Rent-to-own News - Shuler, Peters open second Nebraska Premier store

Mike Shuler and Heath Peters

Mike Shuler and Heath Peters opened their second Premier store in Nebraska this summer in Hastings.

The partners have branched out from their successful Kearney location, which was opened in November 2008 and has done “incredibly well” according to Shuler.

With 26 years of combined service to the Central Nebraska rental market, Shuler and Peters agree a second store was inevitable and may be followed by a third down the road. “The first one wasn’t enough,” said Shuler.

“I knew a lot about the business, but I didn’t know how to start a business," Peters said. "I was scared to start out on my own. Mike was thinking the same thing and approached me to see if I was interested. I had read about Premier Rental-Purchase in RTO Magazine and they seemed like a place to start for the support we needed. I also read success stories about Premier franchisees and watched every podcast I could get my hands on from the RTO website.

“I made the decision after speaking with Trooper that this was my calling – to be an entrepreneur. Trooper explained all of the benefits provided by Premier such as the human resource services, legal counsel, accounting support, and the lending assistance that is available. I spoke to numerous Premier dealers who had walked down the road with Trooper, and I was convinced. The common statement throughout was ‘you will love being on your own. It’s indescribable compared to working for a big corporation.’ So we signed on.”

Shuler says. “Here I had been doing rental-purchase for 20 years, and I finally broke off on my own. I have had a great partner to go forward with, and it clearly has been the right decision. I enjoy getting up every day and being able to have a positive impact on the lives of others around me. I love the industry and most importantly I love seeing people grow. I have the opportunity to impact the lives of many around me on a daily basis, both customers and employees, and there is no greater experience.”

Shuler and Peters look forward to new success with the Hastings store. “We have been affiliated with that market since 1998,” says Shuler, “and we are particularly excited about partnering up with our manager, Craig Shafer. Both Heath and I have worked with Crain in the past, and he is a very seasoned rent-to-own manager. Great market. Great team. This should be another home run.”