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

Pete Shau
  • 5.0 (9)
  • Careers
  • Updated Weekly

The RTO Show Podcast is the podcast for the rent-to-own industry, hosted by Pete Shau, an industry insider with more than 20 years of experience in RTO operations, sales, leadership, marketing, and store growth.  Each episode brings candid conversations, practical insights, and real stories from the people shaping the RTO community, including operators, vendors, association leaders, store teams, industry veterans, and innovators helping move rent-to-own forward.  Pete’s conversations are built for seasoned veterans, newcomers, owners, managers, vendors, and anyone who wants to learn from the shared experiences, hard-earned lessons, and fresh perspectives inside the rent-to-own industry.  From lead generation, lead management, customer behavior, store traffic, door swings, sales process, collections, training, recruitment, and leadership development to technology, CRM integration, mobile-first shopping, Google ranking, Facebook ads, video marketing, advocacy, APRO, TRIB Group, RTO World, LegCon, and the future of the rent-to-own business model, The RTO Show helps listeners understand what is really happening in RTO.  If you work in RTO, serve the RTO industry, or want to better understand the people, challenges, trends, and opportunities behind rent-to-own, The RTO Show Podcast is your insider’s guide to the industry’s pulse.  Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

  1. 3d ago

    How Rent To Own Powers The Portable Shed Industry

    Send us Fan Mail AI is already “explaining” rent-to-own to your customers, the media, and regulators, whether we like it or not. If we don’t publish accurate, industry-authored information, the internet fills in the blanks for us and those guesses can turn into headlines, policy, and bad assumptions. That’s where the shed world gets fascinating, because rent-to-own portable buildings sit at the crossroads of logistics, contracts, customer education, and public perception. I’m joined by Shannon Latham, better known as The Shed Geek, to map out how the shed industry really works: manufacturers, independent shed dealers, specialized hauling, and the vendor and software layers that keep everything moving. We dig into the difference between vertical integration and third-party “paper” management, why delivery equipment matters as much as sales skill, and how customer experience changes when a deal becomes a month-by-month RTO relationship. We also get real about the modern retail shift after COVID: SEO, Google Ads, 3D configurators, QR-code selling, and the race to respond fast when a lead comes in. Along the way, we talk about the “tiny home” confusion, why clear contract language protects everyone, and how groups like the National Shed Rental Association push education and self-regulation so the industry stays transparent and professional. If you care about rent-to-own, portable buildings, shed sales, or where AI is taking customer search, this one will sharpen your thinking. Subscribe, share this with a dealer or operator who needs it, and leave a review with the biggest myth you want the RTO industry to correct next. Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

  2. Oct 12

    How to Spot Future RTO Leaders on Your Team with Erica St. Charles

    Send us Fan Mail Watching someone rise fast in rent-to-own can look like luck from the outside, but Erica St. Charles breaks down what is really happening behind the scenes: trust earned one shift at a time, relentless follow-up, and a leadership style that never asks the team to do work she would not do herself. From getting soaked loading a trailer to winning back-to-back Region of the Year, Erica’s story is a straight shot at what modern RTO leadership actually demands. We talk through her move from hotel management into the rent-to-own industry, the early reality check of learning products, systems, and long-term customer relationships, and the mindset change that helped her start “crushing it.” Then we get into the hard pivot from single-store success to multi-unit management: choosing where to spend time, balancing urgent vs important priorities, and surviving the first 90 days when you suddenly lead people who used to be peers. If you are trying to grow talent, this conversation goes deep on employee development and bench strength. Erica shares how she spots future leaders during stressful moments, how she develops delivery and sales team members before a management opening exists, and how she coaches underperformance by separating “can’t do” from “won’t do.” We also touch on workplace communication, building relationships with the entire team, and her advice for women leading in a male-driven space. Plus, you will hear why accurate online information matters for the future of RTO through APRIL’s Generative Knowledge Initiative. Subscribe for more rent-to-own leadership conversations, share this with a manager who is building their bench, and leave a review with the biggest takeaway you are putting into practice. APROAssociation of Professional Rental OrganizationsWow BrandsDigital Marketing for the RTO industry - Including Web design, SEO, ad, and much more under one roofRNR Tire ExpressCustom wheels & tires with flexible rent-to-own options. Find a store near you today!Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

  3. Oct 5

    Joe Ignace of Velocity 360 on Sales Science and increasing Close Rates in RTO

    Send us Fan Mail One store Joe Ignace worked with found that 80% of its quotes never got a follow-up call. Joe is the CEO of Velocity 360 CRM, and he joins Pete Shau to explain where dealers lose sales after the lead comes in. He started in door-to-door sales, learned to treat selling as a formula, and now helps shed, outdoor structure, and furniture dealers fix their lead management. Pete asks the practical questions: how fast is fast enough, which lead sources actually close, and what a dealer can do when the phone is ringing and the door is swinging at the same time. Joe shares the close rates Velocity 360 has tracked by lead source, why a quote sent by email so often disappears, and the short list of numbers every dealer should be watching. The conversation also covers what a sales solution does that a blank-slate CRM does not, and why a tighter economy makes follow-up speed matter more. Get Joe's Sales Scaling Roadmap at velocity360crm.com/sales-roadmap, or book a demo at velocity360crm.com and tell them The RTO Show sent you. Subscribe to our newsletter at thertoshowpodcast.com for more from the show. What You'll Learn Why follow-up speed can matter more than lead volumeHow close rates differ between Facebook leads and 3D configurator leads, based on Velocity 360 dataWhere quotes leak out of the sales funnel and how automation closes the gapFive numbers that show whether you have a marketing problem or a sales problemOne thing a dealer can do today to see every missed leadhttps://velocity360crm.com/sales-roadmap APROAssociation of Professional Rental OrganizationsWow BrandsDigital Marketing for the RTO industry - Including Web design, SEO, ad, and much more under one roofRNR Tire ExpressCustom wheels & tires with flexible rent-to-own options. Find a store near you today!Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

  4. Sep 28

    Credit Is Splitting In Two and That's How Rent To Own Benefits

    Send us Fan Mail Credit is changing right under our feet, and if you run a rent-to-own store, you’re going to feel the impact before most people can even name it. Phones get quieter, shoppers take longer to decide, and deals feel harder to close. That doesn’t automatically mean demand is gone. It can mean the paths customers used to rely on are closing, and they’re about to look for the one door that still says yes. We walk through the hard signals behind the shift: banks tightening standards for subprime lending, what the Fed’s Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey is really telling us, and why “I got turned down” is becoming a normal customer story again. Then we dig into buy now, pay later and the regulatory pressure hitting BNPL, from repayment checks to concerns about loan stacking. When the shortcut stops working, people still need furniture, appliances, and the basics to run a household, and they need a realistic way to pay. You’ll also hear why a K-shaped credit market matters so much for RTO dealers: prime borrowers keep getting access, while the bottom half faces more scrutiny and fewer approvals. That’s our customer, and the job market staying steady means many of them have income but not access. We close with practical moves you can take immediately, from making “no credit needed” a clear marketing headline to training your team to meet these shoppers with confidence. Subscribe for more RTO strategy, share this with your team, and leave a review so more dealers can find it. What’s the biggest credit shift you’re seeing in your market right now? APROAssociation of Professional Rental OrganizationsWow BrandsDigital Marketing for the RTO industry - Including Web design, SEO, ad, and much more under one roofRNR Tire ExpressCustom wheels & tires with flexible rent-to-own options. Find a store near you today!Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

  5. Sep 21

    Why Your Next Customer Is Still Sitting at Home

    Send us Fan Mail A three-year delay doesn’t sound like much until you translate it into what rent to own actually sells: first homes, first rooms, and the big “everything at once” purchases that come with household formation. The average move-out age has climbed from about 23 to about 26, and that shift is quietly reshaping demand across the rent-to-own industry. I break down why this is overwhelmingly a housing affordability story, why the purchases did not disappear, and why a backlog of delayed household formation could become a powerful tailwind for operators who build real customer relationships now. I’m also packing for Knoxville, Tennessee for the National Shed Rental Association conference, and I explain exactly why a shed event matters even if you rent sofas, appliances, electronics, or tires. Traditional RTO and shed RTO often serve the same customer with the same weekly or monthly payment structure, but the operating muscles are different when the product sits on someone else’s property and gets sold through independent dealer lots. I share the three sessions I’m most focused on: RTO reporting and key metrics, the economics of returns and the “return advantage,” and a keynote on overcoming uncomfortable conversations that hits home for collections calls and team coaching. Then we shift into fourth quarter execution with four sets of numbers that should shape the next 90 to 95 days: holiday retail forecasts, the spending power of households with kids, job-market texture that points to longer unemployment spells, and the reality of record debt plus rising delinquencies. If buy now pay later apps are already approving your customers, your counter conversation has to be sharper: no debt, return flexibility, and service included. I close with four practical moves to protect renewals and reduce returns before January arrives. Subscribe, share this with one operator who needs it, and leave a review so more RTO leaders can find the show. APROAssociation of Professional Rental OrganizationsWow BrandsDigital Marketing for the RTO industry - Including Web design, SEO, ad, and much more under one roofRNR Tire ExpressCustom wheels & tires with flexible rent-to-own options. Find a store near you today!Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

  6. Sep 14

    Tectonic CEO Dusty Gulleson on Leading RTO Teams Without Micromanaging

    Send us Fan Mail Half of new platform rollouts fail, and the software is rarely the reason. Dusty Gulleson, CEO of Tectonic, joins Pete Shau to explain why so many RTO dealers buy a CRM, POS system, or routing app their teams never use, and what to do before you sign the next contract. Dusty built a 100-person technology company over 27 years with no outside capital and a team that tends to stay for more than a decade. He walks through his people, processes, and platforms order of operations, how to read a vendor pitch before you ask a single question, why the red light in your reports usually points somewhere other than the real problem, and how decentralized leadership and a fair approach to mistakes keep good people in the building even when a competitor offers more money. It is an outside perspective that lands squarely on the operational challenges rent-to-own operators deal with every day. Subscribe to The RTO Show Podcast wherever you listen, and join the newsletter at rtoshowpodcast.com for the industry conversations that do not make it onto the show. What You'll Learn Why leadership, and rarely the tool, is the reason a new platform sits unusedWhat to listen for in a vendor pitch before you ask any questionsHow one-on-one interviews and a scored survey tell you what your stores actually needA way to hold people accountable for big mistakes without shaming them out the doorWhy a healthy work environment keeps employees when a competitor offers 50 cents moreGuest Dusty Gulleson is the CEO of Tectonic, a vertically integrated technology company he founded 27 years ago that now serves roughly 400 clients across strategy, digital, managed IT and security, higher education software, and AI and automation. He has grown the company to 100 people with no outside capital. FlyWheel RTOA premier supplier to the RTO industry, providing high quality brand-name products.APROAssociation of Professional Rental OrganizationsWow BrandsDigital Marketing for the RTO industry - Including Web design, SEO, ad, and much more under one roofRNR Tire ExpressCustom wheels & tires with flexible rent-to-own options. Find a store near you today!Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

  7. Sep 7

    RTO World 2026 Highlights: Hello West Palm Beach!

    Send us Fan Mail If you think rent-to-own is just a transaction, RTO World 2026 proves it is a full ecosystem built on relationships, standards, and real community impact. Pete Shau is in West Palm Beach with Charles Smitherman, CEO of APRO, for a candid recap of the event. They cover why networking is a competitive advantage for operators and vendors, what the APRO Legal Summit revealed about TCPA, texting, and shifting state laws, and why the Generative Knowledge Initiative matters now that AI and search engines are already explaining rent-to-own to customers, journalists, and policymakers. You will also hear about the Women's Forum, the Tissett Talk, vendor speed dating, the scholarship silent auction, a passing of the torch at the hot show, and an $80,000 giveback that put mattresses and furniture in the hands of young adults leaving foster care. Then Charles previews RTO World 2027 in Cleveland, including an experience party at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Subscribe, share this with someone in RTO, and join The RTO Newsletter at thertoshowpodcast.com. What You'll Learn Why networking at RTO World is a real business advantage and how to use itHow TCPA and texting rules create risk for stores that market by phoneWhat the Generative Knowledge Initiative means for how AI describes rent-to-ownWhy tire and wheel, shed, and franchise operators belong at RTO World tooHow the APRO Charitable Foundation funds scholarships and disaster reliefGuest Charles Smitherman, PhD, JD, MSt, CAE, is CEO of APRO, the national trade association for the rent-to-own industry, and a co-author of The Rent to Own Revolution. He leads APRO's legislative monitoring, best-practice development, and AI readiness efforts. Tools, Frameworks, or Strategies Mentioned Protecting the Transaction Legal Summit: APRO's annual session on legislation, consumer protections, and best practices, now in its third year and aimed at building a self-regulating industry.TCPA and Do Not Call best practices: Guidance APRO is releasing on telephone, texting, and marketing compliance under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.Generative Knowledge Initiative: APRO's effort to publish accurate, industry-authored content so AI and search engines describe rent-to-own correctly. Resources at rtohq.org/AI include the GEO toolkit, AI best practices, and an AI implementation playbook.RTO 101 Knowledge Base: APRO's digitized industry history, research, and customer and employee stories built for an AI-driven world.Vendor speed dating: Four-minute rotations that give service providers and new vendors face time with operators before the expo.APRO Charitable Foundation: Scholarship fund (about $1.3 million awarded to date) and disaster relief for RTO families. Donate at rtohq.org.LEAP program: APRO's on-demand education library for members.Recorded education sessions: All RTO World 2026 breakouts were professionally recorded and are available on demand to APRO members.FlyWheel RTOA premier supplier to the RTO industry, providing high quality brand-name products.APROAssociation of Professional Rental OrganizationsWow BrandsDigital Marketing for the RTO industry - Including Web design, SEO, ad, and much more under one roofRNR Tire ExpressCustom wheels & tires with flexible rent-to-own options. Find a store near you today!Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

    RTO World 2026 Highlights: Hello West Palm Beach!

  8. Aug 31

    How Self-Awareness Turns Good RTO Sellers Into Great Ones

    Send us Fan Mail Charisma is the quiet force that can make an average pitch land and a perfect pitch fall flat. Pete sits down with Arky Jones from Australia to unpack why some people seem to “read the room” instantly, how emotional intelligence shows up in tiny nonverbal cues, and what sales leaders can do to coach those skills without turning their teams into robots. If you’ve ever watched a rep with less product knowledge outperform the expert, this conversation puts language and structure around what you’re seeing. We go deep on self-awareness as a skill you can build, not a trait you’re born with. Arky shares his 1% principle for steady improvement, the control versus no-control filter that reduces stress, and the idea that personality is a mirror, not a box. That difference matters in real workplaces: personality assessments can help hiring, training, and communication, but only if they stay a tool rather than a label that steals agency. We also talk about when to retake a personality test during periods of change, and how tracking patterns over time can make leadership development more intentional. The second half gets practical with behavior change: neuroplasticity, manual overrides when old defaults creep in, and a grounded take on stoicism as a toolbox option for managing pressure. Arky explains blind spots as outdated protection, plus one of the most damaging workplace patterns, holding others to standards you won’t hold yourself to. If you want better rent-to-own sales training, stronger team communication, and a clearer way to coach people as individuals, you’ll take a lot from this one. Subscribe, share this with a manager or rep who cares about growth, and leave a review with the biggest blind spot you’re working on right now. APROAssociation of Professional Rental OrganizationsWow BrandsDigital Marketing for the RTO industry - Including Web design, SEO, ad, and much more under one roofRNR Tire ExpressCustom wheels & tires with flexible rent-to-own options. Find a store near you today!Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.Support the show Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/4wpbUqF Subscribe on Spotify: https://bit.ly/RTOPODspotify Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

See All (162)

5
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

The RTO Show Podcast is the podcast for the rent-to-own industry, hosted by Pete Shau, an industry insider with more than 20 years of experience in RTO operations, sales, leadership, marketing, and store growth.  Each episode brings candid conversations, practical insights, and real stories from the people shaping the RTO community, including operators, vendors, association leaders, store teams, industry veterans, and innovators helping move rent-to-own forward.  Pete’s conversations are built for seasoned veterans, newcomers, owners, managers, vendors, and anyone who wants to learn from the shared experiences, hard-earned lessons, and fresh perspectives inside the rent-to-own industry.  From lead generation, lead management, customer behavior, store traffic, door swings, sales process, collections, training, recruitment, and leadership development to technology, CRM integration, mobile-first shopping, Google ranking, Facebook ads, video marketing, advocacy, APRO, TRIB Group, RTO World, LegCon, and the future of the rent-to-own business model, The RTO Show helps listeners understand what is really happening in RTO.  If you work in RTO, serve the RTO industry, or want to better understand the people, challenges, trends, and opportunities behind rent-to-own, The RTO Show Podcast is your insider’s guide to the industry’s pulse.  Join The RTO Newsletter: https://bit.ly/RTOPODnewsletter Learn More About Sponsorship: https://bit.ly/RTOPODsponsor

Information

You Might Also Like