The RTO Show: "Let's talk Rent to Own"

Send us Fan Mail What does it really take to build a successful rent to own franchise in today’s economy? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau sits down with Mitchell Lee, Senior Director of Franchise Sales for Buddy’s Home Furnishings, to break down the realities of franchise ownership, acquisition strategy, financing challenges, multi unit growth, and the future of franchising in the rent...

Send us Fan Mail What is really shaping the future of the rent to own industry in 2025? In this live episode from RTO World 2025 in Omaha, Pete Shau brings together industry leaders, advocacy experts, franchise operators, and marketing innovators to discuss the biggest shifts happening across rent to own today. From legislative battles in New York and APRO advocacy efforts to omnichannel marketing...

Send us Fan Mail What separates a good customer experience from a value driven business culture that scales across 200+ franchise locations? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau sits down with Adam Sutton, CEO of RNR Tire Express, to explore leadership, franchising, customer experience, culture building, and scalable growth inside the rent to own industry. Adam shares how RNR Tire Express ev...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when Silicon Valley level AI innovation enters the rent to own industry? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau sits down with Sean Karagotou, COO and co founder of Atlog, to explore how AI voice agents, automation, and customer intelligence tools could transform collections, sales, customer service, and operational efficiency for rent to own businesses. Sean brea...

Send us Fan Mail Why are so many rent to own customers paying off agreements and never coming back? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau and Jason Winters break down the real drivers behind payout conversion, customer retention, and long term rent to own loyalty. This conversation explores rent to own sales strategy, PIF conversion tactics, EPO conversion rates, customer experience managemen...

Send us Fan Mail Pete brings back Jason Winters for a candid, unscripted conversation about what's actually changed in rent-to-own sales since the pandemic — and why stores that are still operating the old way are slowly losing ground. The core argument is this: foot traffic isn't coming back, and the customers who are coming in are mostly there out of necessity, not desire. RTO has alwa...

Send us Fan Mail What does it really take to build a successful company in the rent to own industry from the ground up? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau sits down with Leonard Alonzo, President and Owner of JLR America, to explore the journey from immigrant roots and Disney craftsmanship to building one of the fastest growing rent to own supply companies in America. Leonard shares how op...

Send us Fan Mail Why are so many rent to own stores still chasing old leads while missing the next generation of customers? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau sits down with Jeraud Norman from Jeraud Marketing Solutions to break down how Facebook marketing, social media advertising, and authentic video content can help RTO operators attract fresh customers and grow long term revenue. From...

Send us Fan Mail What does it take to build a rent to own company that survives economic downturns, industry shifts, and four decades of change? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau sits down with Showplace Rent-to-Own founder Gary Ferriman to unpack the leadership principles, operational systems, and entrepreneurial mindset that helped grow Showplace into a long standing RTO success story....

Send us Fan Mail Pete sits down with Charles Smitherman, CEO of APRO, to talk about LegCon — the annual legislative conference where rent-to-own industry members travel to Washington DC to meet directly with their congressional representatives. Now in its 31st year, LegCon 2025 brought 88 attendees, up from 78 the year before, with a goal of hitting triple digits in 2026. The logistics alone are i...

Send us Fan Mail Ed Wynn, the legendary legal architect behind rent-to-own's regulatory framework, shares his extraordinary four-decade journey protecting an industry that many lawmakers never fully understood. Fresh into retirement after serving as APRO's legal counsel since its inception, Wynn offers unprecedented insights into how a collection of rental dealers transformed into a soph...

Send us Fan Mail What does it take to survive and lead through four decades of change in the rent to own industry? In this episode of The RTO Show Podcast, Peter Shau sits down with industry legend Ken Butler to explore leadership, operational discipline, time management, and the evolution of rent to own retail. With experience spanning Aaron’s and Buddy’s Home Furnishings, Ken shares practical le...

Send us Fan Mail Enjoy the world of quality rugs in the rent-to-own industry as Heath Perkins of Daylan Rug Company shares the remarkable journey of bringing fashion-forward floor coverings to a market once dominated by afterthought accessories. When Daylan first approached the rent-to-own sector over a decade ago, they encountered a surprising reality: most stores were content with basic, low-qua...

Send us Fan Mail What does it take to build one of the most recognized furniture brands in the world while continuing to innovate in the rent to own industry? In this episode of The RTO Show Podcast, Pete Shau sits down with Mike Kays, Vice President of Rental Operations for Ashley Furniture, to discuss the evolution of Ashley Furniture, retail logistics, mattress innovation, supply chain strategy...

Send us Fan Mail Step into the world of NAV-AIR, a transformative force in the rent-to-own streaming industry, as we explore their journey and innovative approach. This episode of the RTO Show features a dynamic discussion with the leadership team, highlighting their military backgrounds and how these experiences shape their mission to provide unparalleled service and build lasting relationships i...

Send us Fan Mail What if your next best store manager wasn't a new hire, but an AI assistant that helps you make better decisions every day? In the final installment of this six part AI series, Pete Shau sits down with Daniel Hajduk of BoxPopuli to explore how artificial intelligence can help rent to own businesses improve inventory management, scheduling, task organization, route planning, c...

Send us Fan Mail What if you could understand exactly who your best customers are, where they come from, what they value, and how to serve them better before they ever walk through your door? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau and Daniel Hajduk explore how artificial intelligence can help rent to own operators build detailed customer personas, analyze customer demographics, identify geogra...

Send us Fan Mail What if your next best marketing campaign was already sitting at your fingertips? In this episode of The RTO Show, Pete Shau and Daniel Hajduk explore how artificial intelligence is transforming marketing for rent to own businesses. From creating personalized campaigns and community focused promotions to customer targeting, social media content creation, and marketing analytics, t...

Send us Fan Mail What if every employee in your rent to own business had access to a personal sales coach, trainer, planner, and assistant available 24 hours a day? In Part 3 of The RTO Show's AI series, host Pete Shau sits down with Daniel Hajduk from Vox Populi to explore practical ways artificial intelligence can make life easier for rent to own operators. From building better sales script...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when AI stops being a future trend and starts solving real business problems today? In this episode of The RTO Show , host Pete Shau welcomes Daniel Hajduk of Vox Populi for Part 2 of their AI series, exploring the practical ways artificial intelligence is already transforming retail, furniture sales, marketing, customer service, inventory management, and business ope...

Send us Fan Mail Artificial intelligence is everywhere, but what does it actually mean for rent-to-own operators, store managers, marketers, and business owners? In this first episode of a six-part AI series, Pete Shau sits down with Daniel Hajduk of Vox Populi to break down the fundamentals of AI, explain why it is becoming such an important business tool, and explore how everyday professionals c...

Send us Fan Mail What if the future of rent-to-own furniture isn't about selling products, but creating adaptable living experiences that evolve with the customer? In this episode of The RTO Show, host Pete Shau sits down with Brandon Jin, National Sales Manager at Living Essentials, to discuss how product innovation, customer driven design, and changing consumer expectations are reshaping th...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when the host becomes the guest? Join us on an exciting journey as Pete Shau, flips the microphone to reveal his life story. From a snowy birth in Brooklyn to the sunny vibes of Florida, Pete's path led him unexpectedly into the rent-to-own industry, thanks to a life-changing encounter at a bank. This episode promises insights into the power of building genuine r...

Send us Fan Mail What does it really take to secure funding in the rent to own industry, and why do so many traditional lenders struggle to understand the RTO business model? In this episode of The RTO Show, host Peter Shau sits down with Thomas Murphy, Managing Member of Capital Concierges, to explore how rent to own operators can access business capital, secure SBA loans, fund new store growth,...

Send us Fan Mail What happens when a company goes from being months away from shutting down to becoming one of the most recognized technology platforms in furniture retail and Rent to Own? In this episode of The RTO Show, Peter Shau sits down with Wondersign CEO Kaspar Fopp to uncover the remarkable story behind Wondersign's growth, its partnership with Ashley Furniture, and its widespread ad...