Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM OCTOBER 2022 56 R TO World 2022 – held in Indianapolis, Indiana, in early August – was the fifth annual National Convention and Tradeshow co-hosted by APRO and TRIB Group. About 720 rental dealers, managers and exhibitors from across the country came to incredible Indy to connect, collaborate, share, learn, honor, buy, sell and laugh together with their rent-to-own colleagues. A gaggle of golfers got the event going early Tuesday, August 9 with an outing to the Pete Dye-designed Eagle Creek Golf Club, sponsored by Benefit Marketing Solutions. With an 18-hole shotgun start, a group of 38 RTO golfers took on the scenic and challenging Sycamore course. Meanwhile, some companies leveraged the convention to hold their own gatherings: Impact RTO Holdings, dba Rent-A-Center, hosted a Leadership Meeting; The Premier Companies held a Franchisee Retreat; and RNR Tire Express hosted its Midyear Meeting. While the TRIB Board of Directors got together late Tuesday afternoon, the convention officially launched Wednesday morning with a TRIB Group membership meeting followed by six Peer Group Meetups – Buyers/Marketers/Administrators, Owners/ Dealers with 1- 5 stores, Owners/Dealers with 6-20 stores, Owners/Dealers with 21+ stores, Regional/District Managers, and Store Managers. Tom Ripley, Chairman and CEO of Lids Sports Group, gave the keynote address, titled The Future Lies Beneath Your Hat: Leadership Perspectives from a Retail CEO. Ripley spoke on the evolving role played by brick-and-mortar stores in today's global marketplace and provided his perspective on the importance of investing in young leadership. Participants selected from a broad spectrum of educational sessions to attend. From APRO General Counsel Ed Winn III's ever-popular Legal & Legislative Update to A Superstar Store Managers Panel; from How to Be a Better Buyer: Supply Chain & Product Trends, to Solutions for Staffing & Retention Issues, RTO professionals received information, inspiration and invaluable insights all afternoon. Day One finished strong with a Welcome Reception and Hot Show sponsored by Whirlpool Corporation. With esteemed auctioneer Lyn Leach of Ace Furniture & TV Inc., dba Ace Rent-To- Own at the mic, the show totaled more than $13.5 million in sales. Thursday morning brought early meetings for High Touch Technologies users, VersiRent Software users, and State Association Presidents, even before the RTO General Education Session — with breakfast sponsored by GE Appliances, a Haier Company. The session featured a panel discussion – From the Bar to the Stage: T R A D E S H O W N E W S RTO WORLD CELEBRATES FIFTH ANNIVERSARY IN INDY

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