Astute, accomplished, and affable, Rachel George is ready to earn her A’s – as Aaron’s new General Counsel
Rachel George – The Aaron’s Company Inc.’s Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Corporate Secretary, Chief Compliance Officer, and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer – was a natural learner from the very beginning.
Yes, she was smart and studious, sailing through school and even briefly considering a career as an academic. But beyond that, she was – and is – curious, a seeker of new paths to explore, while somehow also managing to move forward with laser-like drive. That curiosity paired with that drive has helped George evolve into the leader she is today: a woman who has climbed the corporate and legal ladders to become a five-titled executive for one of the world’s biggest rent-to-own companies – essentially, a big gun for a Big Gun.
But self-importance isn’t her jam, or her journey. When you chat with Rachel George, you may be refreshed to discover a big gun who has earned her firepower by being thoughtfully strategic, judiciously passionate, energetic, occasionally effervescent, and yes, curious – an invaluable attribute in today’s shapeshifting, innovation-led marketplace.
Rachel George was born on a U.S. Army base in Augsburg, Germany, and spent her youth as a military kid, moving often. When her dad left full-time active duty to go to seminary and become a Presbyterian minister, George continued to move often, living in Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, and eventually, south Georgia, where she spent her teenage years. Luckily, George seemed to thrive on change.
“I value my upbringing because I learned so much about how different the world can be, and what people have in common across culture and location,” George recalls. “When you’ve lived and thrived in various communities, you see the commonalities that can bring us together. Also, you learn to be adaptable, to make connections, and how to navigate new systems and relationships. It made me very curious about the world and very open to trying new things. Change doesn’t scare me because I’ve seen so much of it.”
Some of George’s first life lessons happened in ballet class, where one is expected to appear as a floating, whirling confection while actually practicing super-human strength, contortion-adjacent flexibility, and rigid precision. When she tore her Achilles tendon in eighth grade, that devastation was a lesson of its own.
“By early on in my freshman year, it became clear that I was never going to recover fully enough to dance en pointe again,” remembers George. “But I quickly pivoted to athletics and student government. I played tennis and club soccer, ran cross-country, and played softball with the YMCA league. My sophomore year, I got the Most Improved trophy in tennis, cross-country, and softball – which tells you how bad I must have been to begin with! But it also speaks to the streak of hard work, dedication, and competitiveness I’ve always had.”
George attended Covenant College, a small liberal-arts school located in Lookout Mountain, Georgia, and graduated in three years with a degree in Philosophy. She considered going to graduate school and on to a life in academia, but ultimately decided it wasn’t results-oriented enough to be a fulfilling career for her. Instead, George pivoted again, this time to the Emory University School of Law, where she “loved every minute of it, made great friends, and learned a ton.”
“I value my upbringing because I learned so much about how different the world can be, and what people have in common across culture and location. When you’ve lived and thrived in various communities, you see the commonalities that can bring us together.”
George launched her career as a banking and financial services attorney with a Birmingham, Alabama, firm. As an associate with Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP, she worked on credit- card programs, equipment lease and loan transactions, and small-business bankruptcies.
George married and moved to Atlanta, Georgia, to join her husband – and the law firm of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky and Walker LLP. She worked in the firm’s finance and restructuring group, helping companies navigate financial distress, and bankruptcy and restructuring as necessary.
“I tell anyone interested in becoming a General Counsel to consider that as a potential practice area,” George notes. “You really learn how businesses work by understanding what happens when things go wrong.”
During her tenure as an associate at Paul Hastings, George also got exposed to securities law, receivable financing, consumer-facing financial products – like credit cards and auto loans and leases – and commercial finance products – such as commercial mortgages and equipment loans and leases.
George refined her work in these areas as a senior associate at Washington, DC-based Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP. Following the 2010 financial crisis, she moved with a dozen colleagues to launch the DC office of Chapman and Cutler LLP, a financial-services-focused firm. As a partner, George worked with Sallie Mae, a private-student-loan financing company, and its spinoff, Navient, which services both private and federal student loans. She eventually joined Navient as a Senior Vice President and Deputy General Counsel, helping build the company’s fledgling legal department.
George knew she wanted to be involved in a wider range of company operations, and the next natural step was to become a general counsel. A recruiter alerted her to a GC position at Aaron’s, a familiar name to George from many years of sharing the company’s home state of Georgia. She immediately began researching both Aaron’s and the RTO industry.
“I became really intrigued as I realized the lease-to-own industry serves at the intersection of retail and financial services,” attests George. “Through our transaction, we provide our customers with an attractive way to enhance their lives, and to provide for their families in a way that gives them the flexibility they need to weather the storms that come at them and to contend with the lack of financial security many of them face. My whole career has been focused on financial services, so I knew I could leverage my experience to be a great match for Aaron’s.”
The company agreed, and George joined Aaron’s toward the close of 2020.
Today, Rachel George oversees Aaron’s teams in legal compliance, government relations, corporate affairs, enterprise risk, physical security, and safety. She works with these teams and the executive team to bring the company’s risk-management program together and ensure Aaron’s isn’t only complying with the law, but also doing what’s in the best interest of its customers, its communities, and its shareholders.
“I’m equipped and encouraged in the role I play to integrate all of these functions, advising and helping structure the programs at Aaron’s,” George asserts. “I’m extremely passionate about this integration, because I believe we do better when we think about all these considerations holistically.”
In the even-bigger picture, George is excited about entering into the rent-to-own industry at this moment in time, when she feels the potential customer base for RTO as a business is primed to be tapped.
“The potential for growth is tremendous,” effuses George. “We just need to keep telling the story about the value of our transaction. I think there are many, many customers who would find great value in lease-to-own if they only knew more about it. I believe it’s largely about education – of customers and third-party stakeholders – about the benefits of the transaction, and how we’re uniquely poised to provide the access and flexibility our customer base needs.”
Working in a business that fulfills others’ needs is also deeply appealing to George, who grew up with a family history of serious work ethic combined with generous community service.
“I think there are many, many customers who would find great value in lease-to-own if they only knew more about it.”
“My family has many, many generations of hardworking individuals who lived lives concentrated on serving others,” she notes. “In the military, you’re there to protect and defend your fellow citizens; as a minister, you’re there to meet the spiritual and emotional needs of your congregants. So a significant element of my upbringing was about making sure you’re living a life that’s in service to others.
“So naturally, I was attracted to Aaron’s longstanding commitment to community involvement and charitable giving. The company gives away 1% of its pre-tax earnings, and as Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, I get to help oversee our community involvement in charitable giving initiatives. I love that part of my job.”
At the end of her work days, George turns her giving energies to her husband, Tim, and the couple’s three children: Kate, 13, Matthew, 11, and Daniel, 8. The whole family are huge baseball fans, so when they’re not at the little-league fields cheering on Daniel and Matthew, they’re at Truist Park to see the Atlanta Braves play ball. They enjoy traveling together – “we want to show our kids as much of the world as we can,” says George – and when they’re home, the George house is the gathering place for family, friends, teams, classes, colleagues, etc. Additionally, the family is involved in church and community-service activities.
In her rare quieter moments, George indulges in her lifelong love of reading – mostly biographies, historical fiction, and business books – and of musical theater; she tries to visit New York City annually to take in the latest Broadway shows.
At the end of the day, Rachel George has come into her new rent-to-own big-gun-squared position by being just what she has been since the start: adaptable, competitive, industrious, a leader and a team player with a legacy of serving others. Oh – and curious, of course.
“I love being able to leverage all of my strengths and perspectives in my job every day,” she concludes. “And we have plenty to do – I’m never bored, not for a second. There’s always a way we can serve our customers and our communities better, win in the market and drive performance on behalf of our shareholders.
“Every day, we serve customers who need us in a specific and special way – we help them provide for themselves and their families in a way they wouldn’t otherwise be able to do. And I love that.”
Kristen Card has been a contributing writer for RTOHQ: The Magazine for more than 15 years.
