Chat briefly with Chris Bolin, and you may be tempted to pigeonhole him as a stereotypical Southern gentleman – from his coiffed silver hair and rosy apple cheeks to his drawly Tennessee twang and easy gracious manner, he definitely bears the hallmarks of his hometown below the Mason-Dixon line.
And Bolin is a for-real Southern gentleman, no doubt. But beneath his lilting accent and dapper countenance, he is also an ambitious, industrious, and resolute rent-to-own professional with almost 35 years of career success behind him and a trio of independent stores that continue to grow.
“In February, Bolin Rental Purchase will turn 22 years old, and we still have the same three stores we’ve had for the past decade or so – Clarksville in Tennessee, and in Kentucky, Hopkinsville and Madisonville,” Bolin begins. “Since 2014, the business has grown each year in profitability and revenue, and two of the locations themselves have gotten bigger; Clarksville is now in a huge 18,000-square-foot space, and Hopkinsville is at 12,000 square feet. And we’ve got our corporate office and warehouse both in Clarksville, too.”
While Bolin is rightfully proud of the company he’s created and the impact he has had on the RTO industry (much more on this later), his perspective as he slides into his sixties boils down to one unyielding belief: It takes a village, y’all.
Chris Bolin was lucky and blessed enough to have a village, both literally and figuratively, from the get-go. Born and raised in Clarksville, Tennessee (the very same town popularized by The Monkees’ 1966 hit Last Train to Clarksville), Bolin credits his parents, Bill and Patricia, along with his maternal grandfather, John Powell, Jr., with setting a high standard early on in both work ethic and dogged determination.
“My dad was pretty strict and, as a former paratrooper with the 101st Airborne Division, a perfectionist,” recalls Bolin. “My grandfather was a lifelong over-the-road truck driver with a wood business side-hustle. When he was in from the road, we’d go out and cut firewood for people. Hoo boy, he kept me busy as a kid, and that hard work really stuck with me.”
Young Bolin was obsessed with motorcycles – so much so that his grandfather signed for Bolin to buy one at just 16, which led to his first job, at Buddy Appleton’s Harley Davidson dealership. Likewise, Bolin’s love of motorbikes and interest in law enforcement led to his first career about five years later, as a member of the Clarksville Police Department. Bolin flourished as an officer and at 25, was one of the department’s youngest members to be promoted to sergeant.
But following seven years on the force, Bolin left the CPD under what he calls “unfortunate circumstances,” and began an earnest job search – which led him to Alrenco, where he was hired as an account representative. And that’s when Bolin’s natural drive and grit kicked in, bigtime.
“Within six months, I went from account representative to assistant manager to store manager, then became one of the company’s top managers,” Bolin attests. “I was considering a move to multi-unit manager when I got a call from Mike Foley offering an opportunity to run five stores up in Chicago for a Michigan-based ColorTyme franchise.”
Bolin’s Windy City experience was an eye-opener – and a tough but valuable training ground.
“What a vibrant city and what a competitive market,” remembers Bolin. “The stores were in terrible condition, so I had to hire, train, and develop people, while also reconciling inventories and making managers practice the company’s policies and procedures. It was challenging, and I had to make a lot of decisions on my own – some of which were wrong, but many of which were right. I wasn’t there even two years, but it made me a much better supervisor and a much more dynamic leader, for sure.”
Alrenco Chief Operating Officer Bud Holladay persuaded Bolin to return to the company and to his home state as a multi-store manager based in Nashville. Over the next few years, Alrenco went public, merged with Home Choice, then merged again with Rent-Way. Despite overseeing as many as 13 stores in six different states, Bolin’s next promotion proved elusive. So when Bestway Rent-To-Own proposed a regional manager position with the potential for a vice presidency, Bolin bit.
Unfortunately, structural shifts at Best-way eliminated that promotional promise, and Bolin briefly returned to Rent-Way, running eight stores in Lexington, Kentucky, while he planned his next move. After eleven years of doing the RTO shuffle, Bolin decided the time was right to go out on his own.
“I knew how to select sites, negotiate leases, setup software, control expenses, buy product, and advertise effectively,” Bolin asserts. “So I figured, ‘Why not?’” Why not, indeed. Bolin went home to Clarksville and opened up Bolin Rental Purchase in early 2004.
Chris Bolin is the first to acknowledge that his first year as an independent rental dealer was, well, pretty rugged. But his extreme work ethic and relentless drive once again got him through the rough patch, while his Southern-gentlemanly nature manifested itself in his company, providing fairly smooth sailing to the success it is today.
“Failure was just not an option,” chuckles Bolin. “But I think key to our success is the old-fashioned way we do business. Our stores have a genuine, local feel to them. When our customers come in, they know we love them, we’re part of their community, and we’re happy to be there. We talk with them, shake hands with them, and we negotiate together.”
Whether it’s customers or employees, at Bolin Rental Purchase, the Golden Rule is the rule of law. Bolin has a profound understanding of rent-to-own as a relationship-based business, and believes employees must feel good about their work and their workplace in order for customers to feel the same.
“Treating people right has helped me retain great people who then treat our customers right,” Bolin explains. “I try to be really good to our employees, and I make sure they treat our customers just how I want to be treated when I’m on the other side of the counter. As long as you do that, you shoot straight, and you’re honest with people, you’re going to do OK.”
Another essential element in Bolin’s impressive RTO career is something so basic, everyone was taught about it in kindergarten: sharin
“When you share information, a whole new dynamic opens up,” states Bolin. “I can name literally dozens of people who have contributed to my success through the kind things they said or did for me. This industry is really different from others in that owners and managers and executives will share all sorts of information with you freely. Rent-to-own is just chock full of people who are willing to share their time, their energy, and their wisdom to help you however they can.”
Bolin has a profound understanding of rent-to-own as a relationship-based business, and believes employees must feel good about their work and their workplace in order for customers to feel the same.
Bolin strives to be one of those people, and to that end, has dedicated decades of volunteer leadership to RTO trade organizations like APRO, TRIB Group, and the Tennessee Rental Dealers Association (TRDA). A former APRO Board Member, Bolin served the association as both Second Vice President and Treasurer, and he is an 18-year member of the TRIB Board, where he has served as President, Vice President, and Treasurer.
“When my trade association calls, I’m always available,” Bolin says. “It’s important for us to answer that call. These organizations are essential for both our success as individuals and our success as an industry. As a businessman, every single time I attend an industry function, I walk away with something valuable – some sharp new idea or interesting perspective or an innovative solution to a common problem. And I’ve made a lot of irreplaceable relationships in this industry, many of whom I still go to today for advice, encouragement, or information.
“But it’s also critical for rental dealers to support our national and state trade organization because they’re the best insurance policy we’ve got against measures that could seriously damage our livelihoods – and that’s especially true for the independent guys, like me.”
Bolin’s biggest industry impact may be with TRDA, where he has been serving as the state association’s President for the past 17 years. Under his steadfast leadership, TRDA has grown into one of the most active RTO state associations nationwide; the organization has received the distinguished APRO President’s Circle Award three of the past four years. TRDA not only holds a robust annual membership meeting, but also supports industry initiatives like the APRO Scholarship Fund, the RTO Disaster Relief Fund, and the APRO Legislative Fellows Program.
“I’ve got a great board of directors who work with me at TRDA,” professes Bolin. “They’re consummate professionals, and whenever they see an opportunity to do something good for the industry, they’re on it. This year, we offered a President’s Award for the first time, and I gave one to [TRIB Group Executive Director] Dennis Shields and one to [APRO Director of Finance] Tulisha Wendele, because of all the vital work they have done and continue to do for our industry.”
At RTO World 2025, Bolin received an award of his own, specifically recognizing his exceptional leadership and devoted service to strengthening state associations. The RTO Tiger Award – named for the late “Tiger” John Cleek, Sr., the quintessential champion of state associations – honors individuals who have advanced rent-to-own legislative efforts at the grassroots level and contributed significantly to the industry’s advocacy and success.
“I served alongside Tiger John, and shared his passion for the state associations,” Bolin notes. “He knew how crucial independent owners and operators are as a source for grassroots advocacy – to talk to government officials, consumer advocates, or customers as small businesses serving local communities. There’s great value in using the state associations to partner smaller independents with our public companies to tell the RTO story better.”
Bolin is still going strong at all his industry groups, but acknowledges the need for new visages and viewpoints among rent-to-own leadership.
“We’ve got a lot of bright, sharp younger people I see and hear at our meetings, but we need them to get involved and serve on the boards,” invites Bolin. “I’ve gotten so much more out of it than I’ve put into it. It’s really such an enjoyable and enlightening experience – there are so many wonderful people to work with, and I always learn something, even all these years later. So don’t be hesitant to dive in – push the old codgers like me aside, and bring your talents to the table! There’s plenty of room!”
As I’ve grown older, I’m not as ambitious as I once was,” Bolin confesses. “I’m spending more time enjoying life and helping some people along the way, thanks to my incredible Operations Manager, John Doroba. John gives me time away from the business to really have a great lifestyle. Then, I can come back to it with a refreshed perspective, help John see some things maybe he hadn’t and come in with some ideas I might not have, had I been embedded in the day-to-day.”
Bolin shares that great lifestyle with his wife of almost a decade, Gabriela, a pediatrician who also wields a serious pickleball paddle. The couple spends as much time as possible socializing at their second home in Laguna Beach, Florida, and traveling together to an assortment of Caribbean coastlines.
“Gabriela is so smart and just a joy in my life,” effuses Bolin. “And when we got together in 2013, her two kids took me in and have treated me like another dad; it’s been a wonderful experience and an amazing addition to my life to have them and see all their accomplishments.” The Bolins’ son, Dr. Connor Morel, is a practicing small-animal veterinarian close to Nashville, thanks in part to six years of APRO scholarships funded through TRDA. Their daughter, Chandler Morel, is a current APRO scholar in her fourth year of medical school at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in Memphis; she’s training in emergency medicine at the Elvis Presley Trauma Center.
Chris Bolin’s villages, it seems, are vast and varied – from his family to his beach buddies, and, of course, the one that actually predates both of those: his many, many admiring and admirable colleagues in rent-to-own.
“It’s been an extraordinary journey and a fun ride,” remarks Bolin. “And I’ve got several great years left in me yet. When I see an employee moving up in the company, or a customer happy because they’ve paid off their agreement and they now own an item, that’s when I say, ‘Wow, what a wonderful way to make a living.’
“All these friendships we’ve forged over the years, so many friends I hold close and dear,” he concludes. “I’m just so grateful for the experience I’ve been given, getting into this industry and finding this group of exceptional entrepreneurial people … so many great relationships. And as I grow older, I realize just how important great relationships really are.”
Kristen Card has been a contributing writer for RTOHQ: The Magazine for more than 20 years.
