 APRO: The Official Voice of the Rent to Own Industry
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 Rent-to-own News
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Rent-to-own News - APRO's 2010 Board of Directors Candidates
During the association’s general session, July 21 at APRO’s 2010 Rent-to-Own Convention and Trade Show in Louisville, Kentucky, nine APRO members will run for eight available positions on the board of directors.
Board members serve staggered two-year terms and half of the positions become open each year at the Convention and Trade Show, in addition to any vacancies needing to be filled. Current board member Scott Kinnear of Premier Rental Purchase is not seeking re-election this year. APRO President "Tiger" John Cleek of Cleek's/Aaron's will also not seek another term on the board, though association bylaws allow him one additional year on the board as immediate past president. Cleek has served two years as APRO president and 12 on the board of directors. Only APRO members in good standing are eligible to vote. Candidates are as follows.
Robert O. Briley
Briley Investments Inc., dba Aaron’s Sales and Lease Ownership, Abilene, Texas Robert O. Briley graduated from Texas Tech University in 1974 with a bachelor of arts degree in political science. After working in the petroleum marketing industry for five years, he purchased two Curtis Mathes Home Entertainment Centers in Abilene and Sweetwater, Texas. In 1989, Briley founded Rent City Superstores, converting his four Curtis Mathes stores. In November 2006, he became an Aaron’s franchisee and now owns and operates seven Aaron’s franchise stores in west Texas. In 2008, Briley was awarded Aaron’s Franchisee of the Year.
Briley served on the Texas Association of Rental Agencies board of directors from 1994 to 2008 and held the executive committee positions of chairman, president, vice president and treasurer for that association. Briley was elected to the APRO board of directors in 2001 and currently serves as first vice president on the executive committee. APRO has recognized Briley for his accomplishments, honoring him as the Rental Dealer of the Year in 2005 and awarding him the APRO Legislative Conference American flag for holding the highest number of congressional meetings during APRO’s 2000 Legislative Conference. Briley’s community involvement includes his position as a city councilman for the City of Abilene, Texas, serving on the Abilene Chamber of Commerce board of directors, fundraising chairman for United Way of Abilene and as deacon of the First Baptist Church. He is also a former board member of St. John’s Episcopal School, Fairway Oaks Country Club and was the Smoke-Free Abilene treasurer. Briley has been married to Lou for 34 years and has two sons, Zach and Parker, and a grandson, John Preston Briley, age nine. “I want to thank APRO and our members for our relationships through the years,” Briley says. “I have learned so much about our opportunities to improve our company in this wonderful industry. I am excited about running for re-election to the APRO board of directors. I promise to continue being a good representative for you and our industry.” Sidney Burton
Hometown RTO Ventures Inc., Sault Sainte Marie, Michigan
Sidney Burton is an independent rental dealer who lives and works in one of the country’s most naturally scenic regions, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. Burton comes from a background in national intelligence and security and had no previous experience in rent-to-own when he opened the doors to his store more than two decades ago. He credits thriving in this industry to the openness and willingness to share that he’s found in fellow rental dealers. It was such openness that instilled in Burton the aspiration to give back to the rent-to-own community. When the call went out for someone to spearhead the revitalization of the Michigan Rental Dealers Association, he picked up the mantle. Several years ago, he developed an educational seminar, “Why 94 Percent of Your Customers Don’t Rent,” which he has presented at industry functions across the country. Along with running his business and occasionally doing RTO consulting work, Burton currently serves on the APRO board, is chairman of the bylaw revision committee and former chairman of the public relations committee. As an APRO board member, Burton has two priorities: ensure that APRO is considering the interests of the smaller, independent rental dealer in everything that it does; and ensure that APRO is fostering an environment of openness and sharing that has been so important in developing his business and the businesses of countless other rent-to-own dealers.
David P. David
American Rental/Full-O-Pep Appliances Inc., Bloomington, Indiana In 1981, Full-O-Pep opened its first store in Bloomington, Indiana, and in 1982, American Rental opened its first store in Columbus, Indiana. Today, the American Rental family is 48 stores strong with 280 employees, plus two Rent-n-Roll franchises. David P. David, American Rental/Full-O-Pep Appliances vice president and general manager, has been with the company for 29 years. An APRO board member for 20 years, David served as APRO secretary, treasurer, chairman of the education committee and a member of the APRO government relations, ethics, public relations and communications committees. He was also the fundraising chairman for Team APRO from 1996 to 1997. David has been very active in securing legislative protection for the industry at the state and federal levels. David has served as president of the Indiana and Midwest Rental Dealers Association for 12 years. In 1991, he received the APRO State Association of the Year award, was named Rental Dealer of the Year in 2000 and, in 2009, was recipient of the APRO President’s Award of Excellence. “Once again, I am eager to serve the APRO membership and I’d appreciate your vote,” David says. Dwight Dumler
Rent-A-Center, Plano, Texas
Dwight Dumler was named Rent-A-Center’s senior vice president of public affairs in July 2008. He is responsible for oversight and management of the company’s government, community and public relations initiatives. From January 2002 to July 2008, he served as Rent-A-Center’s vice president and assistant general counsel and also served as the company’s compliance officer. Before joining Rent-A-Center, Dumler spent two years as associate general counsel for Rent-Way Inc., in Erie, Pennsylvania, and was responsible for overseeing compliance for the rent-to-own operation, which had 1,125 stores in 42 states. From April 1997 to September 1998, he was an attorney with Thorn Americas Inc. and then corporate counsel for American Auto Finance Services Inc., both in Wichita, Kansas. Dumler began his law career at Morrison & Hecker LLP in Wichita in August 1993, where he practiced product liability defense, employment practice defense, general commercial litigation and property tax. Before entering the legal profession, he spent six years with the Wichita Police Department as a patrol officer and detective. Dumler received his BBA degree in finance from Wichita State University and his law degree from the Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kansas. In addition to serving on the APRO board of directors, Dwight serves on the board of the Bridge Education Foundation and the Texas Association of Rental Agencies. “It has been a pleasure serving the APRO membership for the past two years on the board of directors,” Dumler says. “As co-chair of your government relations committee, I have worked hard with the rest of the committee and board to promote and protect the industry we all love. I sincerely ask for your continued support and would appreciate your vote.”
Bill Kelly
EBRO International Inc., dba ColorTyme, Defuniak Springs, Florida Currently serving as vice president and COO for EBRO International, dba ColorTyme, Bill Kelly has been involved with the rent-to-own industry since 1989. He worked directly with Alrenco owner Mike Walts, COO Bud Holladay and CFO Ted Wilson as Alrenco’s vice president of operations from 1989 to 1998. APRO co-founder and former APRO President Holladay, longtime APRO member Walts and 1989–90 APRO President Wilson instilled in Kelly a great passion for the industry and the spirit for participating in the association.
Kelly was a longtime member of the Indiana Rental-Purchase Dealers Association and was its president from 1996 to 1997. He worked with former APRO board member Ron DeMoss for passage of a business-friendly West Virginia state law and has been a member of, and speaker for, the Texas Association of Rental Agencies. He currently is the secretary/treasurer of the revitalized Georgia Rental Dealers Association and also serves on APRO’s executive committee as secretary.
Kelly has worked with Habitat for Humanity and The Children’s Miracle Network, promoting both groups while fostering a positive image for rent-to-own. He worked with Catholic Charities in Florida and Mississippi in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, delivering and distributing disaster relief to those in need. Many of Kelly’s store associates benefited from APRO’s charitable donations through the association’s RTO Employee Disaster Relief Fund. Married to his wife, Linda, for 28 years, Kelly spends his time with their three children, attends Christ the King Lutheran Church and likes to golf and fish when time permits. Kelly believes in APRO and loves the entrepreneurial spirit and work ethic of its members. “I deeply wish to continue serving the trade association with the dedication and participation that my longtime mentors showed me by example and through their strong leadership,” Kelly says. “I’ve enjoyed your support in the past and appreciate it in the future.” Casey Pristou
Watershed Development Corp., Lake Bluff, Illinois
Casey Pristou is president of Watershed Development Corp., which owns and operates six Aaron’s Sales & Lease stores in Illinois and Iowa. Watershed ranked second out of all Aaron’s franchise operators in the 2009 all-around competition. Pristou is a member of the Illinois Rental Dealers Association board of directors and has been involved actively in the annual APRO Dave Egan Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C. He provides financial support to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and is an active participant in the Adopt-a-Soldier initiative at Ft. Hood, Texas.
Pristou is a CPA and received his MBA from Northwestern University. He lives in Lake Bluff, Illinois, with his wife of 25 years, Jodi, and his three children. “I consider it an honor to be nominated for the APRO board of directors and believe that I owe a significant debt of gratitude to the rent-to-own pioneers, entrepreneurs and operators who came before me—and to APRO and its leadership,” Pristou says. “I recognize that my opportunities in the rent-to-own industry are due to the vision, dedication and hard work of those who forged the way—and I intend to repay this debt by serving on the APRO board. I will work to advance the industry’s legislative interests, promote the positive image of rent-to-own through education and outreach and safeguard the interests of all rental dealers nationwide.”
Richard Rose
RTO Inc., Norfolk, Virginia For the past six years, Richard Rose has proudly served on the APRO board and currently serves on the association’s budget, education, government relations, public relations and ethics committees. Rose’s career in the home furnishings business spans more than 40 years, the past 26 in the rent-to-own industry as co-founder/co-owner of RTO Inc. An avid golfer, reader and amateur financial market analyst, he is a graduate of the University of Richmond located in Virginia’s capital city. An economics major, he also is a graduate of the American Institute of Banking, an industry in which he began his career before returning to his retail roots. Early on, Rose went to work in a “buy-here/pay-here” furniture store, handling all of the sales, deliveries and collections in much the same way as rent-to-own operates today. Eventually, Rose, along with some partners, created their own furniture business, successfully owned and operated for more than 15 years. With a different partnership, he established RTO Inc. The company currently operates 19 BestWay Rent To Own stores, RTO Tax System (a RAL/fast-tax-prep business), BestWay Autos and, soon, three RNR Custom Wheels & Performance Tires stores. A member of APRO since 1984, Rose has served as a director on a variety of boards and has been the president and CEO of every company he has operated. He has a very strong command of the financial side of the business for an “operations guy.” “I feel strongly that serving on the APRO board is a tremendous way to give back to the industry and fellow business owners,” Rose says. “I am again humbled by being nominated to run for the board. If re-elected, you can rest assured that I will be looking out for you.” James Slatton
Buddy’s Home Furnishings, Tampa, Florida
James Slatton’s rent-to-own career began more than 30 years ago when his father, Norman “Slats” Slatton Sr., started taking him to work at their family’s retail and RTO stores. Slats mentored Jamie into becoming the driving factor in Buddy’s Home Furnishing’s growth throughout Florida, Georgia, Arkansas, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. He has seen Buddy’s expand from a five-store retail chain into 72 rent-to-own locations. Slatton has held many positions at Buddy’s, including manager, division manager, director of marketing and vice president. He has been a TRIB Group member for more than 20 years. He is an active participant in APRO’s annual Dave Egan Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C., and the Florida Rental Dealers Association Legislative Conference in Tallahassee. As Buddy’s vice president, Slatton has helped build it into one of the industry’s largest privately owned rent-to-own companies. His enthusiasm for the industry is matched by his leadership and success. He has earned the reputation among his peers as one who brings excitement to rent-to-own for his company and for the entire industry.
Mike Tissot
Countryside Rentals, dba Rent-2-Own, Bainbridge, Ohio Since his return to the rent-to-own industry in 1997, Mike Tissot has poured his heart and soul into his business, staff, friends and family. In 13 short years, he has leveraged his marketing background and passion for doing things the right way into a very successful and growing 26-store chain in Ohio and Kentucky, Countryside Rentals, dba Rent-2-Own. Tissot credits most of his company’s success with the decision-making talents of hard-working operations teams in each of his stores and the support that they are given from a dedicated home-office staff. Tissot knows the value of a customer and that appreciation is instilled into all of the company’s 200-plus employees.
As a consummate learner and avid reader of business and management books, Tissot shares his knowledge with rental dealers across the country. “All rental dealers have great ideas,” Tissot says. “I love to share my ideas and steal theirs!” At APRO gatherings over the past several years, he has entertained and educated with seminars focusing on everything from rent-to-own marketing and promotions to a spoof on RTO business entitled “How Not to be Profitable.” Tissot’s ongoing seminars are some of the best-attended and highest-rated by attendees year after year. Tissot has served the rent-to-own industry as president of the Ohio Rental Dealers Association for several years and currently serves on ORDA’s board of directors, as well as the TRIB Group board of directors. Now he wants to serve APRO, the trade association that has meant so much to his family for the past 25 years. “I would be thrilled to join the APRO board,” Tissot says. “If elected, I am certain that I can bring my passion and ideas to help improve the educational offerings, industry image and—most important—fight to protect the business that I want to be able to pass on to a third generation of Tissots.” Personalized proxy ballots will be mailed to all members in good standing this week.
The APRO board of directors voting will commence during the general session, July 21 at APRO’s 2010 Convention and Trade Show in Louisville, Kentucky. For information regarding proxy voting, contact Laurie Hill at lhill@rtohq.org, 800/204-2776, ext. 103.
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2012 APRO Convention and Trade Show July 24-26, Memphis, TN
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RTOHQ: The Magazine
RTOHQ: The Magazine is the Association of Progressive Rental Organizations' award-winning rent-to-own industry magazine, and it's available here. | |||
 CLICK HERE FOR OUR DIGITAL RTOHQ: THE MAGAZINE
RTOHQ: The Magazine’s upgraded digital format APRO's new, mobile-ready magazine is now available in addition to our print edition. The digital format provides the same informative content as our printed magazine, but also offers tools to make the reading experience more enriching. Access the table of contents page with one click or tap. Get additional information from advertisers by clicking on the links in their ads. The interface is easy to navigate and requires no special app—read our magazine on your computer, digital table or smartphone. Click here to access the digital version of RTOHQ: The Magazine March-April 2012.
A New Rent-to-Own Experience by Neil Ferguson Here’s the lowdown on APRO’s 2012 Convention and Trade Show, July 24-26 in Memphis. The RTO industry’s big event will offer many valuable experiences, including insights on how to turn your stores into “experiences”–the good kind for consumers
Who Is Your Competition? by Bill Keese In order to expand your customer base, you can learn a lot by observing your competitors. But first, you need to figure out just who they are. If you think your only competition is the rent-to-own store down the street, you’re not considering the bigger picture. APRO’s executive director offers a big-picture perspective.
A Review of Online Customer Complaints by Ed Winn III While rent-to-own companies have not cornered the market on negative reviews posted on consumer complaint websites, it’s no surprise that there are cyberspace beefs against RTO. APRO’s general counsel reviews some of them in search of a pattern and he considers appropriate response to online complaints.
Rent-to-Own Families, Part VIII by Kristen Card Our series of family-run rent-to-own businesses continues with profiles of the Homeiers in Kansas and two Texas-based sets of kindred colleagues, the Spangles and the Weisblatts.
Future issues of APRO's magazine will be available in this same new format. Click here to access past issues that are not yet archived in the new interface.
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Association of Progressive Rental Organizations 1504 Robin Hood Trail Austin, Texas 78703 800/204-2776, ext. 103 Fax 512/794-0097 |