Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM JUNE 2019 58 B U Y I N G G R O U P N E W S R ent to Own advocates, including owners, store managers, customers, and RTO vendors from around the country met in Washington, DC in April for the Association of Progressive Rental (APRO) legislative conference. Attendance was the highest in six years, with over 30% attending for the first time. For the second year in a row, the RTO group wasn't there to push or fight for legislation for or against RTO. The record number of attendees and the APRO organization believe that going to DC to educate the members of Congress on the need for the RTO industry is invaluable for building congressional relationships, even when there are no pressing legislative issues in the hopper. We need to take action right now for the future when the need for help might arise. The comments I received at each meeting and from each congressional office I visited confirmed the value of our presence in DC. I was amazed to see how many of our legislators had a fairly good understanding of RTO. Equally amazing was how many had hardly any understanding of RTO at all! But most amazing was how the offices were more than willing to listen to what we had to say. The message we gave them concerned how much their constituents actually need RTO. People with low credit scores still want to buy new refrigerators, big screen TVs and furniture, and these folks need RTO to help them make their dreams come true. We told many customer stories that supported the need for RTO and we scheduled time to talk about the additional costs to RTO owners of providing these services. Not all of the members of Congress we spoke with fully understood the cost of delivering the same product four times and picking it up three times, or that the cost of repairing products out of the manufacturer's warranty fall to the RTO store while it's being rented – not the customer/constituent. We explained the relationships that are created between RTO stores and their customers. We explained that RTO stores take great pride in making sure their customers are well taken care of, and that whenever complaints come to Washington we're more than happy to jump in and help get the issue resolved. We helped each Congress person clearly understand that RTO is every bit as customer-focused as the members of Congress are with their constituents, and that we came to DC to educate and offer our knowledge and experience as a resource to help create better legislation for all. After this year's legislative conference, the thought occurred to me that going to Washington is like preventive maintenance – it's required to keep the RTO industry's wheels running smoothly. So if I didn't see you this year, I hope you'll save the date and join us for next year's conference. NATIONWIDE RENT TO OWN GOES TO WASHINGTON RO Bruce Manning — Director, Nationwide RTO

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