A group of colleagues from the former House of Television Rentals Inc. recently reunited at the storefront in Jamestown, New York, where they once worked for Owner/Operator Randy Otander.
The reunion brought together several current leaders of Your Hometown Rent To Own Inc. dba Hometown Rent To Own – which now owns the remodeled location – who began their careers under the leadership of Otander and his brother, Morrie.
“Having our mentor, Randy, come experience what we have built together was truly a full-circle moment,” said Hometown RTO Co-Owner Jeff Smith. “I’m extremely proud of what we’ve accomplished using the skills we all learned from Randy.”
A Legacy of Leadership
House of Television Rentals Inc. was founded by the Otander brothers in the late 1970s, growing from a single TV dealership into a successful rent-to-own (RTO) business serving western New York and northwest Pennsylvania. The company peaked at 15 stores, becoming well-known for its family-focused culture, dedication to employee development, and controlled slow-growth strategy.
Smith joined House of Television around 2000, managing the Warren, New York, store for several years, then left and later returned to the company as its IT Manager until 2019. After the Otanders retired from the business, Smith became a partner in Hometown RTO, which he has described as “a sort of spinoff of House of Television.”
Joining Otander and Smith for the reunion were fellow House of Television alumni Tracy Langworthy, John Munson, Dave Parker, Chris Posey, and Hometown RTO Co-Owner Matt Radecki.
Wisdom Beyond Just Walls
While touring the revamped location, Otander was extremely impressed, noting how many memories being there brought back for him. He noted the absence of what was once “the bullpen” – the old office – in exchange for greater showroom space, and recalled the old-fashioned card system they had used pre-computers for tracking payments and collections.
“This reunion has reminded me that the business was never just about stores or inventory,” Otander said. “It was always about people. Seeing so many former team members continue to grow and succeed is wonderfully rewarding.”
“Randy was very even-keeled and of high moral character,” remembered Smith. “He shared many pearls of wisdom with us; I call them ‘Randyisms.’ We still use some of them today, like ‘Don’t jump over a twenty to save a dime,’ and ‘People do business with people they like.’”
“When you spend years helping people learn a business, you hope they’ll go on to do something meaningful with it,” Otander concluded. “To see Jeff, Matt, and the others carrying those lessons forward in their own way is something I’m extremely proud of.”
