I became a ColorTyme franchisee because I was ready to make money for myself and because I saw that people just like me were having great success running their own stores.
Doug Pint, ColorTyme Franchisee

Rent-A-Center CEO Mark Speese addresses ColorTyme Franchisees at the 2005 ColorTyme Summer Convention in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina (see story). RTO Online will provide daily coverage from Memphis, Tennessee for this years ColorTyme Convention July 4th - 8th, 2006. See a complete photo gallery of 2005's convention here.

Doug Pint knows his way around a ColorTyme store. After working in rent-to-own (RTO) and other service oriented retail stores for nearly 21 years, Pint “came back home” to ColorTyme when he opened his first franchise in Michigan City, Ind. in December 2005.

Since the store’s formal grand opening in February, Pint has already begun looking in Northwest Indiana for future store sites and plans to open a few more ColorTyme stores within three to five years. Pint attributes some of his drive for success to Jim Suchy, a fellow ColorTyme franchisee who served as inspiration for Pint by successfully opening his own store last year. After observing Suchy’s success, Pint saw his own potential.

“I became a ColorTyme franchisee because I was ready to make money for myself and because I saw that people just like me were having great success running their own stores,” said Pint. “ColorTyme had the best system I’ve seen and I was already familiar with the store because I had worked for them in the past.”

Pint started his RTO career in 1986 with Rent-A-Center (RAC), where he stayed for seven years. Upon leaving RAC, Pint racked up additional RTO experience by working for a ColorTyme franchisee. Pint also worked for Rent-Way, Inc. and Aaron’s over a period of several years. Thinking there might be something beyond RTO, Pint broadened his experience in the retail industry with companies such as Service Merchandise and Kmart. After four years of dabbling outside RTO, he realized his potential pointed him to returning to the business he knew so well.

Pint believes grass roots, marketing and making personal connections with people create the opportunity and environment for his business to thrive. But in the end, his priority is not merely opening new stores; rather, it’s building relationships with the people who come into those new stores.

“This is a relationship business,” said Pint. “This is an opportunity to make a strong connection with customers by refusing to treat them like another number. It’s important for me to get to know them, have a cup of coffee with them and build a relationship. That’s how you inspire loyalty.”

ColorTyme, Inc. is the oldest franchised rent-to-own or rental purchase company in the United States with nearly 300 stores.