their company often engaged in unethical behavior...more