Nationwide Marketing Group – parent organization to APRO Member Nationwide RentDirect – brought rent-to-own dealers and vendors together in San Antonio, Texas, in mid-March for the company’s 64th PrimeTime member conference and tradeshow, which drew in over 3,000 attendees – a 20 percent increase from 2024 – and featured more than 50 hours of education, roundtables with peers from across North America, and an excellent expo.
Nationwide Director of Appliances and RentDirect John Laing launched the RTO event with an informative presentation featuring industry trends by product type. While consumer electronics are flat, e-commerce continues to be a bright spot for the industry with rising sales. Major appliance vendors remain optimistic about 2025 despite slow sales as of late.
Next, APRO CEO Charles Smitherman shared the latest news from the association. Smitherman highlighted the importance of the upcoming APRO Legislative Conference, referencing work currently being done in New York state to educate lawmakers about what defines the rent-to-own transaction. Smitherman particularly noted the continuation of APRO’s Legislative Fellows program; a second class of 15 fellows will be at this year’s conference in Washington, D.C., to become well-spoken advocates for their industry.
Smitherman also outlined several new APRO tools for members, including the hugely popular Legal Hub – which houses all state RTO statutes in a downloadable and printable format – as well as a host of resources aimed at supporting members’ business compliance. Additionally, Smitherman distributed lots of APRO swag for members to proudly display!
WOW Brands CEO Ryan Krass wrapped up the session with a presentation on technology, reporting several interesting stats, including:
- more than 90% of people have internet access;
- over 85% of Americans use their phone as their primary communication device;
- technology use with e-commerce revenue has doubled since 2020; and
- the younger the consumer, the less likely they are to come into a store – almost 80% research online first.
Krass recommended that rent-to-own businesses have a well-structured and readable website that includes thorough product descriptions, store info, and company reviews.
The RentDirect member meeting was followed by a joint Palooza and Hot Show event especially for rental dealers, showcasing some great deals on key products, and ample networking opportunities with friendly (APRO) vendors.
Finally, the full Nationwide Expo opened with mariachis and dancers to welcome folks into the showroom. More than 120 vendors filled the exhibit floor, offering tons of terrific products – including new ones, like cool misting fans and hot tubs.
The next PrimeTime will be held in Nashville, Tennessee, on August 17-20, 2025, at Music City Center, so be sure to save the dates!
