Homeier-Schwein cites her rural locations as an advantage over more urban spots. While she might not reach the sales volume of a rental-purchase store in a highly-populous area, she can count on other benefits.

From the September How 2 issue of RTO Magazine

Watch the video podcast with Gloria Homeier-Schwein, owner of A Full House Rentals.

Gloria Homeier-Schwein is well-respected throughout the rental industry for her keen business sense, strong work ethic, and willingness to find new and better ways to serve the needs of her stores' customers.

Located throughout central Kansas, Homeier-Schwein's five A Full House stores use their rural locations to their advantage by offering one-stop-shopping on a wide variety of home-related goods for their customers. Now, customers in need of vehicle need look no further than their local A Full House.

"We've been considering the concept of rent-to-own automobiles for some time, and it really started with customers coming to us and expressing a need for reliable transportation that they could afford," said Homeier-Schwein.

In fact, Homeier-Schwein already has 11 customers waiting for vehicles when the RTO automobile concept is rolled out at the company's first location.

"Within the next 60 days we will be in the automotive business. One of our stores is located in a building that previous housed a car business so it's going to work out perfectly."

Homeier-Schwein cites her rural locations as an advantage over more urban spots. While she might not reach the sales volume of a rental-purchase store in a highly-populous area, she can count on other benefits.

"We don't have to worry about skips and stolens like in some other markets. Our real challenge is to keep our current customers and broadening the services we can provide to them is one way of doing that."

She says even in rural towns, large flat panel television sets are gaining in popularity.

"We are moving into the 73" sets, or even larger, now that prices are coming down. Our customers may live in a modest-sized apartment but they still want the largest television they can afford."

Homeier-Schwein cites the changing computer industry as another test facing her store crews.

"Computers are one of our top-renting items, but now that we are moving into PC's and laptops equipped with Windows Vista, educating employees and customers on the system benefits is a challenge."

Those employees, we should mention, are overwhelmingly female. An unusual employee configuration for the male-dominated rental-purchase industry that has paid wonderful dividends for Homeier-Schwein.

"I may be a little prejudiced, but women make excellent employees. Their loyalty, their ability to relate to customers' situations, for me, it has worked out wonderfully. Women cross over to roles like service technician and even delivery technician without any problems. And I never have any problems with merchandise damage. Women are meticulous about not getting the slightest scratch on a piece they are delivering. And they are wonderful about keeping the customer's home in good condition both during and after a delivery."