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NEWSLETTERS - Illinois dealers meet with state legislators

Illinois dealers meet with state legislators

Illinois Rental Dealers meet with state legislators Wednesday in Springfield. Front Row: Billy Berkbuegler from Sparta, Brian Beck Regional manager, Dusty Ray Regional Manager, David Keen, Representative Mike Bost, Larry Carrico, Jordan Kirkpatrick Benton.

Around 30 Illinois Rental Dealers Association members from around the state hit the Illinois Capitol Wednesday to educate legislators about the rent to own transaction and the it's important place in the state's economy and in the lives of consumers.

Dealers met with more than 30 legislators in both the Illinois House and Senate and invited legislators to visit company stores as part of the industry's grassroots efforts to put a personal face on rent to own. In one meeting alone five senators and 10 RTO dealers shared the same room.

With Illinois budget constraints, congressional leaders were interested in job creating industries and IRDA members let them know they were prepared to do plenty of hiring in a favorable legislative climate.

Workers compensation law changes are in the works and was a key topic in the meetings.

Illinois is home to 239 rent-to-own stores that employ more than 1,434. It is a $175 million business in the state that pays in more than $7 million in annual payroll taxes.
 





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.

 

Association of Progressive Rental Organizations
1504 Robin Hood Trail
Austin, Texas 78703
800/204-2776, ext. 103
Fax 512/794-0097