Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM OCTOBER 2018 52 T he St. Louis Gateway Arch, built in the 1960s, honors the early 19th-century explorations of Lewis and Clark, and America's westward expansion. In the same spirit of exploration, TRIB Group and APRO chose St. Louis to launch RTO World, the inaugural convention and trade show dedicated to the rent-to-own industry. Like all TRIB Events, RTO World featured the most exciting Hot Show Auction in the industry, offering opportunities for networking and engagement, and a host of educational sessions that were specifically designed to improve the rent-to own business across all levels. The educational sessions were targeted for marketing profession- als, store managers, IT professionals, district manager, owners and dealers. Tuesday began with the TRIB Group member meeting, where three new board members were elected. Joe Fischer, Chris Kale, Jr., and Jeff Lebakken were newly elected to serve. Short peer group meet-ups were followed by the APRO Awards Luncheon & Business Meeting where Jim Brown received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the rent-to-own industry. Jeff Lebakken was named Dealer of the Year. The APRO President's Award of Excellence went to Mark Connelly. Brad Denison of Benefit Marketing was named Vendor of the Year. TRIB Group is especially proud of these gentlemen, as they have been long-time members and affiliates of our group. The afternoon ended with the industry's most exciting Hot Show. For those of you unfamiliar with Hot Show, it is an auction format with dealers bidding to purchase specials offered by vendors. The items are limited, and the pricing is phenomenal, so dealers bid to get the specials. Wednesday saw the opening of the exhibit hall and trade show, followed by a networking event and the St. Louis Experience Party at Fox Sports Midwest Live. It was a fantastic evening, and we enjoyed once again spending time with vendors and rental dealers. We'd like to sincerely thank all of the staff at APRO, and Jill McClure, executive director, for their hard work bringing RTO World together. The show was a true collaboration between both organizations. We feel this event was important and beneficial to the industry, making it stronger, more unified and focused on the future. Be sure to join us next year when we'll once again bring the rent-to-own industry together in Louisville, Kentucky, August 6-8, 2019. Also look for TRIB Group at the BrandSource Convention in Nashville, March 2-5, 2019. SUPER RTO WORLD 18 THE RENT-TO-OWN INDUSTRY'S INAUGURAL CONVENTION AND TRADE SHOW RO Dennis Shields Rent-to-Own Trends Dennis Shields, Executive Director of the TRIB Group Jill McClure and Luis Garcia present Jim Brown with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Dennis Shields hosts the TRIB Member Meeting.

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