Illinois Rental Dealers Honor Industry Leaders at Annual Meeting
Lifetime of Distinguished Service award recipients with outgoing IRDA President Casey Pristou
The Illinois Rental Dealers Association held its annual meeting October 25 in Springfield, IL. This year’s meeting participation was up by 30 percent from 2017, breaking the association’s all-time highest record for attendance and comprising an equitable representation of store managers, regional/district managers and owners/dealers. The highlight of the event was the Lifetime of Distinguished Service awards, which honored industry leaders for their positive impact on the organization. Award recipients were APRO Board Members Larry Carrico and Gopal Reddy, APRO General Counsel Ed Winn III, National Rent to Own’s Steve Braning and Rent One’s David Keen.
“Illinois has been APRO State Association of the Year, recognized for its Continued Excellence and Legislative Achievement in recent years,” noted Aaron’s franchisee and outgoing IRDA President Casey Pristou. “In my final acts as IRDA president, I want to recognize you all, without whom the association would not have succeeded as well as it has.”
The meeting also featured the appointment of the new IRDA president, Rent One’s Kelly Martin. “IRDA has a longstanding history of being one of the strongest state associations in rent-to-own,” Martin told members. “I’m beyond honored that IRDA’s current board leadership and membership feel I’m the best fit to serve as the next president. This is not a responsibility I take lightly, and I’m looking forward to seeing how IRDA can continue to raise the bar for state associations.”
The event theme was Navigating the Current Ambiguity and Uncertainty of RTO, and the agenda included a panel of industry veterans – including Braning, Carrico and Watershed Development Corporation’s Mike Ceruzzi – tackling current events and critical questions through group discussion, as well as a remarkable roster of great speakers, including Martin, Winn and IRDA government relations consultant Michael Houlihan.
IRDA’s newly elected/re-elected board of directors are: Kelly Martin, president; Mike Ceruzzi, vice president; Larry Carrico, treasurer; and board members Steve Braning, Matt Grynwald, David Keen, Brad Kosem, Kevin Milliron, Dave Scroggins and Glen Wallace.
Click here for more photos of the 2018 IRDA annual meeting.
Mike Lewis is a Premier Rental Purchase franchisee with multiple stores and currently serves as Vice President of Operations. With 33 years of experience in the rent-to-own industry, he has spent the past 20 years working closely with franchisee owners and previously spent 12 years in Corporate RTO, gaining a strong foundation in the business.
For the past five years, Mike has been sharing his knowledge by teaching managers and franchisees at the company’s Training Center.
Outside of work, he enjoys time with his family, kids, and grandkids, and appreciates the simple things in life – especially riding his Harley Davidson with the sun on his face. If you know, you know!
Lauren Talicska
Arona Corporation dba Arona Home Essentials
Lauren Talicska is an experienced multi-channel marketing specialist and the Vice President of Marketing & Communications at Arona Home Essentials. She has found her home in the RTO community, supporting stores in branding, growth, and increasing traffic.
You may recognize Lauren as a former RTO vendor, including her time as a partner for Nationwide RentDirect, or her previous participation in the APRO Vendor Advisory Committee. Lauren calls Columbus, Ohio, home and spends her workday crafting and executing marketing promotions from inception to realization, all while supporting the branding and social media needs of all the Arona stores in 12 states (plus Puerto Rico!).
Charles Smitherman
APRO
Charles Smitherman, JD, PhD, CAE, became CEO of APRO in 2023, bringing years of legal and executive experience in the rent-to-own industry.
Prior to joining the association, Charles served as COO, General Counsel, and Vice President of PTS Financial Services, where he played an active role in the rent-to-own industry by representing his company through PTS’s club program offering with APRO member dealers. Charles is an attorney with two decades of experience across a wide variety of areas, including RTO, consumer financial services, antitrust, corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, litigation, franchise law, and privacy law. Following law school at the University of Georgia, Charles earned a Master of Legal Studies and PhD in Law from the University of Oxford in England.
Charles is credentialed as a Certified Association Executive (CAE) with the American Society of Association Executives, a Certified Franchise Executive (CFE) with the International Franchise Association, and a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP/US) and Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM) through the International Association of Privacy Professionals. As APRO’s sixth CEO in its 45-year history, he brings a collaborative, member-focused approach to association leadership, emphasizing transparency, advocacy, and value creation. Outside of work, Charles is an active ultra runner and open water swimmer.
Mike Kays
Ashley Furniture Industries
As VP of Rental Sales for Ashley Furniture Industries, Mike thrives on building relationships with our RTO industry veterans, and helping businesses grow through new product, new marketing, and new supply chain options.
Mike works to leverage a wide breadth of relationships and influence, intimate knowledge of market trends, and unique knowledge of what RTO dealers need from a supplier to be successful.
The saying goes that a high tide raises all boats, and our goal is to leverage the world’s largest furniture manufacturer to drive the continued growth of the RTO industry and all the suppliers.
Mike Tissot
Countryside Rentals Inc., dba Rent-2-Own
Mike grew up in the rent-to-own industry under the guidance of his father, former APRO President and RTO legend Darrell Tissot. For nearly 25 years, Mike’s innovative leadership has helped expand the family business to more than 40 stores across Ohio and Kentucky while also shaping the industry as a whole.
He has served as President of the Ohio Rental Dealers Association, an APRO board member and Treasurer, and President and Treasurer of the TRIB Group. His contributions have earned him the APRO President’s Award of Excellence and the title of APRO Rental Dealer of the Year.
Outside of RTO, Mike enjoys time at the lake house or in Orange Beach, Alabama, with his girlfriend, Angela Strong McCool. A passionate Cincinnati Reds fan, he rarely misses a game, whether watching or listening alongside his parents. He also takes every opportunity to visit Arizona, where his daughter is currently attending Arizona State University.
