Premier welcomed over 150 franchisees and vendors Monday night. See a complete photo gallery of the Welcome Reception here.

Part of the winning threesome (below), Joshua Goss navigates the cart path during the rain soaked 2008 Premier Companies Golf Tournament Monday. See a complete photo gallery from the 2008 Premier Golf Tournament here.

Left to right - Brian Duke, Joshua Goss and Luis Alonzo took first place in Premier's golf tournament Monday at the Quarry Golf Club near San Antonio, Texas.

Twenty seven golfers braved day-long rain showers Monday to compete in the first Premier Golf Tournament and officially kick of the Premier Companies 2008 National Convention in San Antonio.

The threesome of Luis Alonzo, Joshua Goss and Brian Duke took first place. Luis and Joshua are Premier franchisees. Brian Duke leads Whirlpool's National Rental Team. Other winners - Michelle Dunning, Adobe Trucks, Women's Longest Drive; Roy Soto, Premier Franchisee from San Antonio, Men's Longest Drive; James Cuthbertson, Premier Franchisee from Clarkesville, Tennessee, Closest to the Pin; and Brian Clussman, Premier Franchisee from San Antonio, longest Putt. See a complete photo gallery of the 2008 Premier Golf Tournament here.

Premier welcomed over 150 franchisees and vendors Monday night. See a complete photo gallery of the Welcome Reception here. Today (Tuesday), Board meetings, vendor presentations and round tables begin.

RTO Online broadcast five exclusive Video Podcasts from San Antonio Monday. Excerpts:

Play- Laura Emerson, Executive Director of PRPMG
"PRPMG is a contract human resource company that contracts with Premier Franchisees to oversee all human resource aspects of their business. We manage employees and programs so dealers can focus on running their day-to-day operation. We handle everything from group health insurance, dental, life insurance and 401ks. PRPMG gives a single store owner the ability to offer employees the same benefit packages as larger competitors. We even do performance evaluations.

Play - Ben Pior, Premier Franchisee from Garland, Texas
I've been in rent to own since 1994 in Texas, Oklahoma and Florida. There is a lot of customer interest in Custom Wheels, but we will probable wait until we can open a free-standing store. Rent-N-Ride sounds very promising. I'm a car-guy. There is high demand for rent to own vehicles. The initial investment is significant to open a car-lot but the return in potentially very large. Competition in the Garland market is actually decreasing. There used to be seven independents in Garland, now there is only me, Rent-A-Center and and Aaron's. I wanted a franchise to get more control of my life. I thought about it for nearly five years before making the decision. I've opened up stores for other people, but you're more motivated when your own money is on the line. We opened in February. One thing I would do different is move the grand opening to August. Everyone else is struggling with collections and a new company can gain 300 agreements in 3 months. 60% of my customer base is Spanish speaking. Every one on my staff is bi-lingual. Even though customers can speak English, they appreciate being able to communicate in Spanish.

Play - Scott Kinnear, Franchisee, Premier Rental Purchase
"I been open since 2005. 2007 started slow but improved in the fourth quarter. We've begun doing a lot of local cable TV advertising. It was very effective. We started seeing new faces - customers we had never seen before. Before I started my Premier franchise, I was with Rainbow Rentals. I learned a lot from Wayland Russell and Mike Viveras. They gave people the chance to improve and advance. I think they were a little ahead of their time. One of the reasons I am a successful franchisee today is because of the freedom to make decisions given to me by Rainbow. My store is slightly larger than average. But the size of the store matters less than the people in it. Rent-A-Center is probably our toughest competition. There are five within five miles. Our split is 60-40 weekly versus monthly. I doubt that we will ever focus solely on monthly. I opened Premier's first U-Getcha Cash Payday Loan in January. I see a great opportunity to draw in new customers. I think a co-branded (inside the store) gives you the best of both worlds. RTO cars are interesting. I've seen other similar operations in Dayton and they do very well. The next big thing? I'm not sure, but we've been doing very well with fireplaces. That one surprised me, but they are extremely popular with customers.

Play - John Darden, Franchisee, Premier Rental Purchase
I believe Rent to Own cars can do for this business what furniture did in the 80's. It will have a huge impact. Many of our customers are purchasing cars through buy-here-pay-here. I envision a one-stop shop for out customers. I mean a total one-stop. I see a location where a customer would lease electronics appliances and furniture, pay cable, phone and electric bills, buy money orders and make car payments - all under one roof. It's all about the relationship with customers and making it as convenient as possible. There are endless possibilities. People are paying more attention to custom wheels now, but in our part of the country, it's still new. Payday lending rates will probably capped in Virginia which will hurt existing payday lenders badly. The next big thing? It will remain televisions - cheaper, bigger, lighter. The way homes are built, 50inch is about the largest reasonable size. There continue to be additional possibilities in furniture caused by the revolution in flat panel TVs.

Play - Brown Councill, Partner, Baseline Licensing Group
In 2002, I sketched a NASCAR logo and approached NASCAR about producing sports logo furniture and to my great surprise, they approved the idea. It has always been my vision to start something new. And Sports Home Lifestyle is it. We make furniture that enhances the fans love for their favorite sport.
99% of all fans don't have the time or money to go to a game. So, they watch them on TV and they all need something to sit in. Officially licensed furniture with the proper color scheme for NFL, College, NBA and MLB just makes sense. NASCAR fans are nuts for logo furniture. NASCAR is the fastest growing sport, and we just got licensed with Dale Earnhardt Jr and Hendrix Motorsports Team. The hottest item in Sports Lifestyle furniture right now is the Big Daddy recliner. The combination of the already accepted Big-Man's recliner with pro sports logos makes for a supercharged piece. RTO Dealers are putting together sports home theatre packages - TV entertainment systems and upholstery in a single agreement. Keep rates are very high for sports furniture due to an increased pride in ownership.

RTO Online will post daily updates from the convention. Please check www.rtoonline.com for updates.